Game #23 - Furman

The Furman Paladins travel up the mountain to face the Cats in the second game of the yearly series looking to pick up a sweep, but the Cats are looking to protect the home court and not let the Paladins have the tie breaker against the Cats.



When: Saturday, February, 8 
Time: 2:00 pm
Where: Ramsey Center, Cullowhee, NC   
Radio: Catamount Sports Network
-Radio Announcer: Gary Ayers
TV/video: ESPN+
-TV Announcer: Daniel Hooker
Live Stats: WCU Live Stats
Message Board: Go Paladins

The Series: The series between Western and the Paladins started back in 1977 and the Cats trail 29-47 overall against Furman, but Western is 20-14 in games between the two teams played in Cullowhee.  The Cats are on an eight game slide to the Paladins, last winning in Cullowhee in 2016, by a score of 73-62.

Furman's 2019-20 record: 19-5 overall, 7-4 away games, 9-2 SoCon

Furman was tabbed to finish third in preseason polling of the SoCon’s coaches and media but currently sits in a first place tie with ETSU, both sporting a 9-2 conference record.  The Paladins currently sit in 7th place in this week's mid-major top 25 poll.

The Paladins come to Cullowhee riding a 4 game in streak, looking for the season sweep over the Cats, having beat the Cats on Jan 15th in Greenville, by a final score of 83-79. The Paladins,  outscored Western 15-2 on points off of turnovers and committed just seven miscues in the game, including two turnovers in the second half. Furman shot 45.9% from the field, converted on 19-of-25 trips to the charity stripe and fashioned a 36-32 scoring advantage in the paint.

The Paladins rank 2nd, behind the Cats in scoring offense posting 77.8 points per game (ppg), and 3rd in defensive scoring, giving up only 66 ppg. The money maker for the Cats can be the 3-point shot, as the Cats rank first in the SoCon in 3-point percentage, and the Paladins are in 6th place in that category.



Furman Probable Starters
Senior/Guard - Jordan Lyons, 5'11" 190
Junior/Guard - Alex Hunter, 5'11" 185
Junior/Forward - Clay Mounce, 6'7" 205
Soph/Forward - Noah Gurley, 6'8" 210
Soph/Forward - Jalen Slawson, 6'7" 210