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GREENVILLE, S.C. — In a game that featured 12 ties and 13 lead changes, the ETSU men’s basketball team fell just short against Furman, losing 73-70 on Wednesday night at Bon Secours Wellness Arena.

Trailing by eight points with under 40 seconds left, the Bucs mounted a late comeback to pull within one with 4.9 seconds remaining. However, after a foul by Karon Boyd, Furman hit two free throws to extend its lead to three. Quimari Peterson’s last-second halfcourt heave hit the backboard and rim but bounced out as the buzzer sounded.

In a tightly contested Southern Conference showdown, Furman made one more field goal (24-23) and one extra three-pointer (7-6) than ETSU, with both teams converting 18 free throws. ETSU finished 18-of-27 from the line, while Furman went 18-of-25. The Bucs shot 42% (23-of-55) from the field and 32% (6-of-19) from beyond the arc, compared to Furman’s 44% (24-of-54) shooting and 33% (7-of-21) from three-point range.

ETSU outrebounded Furman 36-33, including grabbing 15 offensive rebounds that led to 23 second-chance points. However, Furman capitalized on 14 ETSU turnovers, scoring 20 points off those mistakes. Both teams scored 30 points in the paint.

Player Highlights

• ETSU:
  • Quimari Peterson led the Bucs with a game-high 21 points.
  • Jaden Seymour added 18 points and eight rebounds before fouling out.
  • John Buggs III scored 13 points, including a clutch four-point play with 19 seconds left to pull the Bucs within two points, 70-68.
  • Boyd grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds and chipped in five points.
• Furman:
  • PJay Smith matched Peterson’s 21 points and added six rebounds.
  • Nick Anderson contributed 14 points.

First Half Recap

The opening 20 minutes featured eight lead changes and six ties before ETSU took a narrow 36-35 lead into halftime. The Bucs built their largest first-half lead, 32-27, after Peterson assisted Seymour on a three-pointer with just under three minutes left. Furman trimmed the deficit to one at the break after hitting a buzzer-beating three-pointer.

ETSU shot 54% (14-of-26) in the first half, with Peterson scoring 11 points. The Bucs also dominated on second-chance opportunities, tallying 12 points off offensive rebounds.

Second Half Recap

ETSU’s shooting cooled in the second half, as they endured two stretches without a field goal for over five minutes. Furman capitalized, starting the half with a 5-2 run to take a 40-38 lead.

The teams traded leads over the next 10 minutes before Furman broke a 60-60 tie with a 7-0 run to go up 67-60 with 1:30 left. The Bucs battled back, with Buggs’ four-point play keeping ETSU’s hopes alive. Despite forcing a near turnover in the final seconds, a foul call against Boyd allowed Furman to seal the win at the free-throw line.

Up Next

ETSU (10-8, 3-2 SoCon) travels to Birmingham to face Samford on Saturday at 6 p.m. ET in a rematch of last year’s SoCon title game. The game will air live on CBS Sports Network. Furman (15-3, 3-2 SoCon) will continue league play this weekend.