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| Furman's Clare Coyle leads the Southern Conference in rebounding, field goal percentage and double-doubles this season. Photo courtesy of Furman |
What the Furman women's basketball team lacks in Southern Conference Tournament experience, it hopes to make up for in other ways this week in Asheville, N.C. The fourth-seeded Paladins face No. 5 Mercer in Thursday's opening round at the Harrah's Cherokee Center at approximately 5:45 p.m.
Furman's roster has no seniors and three juniors - all of whom are sidelined by injuries. Juniors Asa Snyder and Hanna Hannson have missed the entire season, while Gardner-Webb transfer Lauren Bailey's season ended due to a knee injury suffered in the opening minute of the Paladins' 63-61 win at UNC Greensboro on Feb. 14.
Playing without its leading three-point shooter (37.3 percent) in Bailey, Furman followed that win with home losses to sixth-place Samford and fifth-place Mercer. Those losses cost the Paladins a shot at the regular season championship, but they bounced back to close out the regular season with a 64-42 blowout win over rival Wofford.
That leads to one of two big reasons for hope this week. Furman (17-12, 9-5) almost proved it could beat any team in the league this year, as they topped every SoCon foe except regular season co-champion Chattanooga. Despite not having a win over the Mocs, the Paladins went 3-3 against the combination of UTC, Wofford and ETSU. Those three teams shared the regular season title with league records of 10-4 - one game ahead of Furman.
Going into this season, Furman Clare Coyle was an All-SoCon preseason selection despite only coming off the bench as a freshman in the 2024-25 season. The sophomore more than lived up to those expectations as she leads the Paladins in scoring (14.9 points per game), field goal percentage (54.1 percent), rebounding (9.3 per game), steals (61) and blocked shots (41).
Coyle's rebounding and shooting numbers are tops in the SoCon this season as are her 11 double-doubles. She's third in the league in steals, and fourth in scoring and blocks. As the only player in the SoCon to rank in the top four in all six categories, Coyle made the first team All-SoCon announced this week. Coyle also made the SoCon All-Defensive team.
Fellow sophomore Alyssa Ervin earned a spot on the All-SoCon second team after averaging 13.3 points per game this season. Ervin ranks sixth in the league in scoring, seventh in free throw percentage (.718) and eighth in steals (1.55) in her first season as a Paladin. The Elon transfer has also been a clutch performer as she's drilled game-winning shots in wins at East Tennessee State, Wofford and UNCG.
That leads to the other big reason for hope in Asheville as Furman has shown a proficiency for winning away from home this year. The Paladins went 6-1 on the road in conference play, which is the best record in league road play in school history.
As it looks to advance in the tournament, Furman will have to do something it's never done before Thursday. The Paladins are 0-4 against Mercer in Asheville, including a heartbreaking championship game loss in 2019 and another loss in the 2022 final.
None of that past history will matter Thursday after tip-off. It will be a battle of teams who each won on the other's home court this season as Furman won in Macon, 60-49, on Jan. 22, and Mercer won in Greenville, 80-63, on Feb. 21. At Mercer, Ervin had 20 points and Coyle grabbed a career-high 18 rebounds to lead the Paladins. In Greenville, Furman suffered 22 turnovers and the Bears went on a late 13-0 run to pull away for the victory.
Thursday's winner will face either top-seeded Chattanooga or eighth-seeded Western Carolina in Friday's semifinals at 11 a.m.
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