Paladins set for SoCon reunion in Charleston

Jalen Slawson blocks a shot during Furman's 89-74 win
over Belmont last Friday. Photo courtesy of Furman

For about the past eight years, the Furman men's basketball program has transformed from woeful to wonderful. On Thursday, one of the fruits of that labor arrives as the Paladins are set to participate in a big-time in-season tournament for the first time.

Furman (2-0) faces Penn State (3-0) at 11:30 a.m. Thursday in the opening game of the Children's Charleston Classic at TD Arena, the College of Charleston's home court. The eight-team tournament, which continues Friday and concludes Sunday, will feature some familiar faces to the Paladins. The winner of Furman-Penn State, which will be broadcast by ESPNU, will face the winner of Virginia Tech-Old Dominion at noon Friday.

"This is going to be fun. We've never been in an ESPN event before. This is part of what we're trying to do - continue to build firsts," Furman coach Bob Richey said. "We're going to play some really good teams, starting with Penn State. I've got a lot of respect for (Penn State coach) Micah (Shrewsberry).

"There's a lot of good food in Charleston and there's going to be some good basketball down there too."

Thursday's leadoff game looks to be the best matchup of the opening round, according to Sagarin ratings. The Paladins are currently 62nd in Sagarin, while the Nittany Lions are 29th. Penn State is led by preseason All-Big Ten selection Jalen Pickett, who's averaging 14.3 points, nine assists and six rebounds per game thus far. In the Nittany Lions 68-62 win over Butler Monday, Pickett had the second triple-double in school history with 15 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds. He also had two steals, a block and no turnovers.

Furman is led by preseason All-Southern Conference picks and fifth-year seniors Mike Bothwell and Jalen Slawson. Bothwell had 25 points, while Slawson had 17 points and 12 rebounds in the Paladins' big 89-74 win over Belmont last Friday. That victory vaulted Furman up to No. 3 in this week's College Insider Mid-Major Top 25, behind top-ranked Gonzaga and No. 2 St. Mary's.

Slawson, who grew up not too far from TD Arena in Summerville, is 18 points away from becoming the 50th Paladin in school history to score 1,000 career points.

The rest of the field will make for a little SoCon reunion. Other matchups Thursday:

Virginia Tech (3-0, No. 40 in Sagarin) vs. Old Dominion (2-1, No. 204), 2 p.m., ESPN2: Virginia Tech is coached by Wofford legend Mike Young. Young, a four-time SoCon coach of the year, has guided the Hokies to the NCAA Tournament each of his first two full seasons in Blacksburg, including an automatic bid last season as ACC Tournament champions. This will be a rare game where Young (369 career wins) has fewer wins than his counterpart as the Monarchs' Jeff Jones is 540-401 in his 33 years as a head coach.

Colorado State (3-0, No. 75) vs. South Carolina (2-0, No. 112), 5 p.m., ESPNU: Well, the tie-ins here are pretty obvious. Colorado State coach Niko Medved is the one who began steering the Furman program out of the grave 10 years ago. Medved, the 2017 SoCon coach of the year, guided the Rams to the NCAA Tournament last season. USC is coached by reigning SoCon coach of the year Lamont Paris, who led Chattanooga to the big dance last season. The Gamecocks are led by freshman sensation G.G. Jackson and former Citadel and Byrnes High standout Hayden Brown. Both are averaging 15 points per game.

Davidson (3-0, No. 90) at College of Charleston (2-1, No. 133), 7 p.m., ESPNU: Davidson is coached by Matt McKillop, son of legendary coach Bob McKillop. After 33 seasons as Davidson head coach, Bob McKillop announced his retirement in June. McKillop, a nine-time SoCon coach of the year, guided the Wildcats to seven SoCon Tournament championships in his career. College of Charleston was a member of the SoCon from 1998 to 2013. In 1999, the Cougars won the SoCon championship after going 16-0 in league play that regular season.

