GREENVILLE, S.C. – Stephen Croone and Keith Belfield scored 15 points each as Furman defeated Appalachian State 68-53 on Saturday.
William Gates added 13 points and Charlie Reddick 11 rebounds for the Paladins (9-18, 3-11 Southern). Though the Paladins hit only 4 of 17 3-point attempts, they made 25 of 50 overall for 50 percent. They also survived a 45-31 rebounding deficit.
The Mountaineers (8-19, 4-10) got 11 rebounds each from Tommy Spagnolo and Michael Obacha, and had 21 on the offensive glass, but couldn't overcome 19-of-61 shooting for 31.1 percent. Spagnolo scored 16 points, Tab Hamilton 12 and Jay Canty 10.
Leading 61-50 in the last 1½ minutes, Larry Wideman scored a pair of fast-breaks layups in a 7-0 spurt that left the Paladins up 17 points with 30 seconds left.
This was the final Southern Conference meeting between the schools with the Mountaineers going to the Sun Belt Conference next season.
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