Furman Paladins

Coach Niko Medved

Opening statement
“It was a great effort by our guys. We knew it was going to be a hard-fought game and I thought we came out with great intensity. I thought we picked up from where we had been last week. It was a great all-around effort. It was great to have Stephen Croone back in the lineup. I thought he responded really well and had a great game for us. They made a run and we knew they would. We responded and didn’t get rattled at all. I thought our intensity got better as the game went on, which was really good to see. Looking at the stats, we held them to 23-percent shooting in the second half. We handled the ball well and only turned it over nine times. I thought once we got in a little bit of a rhythm on offense, I thought we really moved the ball and attacked well. It was a great all-around performance from our team.”

On Furman’s defense on Ashton Moore
“He is a great player. At the 12-minute mark, he really started to get aggressive and on the attack. He got to the basket in transition, was splitting us on the ball screen and we were fouling too much. We really fouled tonight. We were in the bonus early in both halves. He scored most of his points from the free-throw line but he really got it going. To our kids’ credit, I thought John Davis was just outstanding. He came back in the game and we put him back on Moore and I thought he did a terrific job of frustrating him and keeping him in front. His defense on the ball has been a game-changer for us the last three games. We’re obviously going to need more of that going forward.”

Furman junior guard Stephen Croone

On the coming back after missing the regular-season finale against Wofford
“I hated being out against Wofford. It was good to be out here with my teammates again and enjoy a great win. I was a little winded at first, but I got back into my groove.”

Furman junior forward Kendrec Ferrara

On the defense setting the tone during offensive lulls
“When we’re locked in, ready, getting to the ball on the catch, blocking out and in a stance, then everything goes well for us. Even if the offense isn’t flowing, we can get stops and rebounds so we can push it ahead.
Everything just goes well for us when we focus defensively.”

On what he tells the younger guys on the team about tournament play
“It’s just a team effort. That’s all it is. Everyone has to play together and be locked in. When one guy gets down, the other guys have to help him up. It’s just a huge team effort to survive and advance.”