Furman defense answers the bell at Mercer

Braden Gilby had 12 tackles and one of the Paladins' five sacks in
Furman's 23-13 win at Mercer Saturday. Photo courtesy of Furman

MACON, Ga. - On the first play of the game in Furman's showdown at Mercer Saturday, linebacker Bryce McCormick blitzed up the middle and tossed Bears quarterback Fred Payton to the ground for a loss of eight yards. And just like that, the tone was set for the day.

Quarterback Tyler Huff was spectacular. Wide receiver Joshua Harris had the game of his collegiate life. Special teams units continued their remarkable season. But the biggest part of the 13th-ranked Paladins' 23-13 win at No. 14 Mercer Saturday had to be the defense.

A Mercer offense that was averaging 40.3 points per game was held to 13. A Mercer offense that was averaging 203.9 yards rushing per game was held to 50 on 30 attempts. A Mercer offense that converted 51.8 percent of its third downs converted 5-of-16 (31.6 percent). A Mercer offense that had allowed only five sacks all season allowed five on Saturday.

"They played their butts off. We had to contain the quarterback and we sacked him a number of times and hit him a bunch. ... They couldn't run the ball and we could, and I thought that would be huge," Furman coach Clay Hendrix said. "I just couldn't be prouder of our group. When you think about what happened in the Samford game and to come back and work like they have, I can't say enough about our kids and our coaches."

Following it's third win this season against a ranked team it sure feels like the Paladins (8-2, 6-1 Southern Conference) punched their ticket to the FCS playoffs Saturday. The other half of "showdown Saturday in the SoCon" took place at Chattanooga, where Samford posted a 35-24 win to lock up the league's automatic bid to the playoffs.

Saturday marked Furman's fifth consecutive victory on the road. The Paladins last accomplished that feat in the first road game of the 1990 season after winning it's last four road trips in 1989.

What was truly remarkable about Saturday's defensive effort was how it played out for Furman. In an equally big game two weeks earlier, the defense was terrific but rarely blitzed and had no sacks in a 24-20 win over Chattanooga.

Furman and Mercer (7-3, 5-2) are two of the leading teams in the country in forcing turnovers, but there was none on Saturday. The defense found itself in situations that felt like a turnover though as the Paladins' offense went 0-for-3 on fourth down. After all those changes in possession, Furman's defense allowed only one first down. That one came on a fake punt run and the Bears punted again four plays later anyway.

"It feels great to win. It would've felt better if Samford lost, but you've just got to go out and control what you can control," said Braden Gilby, who had 12 tackles, including three tackles-for-loss and a sack. "Our front seven was really physical today.

"This team is different from any other I've been a part of. The whole team is ready to play until January if we're given the opportunity. ... The mentality of this team has changed this year. We're having fun playing because winning's fun."

Saturday's game featured a wild second quarter in which Furman defensive end Jack Barton was flagged for targeting, but had it overturned after a review. Barton staying in the game proved to be vital.

Ty James, one-half of Mercer's dynamic duo of receivers, gave the Bears a 7-3 lead early in the second quarter on his SoCon-best 11th touchdown catch this season. But late in the quarter, James was ejected for targeting for a hit on Cally Chizik on a punt return that resulted in Chizik leaving the game as well.

On Furman's ensuing drive following that play, Huff directed yet another two-minute offense score this season. After Huff scrambled for 35 yards to the Mercer seven-yard line, the Paladins faced a third-and-goal two plays later. Huff took a shotgun snap to his left, turned back to his right, pump faked a Mercer defender's soul out of his body and raced to the end zone for a touchdown.

"It was frustrating up to that point. We were driving and moving the ball, but just not finishing. We've been pretty good at the two-minute offense all year and that really lifted us," said Huff, who finished with 369 yards of total offense. "Our defense played phenomenal today. To hold an explosive team like that to 13 is amazing. Hats off to them."

Trying to avoid kicking to the other half of that dynamic receiving duo, Mercer's Devron Harper, Furman squibbed the ensuing kickoff and Mercer's possession began at its own 47 with 32 seconds left. The Bears reached the Paladins' 14-yard line, but their field goal attempt on the final play of the half was blocked by Barton as Furman took a 10-7 lead into the break. That marked the third blocked kick this season by Barton, matching Matt Sochovka for the team lead.

