March 2, 2002

Final Stats

Charleston, S.C. - The No. 3 seed Furman Lady Paladins defeated the sixth-seeded Western Carolina Catamounts by a score of 72-58 in game six of the Southern Conference Women's Basketball Championships Friday evening in McAlister Field House.

After opening the game with a 4-0 lead, Furman gave up eight straight points to fall behind 8-4 with 12:47 to play in the first period. The two quick runs typified the way the first 20 minutes of this game would be played.

Furman battled back and took a 12-11 lead over the Catamounts midway through the first period. Six straight Western Carolina points, including four by Tiffany Hamm, put the Catamounts back in the lead, 17-12, with just over five minutes to play in the half.

Furman finished the half by outscoring Western Carolina 16-9 to take a slim two-point advantage, 28-26, into the halftime break.

The Paladins came out of the blocks running and opened up a 10-point lead, 38-28, with 15:43 to play in regulation. Western Carolina cut into the 10-point deficit with a three-point basket by Melissa Ervin just inside the 12-minute mark, making the score 44-37 in favor of Furman.

The teams continued to trade points as Furman maintained a 51-41 lead as the game clock ticked past the eight-minute mark. An Althea Bufford layup off a steal by Deshara Shealey forced Western Carolina to call a timeout and gave Furman its largest lead to date, 59-45.

The Catamounts answered a 6-0 run by Furman with one of their own and put the lead back at 10 points, 61-51, with 4:20 to play. Furman then reeled off seven straight points over the next two minutes to put the game out of reach.

Three-time All-SoCon pick Laura Echols scored 12 points, as did freshman Jennifer Gardner, to led Western offensively. The Catamounts were 13-of-13 at the free throw line, including an 8-for-8 performance by Gardner.

Western Carolina finishes the season with a record of 17-11. It will be Furman's third consecutive appearance in the semifinals. This was the first winning season for the Catamounts since the 1992-83 season when they were 17-10.