Furman 62, Columbia 58
NEW YORK, N.Y. - Sophomore Richard Brown poured in a career-high 15 points and Bobby Austin added 13 to help Furman rally past Ivy League member Columbia University, 62-58, in men's basketball action on Monday evening at Levien Gym.
The come-from-behind victory improved the Paladins to 2-0 on the season while the Lions slipped to 0-2.
Furman faced a 46-40 deficit with under 7:30 remaining when junior Colin Reddick scored five straight points, including a three-point play with 6:40 remaining, to trim the margin to one point. Following a Columbia free throw, Austin buried a jumper to tie the game at 47-47 with 5:42 left.
After each team failed to score on their next three possessions, Cory Osetkowski made a layup with 3:10 remaining to put the Lions ahead 49-47. Senior Brandon Sebirumbi answered for the Paladins on the ensuing possession with a 15-foot jumper to knot the game at 49-49 and ignite an 8-0 Paladin run. Bryant Irwin buried a three-pointer on the next trip to give Furman its first lead at 2:09 and Austin drained a jumper to push the lead to 54-49 with 1:28 left. The Paladins forced another Columbia turnover and Brown made good on a pair of trips to the foul line to cap the rally.
"It been tough battling injuries and watching from the sidelines," said Austin, who missed two and a half season due to injuries. "It was an unbelievable feeling to help the guys pull through. During the half coach told me to be more aggressive, and being aggressive and making a couple shots helped us get going."
Trailing 30-19 at the break, Furman outscored the Lions 43-28 in the second half by shooting 53.6% (15-28) from the floor and converting on 10-of-15 trips to the charity stripe. The Paladins, who trailed 9-0 to start the game and did not score until the 14:14 mark of the first half, shot just 38.3% (23-60) from the field, but made 6-of-12 three-point attempts.
Columbia out-rebounded the Paladins 42-36, but Furman committed just 12 turnovers and recorded seven blocked shots in its first road contest of the season. Sebirumbi grabbed seven boards to pace Furman while Brown dished out a team-high four assists.
Brian Barbour led the Lions with 16 points. Noruwa Agho, who scored 16 points in Columbia's season-opening loss to nationally-ranked Connecticut, netted 12 points to go with four rebounds and five assists before leaving with an injury in the final minutes. Blaise Staab added eight points and eight rebounds.
The Paladins return home on Thursday to host Mercer as part of a doubleheader at Timmons Arena. The Furman women's team faces Troy at 5 p.m. with the Paladins entertaining the Bears 30 minutes after the conclusion of the first game.
Davidson 74, Richmond 61
DAVIDSON, N.C. - Jake Cohen collected 22 points, eight rebounds and three blocked shots, and Davidson held Richmond to 35 percent shooting for the game in a 74-61 men's basketball victory Monday night in Belk Arena.
De'Mon Brooks recorded 14 points and seven rebounds for the Wildcats (2-0), and Chris Czerapowicz finished with 13 points and three boards. JP Kuhlman scored 11, and Nik Cochran added eight points and four assists.
Cedrick Lindsay scored 17 points, including 13-of-14 from the free-throw line, and had five assists and three steals for the Spiders (1-1). Kendall Anthony scored 17.
The Wildcats saw their 14-point lead early in the second half dwindle down to five at 57-52 after Lindsay scored a conventional 3-point play with 6:50 remaining. But Davidson answered with three quick buckets, two layups by Cohen and a triple from the corner by Czerapowicz, to put the margin back to 12.
After Anthony scored a layup, Kuhlman hit four consecutive free throws to extend the cushion 68-54 with 2:23 to go.
Davidson's defense was stifling all night long and at one point, held the Spiders without a field goal for 13:23, spanning the end of the first half and into the second. Trailing 23-21, the Wildcats scored 11 straight points to open a 32-23 lead with 4:34 left in the first stanza.
Richmond trimmed the lead to six points, but Cochran was fouled on a triple try and made all three free throws to make the margin 37-28 at the break.
Davidson opened the second frame with an 8-3 spurt to extend the lead to 45-31, 3:47 into the half.
Davidson outrebounded Richmond 39-27 and used 11 offensive rebounds to score 12 second-chance points. The Wildcats shot 40 percent from the floor but knocked down 26-of-30 free throws.
Georgetown 86, UNCG 45
WASHINGTON, D.C.-Georgetown's Hollis Thompson scored a game-high 19 points to help lead the Hoyas to an 86-45 win over UNCG in the Mainland Regional of the EA Sports Maui Invitational, Monday at the Verizon Center.
The Hoyas (2-0) used a smothering defense and a consistent offensive effort in handling the Spartans (0-2). Georgetown shot 45 percent from the field - including nearly 52 percent in the second half - while at the same time limiting UNCG to just under 30 percent shooting.
For the second straight game UNCG got off to a slow start on both ends of the floor. The Hoyas jumped out to a 12-2 lead in the first six minutes as Thompson scored eight points.
UNCG cut the deficit to nine points when a Kyle Randall jumper made it 15-6 with 11:17 left in the half but Georgetown eventually pushed the lead to 26-8 with 7:13 left. A pair of free throws by Aaron Brackett and a three-pointer by Randall cut the deficit to 26-13 with 6:25 before halftime, but the Spartans never got any closer.
Georgetown led 41-16 at halftime.
In the second half the Hoyas continued to add to their advantage. Georgetown took its first 30-point lead when a layup by Markel Starks made it 50-19 with 17:41 left in the game.
Trevis Simpson led UNCG with 11 points. Randall finished nine points and four rebounds.
The Hoyas out-rebounded UNCG, 43-33, and forced the Spartans into 22 turnovers. UNCG again struggled at the free throw line, going just 8-of-18 from the stripe.
Georgetown was 9-of-27 from 3-point range compared to 5-of-22 for the Spartans.
UNCG opens the home portion of their schedule when the Spartans host UNC Pembroke, 7 p.m., Thursday at Greensboro Coliseum