Given how the first half went, it felt like a two-score game could be bigger than usual on Saturday. Midway through the third quarter, Huff and Harris provided that. Huff delivered a perfect pass over the middle to a streaking Harris, who pinballed off a pair of defenders on his way to a 56-yard touchdown as Furman pushed the lead to 17-7.

"When I broke, I knew I had him beat on the outside but I saw the other defender coming over. The first thing that went through my mind was ball security, so I tucked the ball," said Harris. "Once I had it, it was like a boom-boom play. I bounced off them and from that point, it was my head down looking for the end zone."

The Paladins scored on each of its next two possessions on Ian Williams' field goals to take a commanding 23-7 lead with 9:16 left in the game. Williams went 3-for-3 on field goals Saturday and the Furman long kicker has made 9-of-11 this season.

Payton hit Travion Solomon for an 11-yard touchdown on a fourth down play with 6:04 left. But on the two-point try to make it a one-score game, Payton was stonewalled by Gilby well short of the goal line.

Mercer only had one more possession the rest of the way. It began with 3:58 left at the Bears' eight-yard line after a fantastic 49-yard punt by Ryan Leavy bounced out of bounds. After Harper's 14th reception of the day (for 192 yards) converted one fourth down, McCormick and Luke Clark combined for Furman's fifth sack on the next play. Payton's next fourth down pass was broken up by Hugh Ryan and the Paladins were able to kneel out the clock.

Huff completed 19-of-31 passes for 293 yards, while rushing 10 times for 76 yards. Harris had five receptions for a career-high 146 yards receiving. Dominic Roberto finished with 69 yards rushing on 17 attempts and also had three receptions for 65 yards.

"There some good quarterbacks in our league, but if there's a better guy than Tyler I'd like to know who he is," said Hendrix. "He's a winner. He's tough and I'm glad he's wearing purple."

Furman wraps up the regular season by hosting Wofford next Saturday at noon. A Paladin win combined with a Mercer victory at Samford would give Furman a share of the SoCon championship.

Paladins set for showdown Saturday in SoCon

Furman coach Clay Hendrix addresses his team following the
Paladins' 24-20 win over Chattanooga. Photo courtesy of Furman

There have surely been bigger single Saturdays of Southern Conference football than this week's, but it's hard to remember since it's been so long ago. The top four teams in the league, all of whom haven't lost to anyone else below them in the standings, square off in the penultimate week of the regular season.

By the end of the day, No. 13-ranked Furman could either be in a three-way tie for first place, alone in second place, a two-way tie for third or alone in fourth place. The Paladins (7-2, 5-1) play at No. 14 Mercer (7-2, 5-1) at 3 p.m., while No. 10 Samford (8-1, 6-0) plays at No. 11 Chattanooga (7-2, 5-1) at 1:30.

All four team resumes are strikingly similar. Each one has a loss to an FBS team from a Power-5 conference. Furman's lone league loss came against Samford on Oct. 1. Mercer's only SoCon loss came at Chattanooga on Oct 22. Chattanooga's lone league loss came at Furman on Oct. 29. Samford can clinch at least a share of the SoCon championship with a win Saturday. A win by the Bulldogs combined with a win by the Paladins Saturday would secure Samford with the league's autobid to the FCS playoffs.

That 24-20 victory for the Paladins over the Mocs vaulted them up the top 25 poll and into the FCS playoff discussion. Mercer rebounded from the 41-21 loss at Chattanooga with a 55-13 win at VMI the next week. The Paladins and Bears each had their bye week last Saturday.

"The bye came at a really good time for us, but we're excited to get back at it this week and excited to go play," Furman coach Clay Hendrix said at his weekly press conference Monday. "It will be an even bigger challenge than Chattanooga because we're going to their place."

Playing Mercer anywhere this season has been a challenge for most. The Bears lead the SoCon and are fifth nationally in scoring offense averaging 40.3 points per game. Mercer is second in the league in scoring defense, allowing 18.9 points per game. It's second in total offense (463 yards per game) and leads the league in total defense (allowing 291.8 yards per game).

