Furman’s late run dash Bucs’ chances on the road

Published 8:15 am Thursday, January 13, 2022

GREENVILLE, S.C.  For the majority of the night it looked like the Buccaneers were going to erase their demons inside Timmons Arena.

Leading for 31 minutes and up three with less than six minutes to play, ETSU surrendered a 15-3 closing run by the Paladins, and Furman rallied for a 78-69 win on Wednesday night in Greenville, S.C.

The Bucs, who have dropped seven of their eight games played inside Timmons Arena since rejoining the Southern Conference in 2014-15, moved to 10-8 overall and 2-3 in conference play.

ETSU shot 48 percent (27-56) but went 5-of-21 from beyond the arc, compared to Furman making 11 of its 35 attempts from long distance. The Paladins finished 45 percent for the field (28-62). Furman made seven of its 15 three-point attempts in the second half and shot 52 percent from the floor in the final 20 minutes.

Furman converted 14 ETSU turnovers into 20 points, while the Bucs only scored six off 10 Paladin miscues.

The Blue and Gold were outrebounded by two, 35-33, while Furman was plus-4 in offensive boards, 11-7. The Paladins scored 12 second-chance points, compared to eight by the Bucs.

The Paladins won their third straight game en route to improving 12-6 overall and 4-1 in conference play.

Four Bucs scored in double figures with Ty Brewer (Meridian, Miss.) leading the charge at 15 points and seven rebounds.

Mohab Yasser (Giza, Egypt) came off the bench to net a season-high 13 points on 6-of-11 shooting, while grabbing four rebounds (three offensive).

David Sloan (Louisville, Ky.) finished with 12 points, four assists, three steals and two rebounds, while Ledarrius Brewer (Meridian, Miss.) added 10 points, five rebounds and five assists.

Furman was led by Conley Garrison as he scored a game-high 23 points on 8-of-10 shooting (4-6 from three). Garrison did not take one shot in the first half.

The Bucs never trailed in the opening 20 minutes and led 39-35 at the break.

ETSU opened up scoring the first four points – a lay-up by Sloan followed by a powerful dunk by Jaden Seymour (Charlotte, N.C.) – and the Bucs eventually pushed their lead to seven when the Brewer brothers shared the ball as Ledarrius found Ty for a score off a Paladin turnover, making it 13-6 just over five minutes in.

The Bucs then grabbed a pair of 10-point leads at 27-17 and 32-22, but Furman scored 10 unanswered to pull even at 32 with 3:13 left in the half. ETSU bounced back with seven straight scores to go up seven, but was unable to add to its lead as Charlie Weber (Owings, Md.) missed the front-end of a 1-and-1 with 26 seconds left. From there, Garrett Hien got several friendly bounces from the rim as he sank a three-pointer from the top of the key at the buzzer, cutting the Paladins’ deficit to four.

ETSU shot 52 percent in the first half (15-29), compared to Furman going 40 percent (14-35). Both teams struggled from long distance as they combined to go 7-of-32 from three-point range, but the Bucs went 6-of-7 from the free throw line.

The second half was back-and-forth until Furman’s closing run. The final 20 minutes featured six ties and three lead changes with ETSU leading by six three different times.

The final six-point advantage was 57-51 following a jumper by Yasser with 9:25 remaining, but then the Bucs went cold. ETSU missed 11 of its last 16 shots and Furman made eight of its last 12 to spark the run.

The Bucs last led 66-63 when Sloan connected on a shot in the paint with 5:39 showing on the clock, but the Paladins then mounted their 15-3 surge down the stretch to fuel the comeback.

Sloan tied it 69 when he made a contested three with just under three to play, while ETSU looked to have regained a three-point lead when Ledarrius Brewer hit a corner three; however, he was whistled for stepping out of bounds prior to the shot. Furman then scored the last nine points handing the Bucs a heartbreaking setback.

The Bucs wrap up the road swing Saturday afternoon when ETSU heads to Birmingham to take on Samford at 3 p.m. ET.

For more information on ETSU men’s basketball, visit ETSUBucs.com and click on the men’s basketball tab.