APPALACHIAN STATE 77, FURMAN 63
BOONE, N.C. -- Appalachian State men’s basketball used an 18-0 run and held Furman without a field goal for nearly 10 minutes in the second half to defeat the Paladins, 77-63, at the Holmes Center Wednesday evening.
The Mountaineers trailed by as many as seven points in the second half before starting the 18-0 run with 10:41 left in the second half to turn a five point deficit into a 13-point lead at 70-57 with 2:45 left on the clock. The Apps’ stingy defense held the Paladins scoreless for nearly eight minutes and didn’t allow a field goal for nearly 10 minutes as the Paladins were only able to convert on 38 percent of their shots in the second stanza.
D.J. Thompson (Raleigh, N.C.) led all scorers with 25 points while Donte Minter (Salisbury, N.C.) continued his strong play with 14 points, eight rebounds and two blocks. Tony Anderson paced the Paladins with 15 points in the losing effort. The win moved ASU into a tie for first place in the Southern Conference North Division with UNC Greensboro at 7-2. The 7-2 record marks just the fifth time in school- history the Mountaineers have won seven or more games in their first nine SoCon contests. Furman fell to 4-5 in the league and 10-10 overall. ASU’s overall record now stands at 15-5.
The Mountaineers found themselves down two at halftime, 37-35, but quickly turned the tables on a Kellen Brand (High Point, N.C.) three- pointer 12 seconds into the half. Brand countered a Furman bucket a minute later before the Paladins went on an 8-0 run capped off by an Eric Webb three-pointer to give Furman its seven-point, 40-47 lead.
The two teams would trade buckets before Brand came calling again, this time with a three-point play that jump-started the Apps’ 18-0 run. Brand, a freshman making just his second career start, finished the evening with 13 points.
Minter and Jeremy Clayton combined to score 10 of ASU’s final 12 points during the big run that was capped off by a pair of free throws from Thompson. He added a three-pointer and two free throws in the final two minutes to extend ASU’s lead to 16 before a Furman layup in the final seconds set the final score at 77-63. Thompson finished the evening 3-of-5 from beyond the arc to become ASU’s all-time leader in three-pointers with 233 career three’s.
Taking care of the ball was critical to the Apps’ success as they had
16 assists to a season-low eight turnovers. Thompson led the way with five helpers, while inside, Clayton and Minter had three apiece.
Appalachian shot 54 percent in the win, the 10th time in the last 12 games it has shot 50 percent or better and the fourth-consecutive game in which it has happened. Furman shot 46 percent in the losing effort.
The Mountaineers will try to move to 8-2 in the SoCon on Saturday when they host the Citadel at the Holmes Center for a 3:30 p.m. tipoff.
Appalachian has won 14 straight against the Bulldogs, but the last two meetings, both at The Citadel, have been decided by an average of 2.5 points.