Coastal Carolina transfer Fred Payton ranks third nationally in passing efficiency at 181.5 for Mercer this season. He's thrown for 2,242 yards with 28 touchdowns and seven interceptions. All of those picks have come over the last three games, including three apiece at Chattanooga and VMI. Payton has a dynamic duo of wide receiver targets in Devron Harper and Georgia transfer Ty James, who each have caught 10 touchdowns this season. Harper, a Gardner-Webb transfer, also has four rushing touchdowns and has returned a kickoff and a punt for a touchdown.

Furman will certainly have to play better against Mercer than it did last season. The Paladins got a field goal on their opening possession against the Bears last fall and then went on to a 24-3 home loss. 

"Looking back at last year, I did a poor job of getting us ready to go. We were really struggling offensively with no confidence. Mercer was the aggressor in that game. Sometimes that's not an easy thing to admit, but they were," Hendrix said. "I do think we're a much different team this year."

It's conceivable that Furman could take a relatively close loss Saturday, not fall out of the top 20 next week, beat Wofford to end the regular season and still earn a bid to the FCS playoffs. A victory at Mercer Saturday would seemingly lock the Paladins into a playoff bid no matter what happens against Wofford.

You never know for sure with the playoff committee, especially after Furman was snubbed in 2018 when it shared the SoCon title. This 2022 squad currently has a better resume than that team that went 6-4 overall though.

Senior center Evan Jumper is one of a handful of Paladins who started the school's last playoff game, a 42-6 loss at Austin Peay in 2019. While that feels like an eternity ago given what's gone on in the world since then, Jumper admits that game lingers in the back of his mind. He would love to get another shot at the postseason this year, but he knows he can't afford to think ahead.

"Winning championships and making the playoffs is what you come here to do. So of course, you're always thinking about it but this game is the next step to making the playoffs," Jumper said. "So it's in the back of your mind, but your sole focus is on Mercer."

That focus on Mercer comes with a new level of confidence. That boost was provided by the win over Chattanooga.

"It was incredible. Probably my favorite moment for Furman football during my time here. I don't think teams in years past would've won that game," Jumper said. "I felt like we broke through a little bit and beat some demons."

Safety Hugh Ryan, who was named the SoCon's defensive player of the month for October thanks to his current three-game interception streak, agreed with Jumper about the excitement following the win over Chattanooga. But he added that it makes him hungry for more. Ryan is used to chasing rings this time of year after losing just one game of varsity football at Dutch Fork High, where he won three state championships.

"It makes you want to experience it again and again," Ryan said. "Becoming addicted to that feeling will help us keep chasing our goals."

Bothwell, Slawson help Paladins top Belmont

Mike Bothwell dunks during Furman's 89-74 win
over Belmont Friday. Photo courtesy of Furman

As most sequels go, Furman-Belmont part two Friday wasn't quite as scintillating as the masterpiece of basketball these teams performed against each other last year. But for the Paladins, it had a much happier ending. While it was a team effort in every sense of the word, Furman's two leading men powered their team to an 89-74 win before a raucous crowd of 2,092 at Timmons Arena.

When Belmont rallied from an early 11-point deficit to forge a 37-37 tie at the half, it appeared we might be in for another barnburner like last season's 95-89 overtime win for the Bruins. But after missing most of Monday's second half with a scary thumb injury, Jalen Slawson had a double-double in Friday's second half with 13 points and 11 rebounds. Mike Bothwell also scored 13 of his game-high 25 in the second half as the Paladins (2-0) pulled away for the win.

"I want to thank the students, fans and administration. Everybody that put in work to get the energy like it was out there tonight. ... That certainly had an effect in our performance. It really energized us in the second half," Furman coach Bob Richey said. "The beautiful thing about tonight was that we only had nine that could play and all nine of them contributed to that win."

There was some concern about Slawson's availability for Friday's game after clearly being in severe pain on Friday. X-rays revealed no fracture or sprain, but a badly bruised right thumb. Slawson credited men's basketball athletic trainer Justin Games with helping him get ready to go. Slawson practiced with it taped up on Wednesday and Thursday. He tested his shooting without tape on Friday and was able to play unencumbered Friday night. 

