A 16-2 run midway through the second half pulled the VMI Keydets within seven points, but the home team got no closer as the Furman Paladins pulled out a 68-56 win in Southern Conference basketball action Monday night at Cameron Hall in Lexington, Va.
Furman (11-10, 5-3) had pulled out to a game-high 21-point advantage, 49-28, with 13:10 left in the game, but the Keydet (6-12, 1-6) defense responded by holding the Paladins without a field goal for the next five-plus minutes as the offense mounted the 16-2 spurt. The visitors quelled the rally with 7:49 remaining, however, on a Kris Acox three-point play and VMI got no closer than eight the rest of the way.
In the victory, Furman was led by its backcourt tandem of Devin Sibley (19 points) and Stephen Croone (18 points), while Larry Wideman added 15 markers off the bench. QJ Peterson led the Keydets with 16 points, while Phillip Anglade fell just two markers shy of a double-double, notching eight points and 10 rebounds.
The contest was back and forth for the first 13-plus minutes, and the Keydets had an 18-17 lead after a three-point play by Trey Chapman at the 7:47 mark. Furman, however, would go on to close the half on a 17-2 run and take a 34-20 lead into the locker room.
That push would continue in the second half. The Keydets chopped the deficit to eight at the 17:02 mark, 36-28, but a 13-0 run for the Paladins over the next 3:52 gave them their biggest lead of the night, 49-28, and set the stage for VMI’s attempted rally.
Furman scorched the nets in the first half to the tune of 13 of 21 (61.9%), but it was a different story in the second half as the Keydets held that figure to 9 of 21 (42.9%). VMI, meanwhile, improved from 32% to 46.2% over the two halves, as the teams wound up at 52.4% and 39.2% respectively.
The Paladins also had a crucial 18-5 edge in bench scoring.
VMI basketball will return to action Thursday, when the Keydets take on the Mercer Bears in Macon, Ga. Tip time is set for 7 p.m.
Press Conference: VMI Head Coach Dan Earl
“I give Furman a lot of credit. They played extremely well. Defensively, they are very good and very solid. They pressure the ball and keep guys in front.
“We did not shoot the ball well in the first half and it’s been our Achilles heel, really. I know I sound like a broken record with having that affect our defense. I thought we were competing hard in the first half and we went through a dry spell and that really was the difference in the game.”
“I am proud of our guys for coming out and responding in the second half. I think our bench gave us some good minutes, but overall we can’t go through those droughts.”
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