Know Your Foe: Furman Paladins
2023 record: 10-9 (4-2)
Last game: 65-62 W vs Western Carolina (January 13)
Head Coach: Bob Richey (7th year)
Previous title: Asst. Coach at Furman (2011-2017)
Last meeting: Furman W, 93-79 (2023)
TV: ESPN+, Tip: 6:00PM CT
KenPom Ranking: 139th
Fun? Fact: Furman has won 7 of the last 10 games in series history.
Team Overview:
Samford continues to win while finding different ways to do so. The Bulldogs have won 17 straight games and just got their first ever vote in the Associated Press Top 25. Bucky McMIllan was named Coach of the Week by ESPN’s Jeff Borzello following the wins over Western Carolina and Mercer. That was last week, now, it is back to business for a massive one at Furman.
Furman and Samford shared the Southern Conference regular season title last season even though the Paladins won both matchups. Last season at Furman was a classic as they pulled it out in overtime, 91-86. Furman has been held down by injuries as they have already lost nine games (lost eight last season). However, now they are healthy at just the opportune time.
These Paladins are riding a four-game winning streak and looking to say, do not forget about us in this SoCon title race. Let’s find out what Samford can expect from the Furman Paladins.
As mentioned prior. Furman has been battling injuries all season (sound familiar?) but they have their star back in Marcus Foster. Foster has played the last two games after missing the previous nine. The 6’4” guard played 36 minutes in the win against Western Carolina and scored 14 points. Before the injury, Foster had two 30-point games.
You probably know his name by now due to the game winner in the NCAA Tournament but JP Pegues is back as well. Pegues is averaging 17.1 points per game and has a spot on the KenPom All-Southern Conference team because of it. He has stepped up into a larger role and has performed extremely well. We know he has the clutch gene as he also had another game winner, this time against Western Carolina on Saturday.
One more guy to watch out for is F Alex Williams. The 6’5” junior is averaging 15 points per game, however, he is averaging 19.4 in SoCon play. Williams has also scored in double digits in five straight games. He is a streaky shooter and it is just a matter of whether he is on from three-point range or not. Williams just recorded his first career double-double last Saturday as well (13 points and 11 rebounds).
In some of Samford’s wins, they tend to allow one scorer to get theirs and limit the others. This is what makes a healthy Furman extremely dangerous. It is hard to gauge most of Furman’s team stats due to aforementioned injuries but look for offensive rebounding. Per KenPom, Furman is first in SoCon play in offensive rebounding percentage. Samford has to keep the Paladins off the offensive glass to limit extra those potential costly possessions.
Two quick keys for Samford are, which bench player steps up and how does Samford limit the Furman stars? Samford only had three bench points in Cullowhee, does that change this week? Also how well does Samford defend the Paladins on their home floor? If you are a Samford player or fan, you know one thing. It’s revenge time.