"If someone can find me a better athletic trainer please do so, because I've not seen one better in my life. ... He texted me every morning asking how I felt and what could he do for me," said Slawson, who finished with 17 points, 12 rebounds, five assists and three steals. "He knew once it wasn't broken that I wasn't going to let myself miss this game. So as soon as we got the X-ray back and saw that, it was all gas, no brakes."

Luckily for the fans in attendance and those watching at home, including undoubtedly many in the mid-major universe, Slawson was able to go because he put on a show. Timmons was rocking less than five minutes into the game after Slawson had a no-look pass to Garrett Hien for a dunk followed by a Bothwell steal and slam that gave Furman a 10-5 lead at the first media timeout.

As of that timeout, which came at the 15:14 mark, the Paladins were 5-of-6 from the field with no three-point attempts. I can't recall the last time Furman, which led the country in three-pointers made last season, did not attempt one in the first five minutes of a game. The Paladins ended up shooting 42.1 percent from three after hitting 8-of-19, but nearly all of those came organically rather than forced.

Back to Slawson's showtime. Near the end of the first half he pulled off the greatest Furman dunk I've ever seen, supplanting Stephen Croone's baseline drive jam at The Citadel nine seasons ago.

After a Marcus Foster block on one end, the ball got to Bothwell on the other. Bothwell drove inside the left arc before pulling up and lobbing a pass. As the ball sailed toward the basket I wondered what exactly Bothwell had done as there was no Paladin in sight. Suddenly, Slawson soared in with his back to the basket and threw home the reverse dunk. Replay revealed that Slawson was somehow alone in the right corner and started creeping to the bucket when he gave a quick right hand up to signal for the lob.

"Honestly, that's just God-given ability (for Slawson). I tried to throw an ordinary lob that was a little off-target, but he went and got it," Bothwell said. "That should be on SportsCenter for sure."

The biggest sequence of the game came with less than eight minutes left and Furman leading 59-53. After Hien was whistled for his third foul on what looked to be a bad call, he didn't exit and didn't hang his head. Over the next 52 seconds of game play, Hien rebounded the front end of the 1-and-1 free throw, drove for a layup, blocked a shot and buried a three-pointer that forced a Belmont timeout with the lead stretched to 64-53.

Belmont never got closer than nine points the rest of the way. Hien finished with 13 points on 6-of-7 shooting, five rebounds, three assists and no turnovers in 20 minutes of action.

"Garrett played his behind off tonight. ... Garrett's really coming along. As the year goes on, he's going to continue to get more physical," Slawson said. "He actually told me at halftime, 'they've got too many points in the paint. ... Let's go cut the paint off.' That's inspiring when you've got a guy younger than you coming up and telling you what we need to do."

Foster was the other Paladin in double figures with 11 points. Joe Anderson led the team with a plus-minus of plus-16 as he had nine points on three threes in 16:26 off the bench. Wake Forest transfer Carter Whitt added eight points, five assists and five rebounds in 22:11 off the bench. Furman outrebounded Belmont, 42-22.

"Slaw's stat stuffing all over the place. Mike was incredible, but Joe made some huge plays. Carter Whitt made some huge plays," Richey said. "(New starting point guard) J.P. (Pegues) played better tonight and he's going to get there. I'm just telling you, he's really, really good. ... I thought we came together as a team tonight."

Get your popcorn ready for Furman-Belmont II

Furman coach Bob Richey coaches during the Paladins' win
over North Greenville Monday. Photo courtesy of Furman

Mid-major college basketball fans rejoice. Furman and Belmont - the sequel - is set for Friday night at Timmons Arena. It's kind of fitting that the Paladins and Bruins are squaring off on a night typically associated with movie premieres. If there ever was an Oscar given for game of the year, last year's matchup between these mid-major powers would've surely been nominated.

Last year's game could've been compared to the first Rocky. From a Furman point of view, that goes right down to the protagonist losing in the end. Sorry if that's a spoiler for anyone, but it has been 46 years.

Furman fell at Belmont in overtime, 95-89, three days after toppling Louisville in overtime last season. It was a tough loss and the Paladins made mistakes, including a rare 20-turnover game. However from a fan's perspective, it was hard to be all that upset by it simply because of the entertainment value that game provided. The turnovers, which Belmont had 16 of as well, were basically due to tenacious defense by teams that take pride in deflections. The Bruins, who were ranked No. 2 behind Gonzaga in the Mid-Major poll at the time, had a lineup filled with seniors.

The Paladins (1-0) enter as the higher-ranked team this season at No. 6, while a younger Belmont squad is No. 21. Furman is coming off a business-like 91-55 win over North Greenville Monday. Later that night, the Bruins pulled out a thrilling 70-69 win over Ohio. After Ohio took its first lead since it was 15-13 on a three-pointer with 1.4 seconds left, reigning North Carolina Mr. Basketball Cade Tyson buried a game-winning three-pointer at the buzzer.

"We came out on the wrong end of it last year, but that was a heck of a game and I expect the same thing Friday night," Furman coach Bob Richey said Monday. "We had Loyola (Illinois) in here a couple of years ago and the Wichita State NIT game. We want competitive mid-major matchups in Timmons Arena. I think those games are fun and it's great for the city and the school. You find out who you are by getting tested in games like these.

"That was a key last year. This is about winning the war, not the battle. At the mid-major level, you've got to be your best come conference play and specifically in those last four days at the tournament."

In last year's meeting in Nashville, Mike Bothwell had a game-high 23 points, along with seven rebounds, four assists and three steals. Jalen Slawson added 14 points, eight rebounds and five blocked shots.

Slawson will obviously be a key player Friday, if he's able to go. Slawson injured his right hand Monday with 17 minutes left in the game and never returned. Richey said it was kind of a wait and see situation following Monday's game and could not be reached for an update this week.

"You grow up dreaming about playing in meaningful games and It's a big opportunity we have Friday. ... Last year, we came up short and we feel like it's one we should've won so there's a lot to play for," Bothwell said. "Their crowd was amazing last year and we know our fans are going to show up and reciprocate that for us. ... It's going to be a lot of fun."

Belmont lost seven of its top eight scorers from last season, but this is a program used to reloading rather than rebuilding. The Bruins, who are in their first season in the Missouri Valley Conference after dominating the Ohio Valley Conference, have won at least 20 games in 15 of the past 17 seasons.

Belmont senior Ben Sheppard is a contender for MVC Player of the Year after averaging 16.2 points per game last season. He and Tyson had 18 points apiece to lead the Bruins Monday night. Sheppard also had seven assists, five rebounds and two steals.

"We all have programs that we watch as assistants growing up in the game and developing your philosophy. (Longtime coach) Rick Byrd would be a top five for me in what he was able to do at Belmont," Richey said. "We took a lot of that when we were trying to figure out how to build this here.

"My respect for their program is very high. I consider (fourth-year Belmont head coach) Casey (Alexander) a friend and I've got a lot of respect for what he's done. Following a legend isn't an easy spot to be in."

Selvy to be honored

Also in the spotlight at Timmons Arena Friday will be Furman legend Frank Selvy, who is scheduled to be on hand for "Frank Selvy Night." Furman will celebrate Selvy's upcoming induction into the  National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame in Kansas City, Mo. on Nov. 20. He will be honored at halftime of Friday's game and will sign autographs prior to it.

Selvy led the Division I in scoring as a junior with 29.5 points per game and as a senior with 41.7. Friday's "Frank Selvy Night" comes 69 seasons after the first one. On Feb. 13, 1954, the Paladins honored Selvy by feeding him the ball against Newberry. He made 41-of-66 field goals that night and finished with 100 points, an NCAA single-game record that still stands.

A two-time Southern Conference Player of the Year, a consensus All-American and United Press National Player of the Year in 1954, Selvy was a first-round pick in the 1954 NBA Draft by the Baltimore Bullets. Selvy was a two-time NBA All-Star over a nine-year career that was interrupted by three years of military service.

Furman women strive to overcome adversity

Furman's Tate Walters, a preseason All-Southern Conference pick, will likely miss
this season after suffering a torn Achilles tendon. Photo courtesy of Furman

It was already going to be a bit of an unusual sight Wednesday night when the Furman women's basketball team opens the 2022-23 season by hosting Erskine at 7 p.m. When the Paladins take the floor, it will be their first game without Tierra Hodges on the roster since March of 2016.

"Baby T" wrapped up her phenomenal career last year by leading Furman to the championship game of the Southern Conference Tournament and a 20-14 record - the Paladins first 20-win season under Coach Jackie Carson. The 2021-22 Southern Conference Player of the Year left as the school's all-time leader in rebounds (1,303) and fourth-leading scorer (1,719 points).

While there's always excitement with the start of a new season, some other unexpected roster news has made this year's start bittersweet. Junior guard Tate Walters is expected to miss the entire season after suffering a torn Achilles tendon. She got hurt in practice on Oct. 24, one day before it was announced that she made the All-SoCon preseason team and that Furman was picked second in the media poll after returning every starter besides Hodges.

Walters' injury came weeks after sophomore guard Niveya Henley tore an ACL and she's also expected to miss the season.

"We've now lost 40 points (per game) since last season (including Hodges). What those players have done for this program is going to be irreplaceable," Carson said at the league's Media Day on Oct. 26. "It was already going to hard to imagine not having Tierra Hodges, who was a sixth-year player for us and a phenomenal young lady.

"We lost our main engine and now we lost our other engine. ... (Tate) was running a sprint and just touched midcourt and went down. There was no contact."

Henley made 15 starts last season and averaged 4.0 points and 2.6 rebounds a game to earn a spot on the SoCon's All-Freshman team. Walters was a consensus All-SoCon pick last season after averaging 12.9 points and 4.5 rebounds per game. She also led the SoCon in assists (137), was second in the league in three-point shooting (37.3 percent) and fifth in steals (47).

While she routinely filled up slots all over a stat sheet, Walters' game went beyond that. Without her incredible performance in the last two minutes of regulation and then overtime against Chattanooga in last year's SoCon Tournament opener, the Paladins would've been one-and-done in Asheville. She simply willed her team to the win, which you can look back on here: http://www.furmansportsreport.com/2022/03/furman-women-rally-survive-and-advance.html

Before the injuries, there was unexpected great news for the program with the return of graduate forward Grace van Rij. After bidding farewell to Furman at the end of last season, van Rij decided to enter the school's new graduate program this summer and will use her final year of playing eligibility this season.

"We had a summer workout and it was not a good one. Grace came in from working a camp and I (jokingly) said, 'Grace, you wanna come back?' and she said, 'can I?' I said, 'you sure as heck can. You've got a COVID year,' " Carson said. "She had to call her mom and her mom was all about coming back. Within 45 minutes, it was done."

The 6-2 forward joined Walters on the preseason All-SoCon team after a breakout season last year. In her first season as a full-time starter, van Rij averaged 10.0 points and 4.8 rebounds per game. In addition to coming back for basketball, she's also enrolled in the strategic design Master's program.

"When I graduated I wasn't ready to say goodbye to Furman. I wasn't ready to say goodbye to my teammates, because of how close we are on and off the court. ... So I worked the little kids camp because I love that," van Rij said. "When Coach Carson asked me about coming back, I thought it was too late. She assured me it wasn't and suggested the strategic design program.

"I met with the head of the program and it was insane how perfect it was for me. I'm a very artistic person. This allows me to dive into that and play one more season of basketball, so I'm super excited about it."

The return of van Rij became all the more important after the key injuries the program has suffered this offseason.

"Oh my gosh, I couldn't imagine where we'd be without her after all that's happened. Just that leadership factor because if she wasn't here, we'd have no seniors," Carson said. "Niveya's a very vocal underclassman and has a strong personality in a lot of great ways, so Grace is going to have to step up in that kind of role as well.

"I'm a big believer that everything happens for a reason. We don't know the reason and we can't figure it out, but what we are going to figure out is how to battle through adversity and be a different team. It doesn't change our goals. It just changes our path to our goals."

Slawson injured, but Paladins roll in opener

Jalen Slawson had a team-high 17 points before leaving with an injury in Furman's
91-55 win over North Greenville Monday. Photo courtesy of Furman

After a glitzy season-opening win over North Greenville in which Furman set single-game records for three-pointers (22) and assists (34) last November, Monday's season opener was more workmanlike but achieved the same goal. Six Paladins scored in double figures as Furman cruised past North Greenville, 91-55, at Timmons Arena.

On a night where the Paladins made just 5-of-25 three-pointers, they still managed to shoot 53.7 percent from the field as they made 31-of-42 shots inside the arc. Furman finished with 58 points in the paint, 42 points from the bench and 25 points off 21 Crusader turnovers. Jalen Slawson led the way with 17 points and three steals, but left at the 17:33 mark of the second half and didn't return.

Slawson was fouled on a drive to the basket, but immediately grabbed his right hand in pain. He stayed in to make 1-of-2 free throws, but exited at the next dead ball. Slawson went to the locker room and didn't return to the bench until there were only about three minutes left in the game.

"We don't have a lot of details on Slawson at this point," Furman coach Bob Richey said during the postgame press conference. "We will just have to see what comes of it.

"Last year in this game, we couldn't miss. Clearly that wasn't the case tonight, but it was good to see us keep our defensive intensity up for the most part. We shot 60 percent from the floor in the second half even though we shot just 23 percent from three. It's good for us to understand that there's going to be some nights when you're not making them and you've got to go generate baskets other ways."

Things got off to a slow start as Furman led 14-12 with less than 12 minutes left in the first half before Slawson and Mike Bothwell took command. Slawson started a 16-0 run on a jumper and capped it with a thunderous dunk off a steal with 3:48 left. Mike Bothwell had seven points in the run and also had an assist on perhaps the play of the night. Bothwell made an alley-oop pass that both Slawson and freshman Ben VanderWal went up for. VanderWal the lead man on the fast break and he made the catch and slammed it home for his first collegiate points.

After the Paladins took a 37-19 lead into halftime, Slawson gave Furman its biggest lead to that point of the night on a three-point play to open the second half. Bothwell hit a layup one minute later to push the lead to 23 before Slawson's injury on Furman's next possession.

"I think we came out and settled for some quick shots. We kind of didn't have an idea of how they were going to play us defensively. I think there was some opening night jitters and people stepping in to new roles," Bothwell said. "We eventually settled in, started getting to the paint more and guys started finishing at the rim."

While the Paladins were in control, others still needed to step up when Slawson left and that's what happened. Garrett Hien grabbed a career-high 12 rebounds before fouling out with 3:03 left. Tyrese Hughey scored a career-high 15 points in 18 minutes off the bench. And then there was VanderWal, who made quite an impression in his debut.

VanderWal finished with 11 points, seven rebounds and two steals and flashed all facets of his game over a 20-second stretch of the second half. The 6-7 freshman grabbed a rebound at the 12:26 mark and had an assist on Hughey's jumper in the paint six seconds later. Eleven seconds later, VanderWal made a steal near midcourt and had a clear path to the bucket for another dunk. That forced a North Greenville timeout with 12:06 left as Furman pushed the lead to 57-32.

"He's a player. He does a lot of different things and we can move him around. We can play him at the three or the four," Richey said. "He's one of those guys that's typically in the right spot. A month ago, I didn't know if he was going to play or redshirt and he really just took off once we started practicing every day.

"Early in camp, it was like 'maybe he will play,' and then it was like 'oh yeah, he's definitely playing.' He's got a unique confidence about him, but it's earned. He cares about all the small things."

Bothwell finished with 16 points on 6-of-8 shooting from the floor, including 2-of-3 on threes. Marcus Foster had 11 points, five rebounds, two steals and no turnovers. Wake Forest transfer Carter Whitt had 10 points, five rebounds, four steals and three assists off the bench. Joe Anderson led the Paladins in assists with a career-high six in 19 minutes off the bench. While J.P. Pegues didn't score, he had three assists and received praise from Richey for how he handled his first game as starting point guard.

Next up for Furman is a showdown with another top mid-major program Friday when the Paladins host Belmont at 7 p.m.