Jan. 20, 2007

Final Stats

Greenville, S.C. - Western Carolina used a 15-to-4 second half run to slice a 16-point deficit to five midway through the stanza, and managed to trim the deficit to four at the 6:12 mark. But, near-perfect free throw shooting by Furman proved to be the difference maker as the Paladins held on for a 79-67 win Saturday afternoon at Timmons Arena.

Western (7-11, 4-3 SoCon) put five players in double figures led by the third career double-double from freshman Nick Aldridge. The South Webster, Ohio, native scored 18 points, 10 of which came from the free throw line, and pulled down 10 rebounds for the Catamounts. Freshman Jake Robinson added 14 points off the bench, draining 4-of-6 from beyond the 3-point arc, with juniors Arnold Gore and Antonio Russell and freshman Brandon Giles each scoring 10.

With the score tied at six, Furman broke open a close game in the first half with a 14-0 run over a five minute span to pull ahead by 14, 20-6, at the 9:40 mark. Western was able to end the drought with a Giles free throw that sparked four-consecutive points by the Cats to trim the lead to 10, 20-10, before the Paladins pushed the game back out to a first half high 18 with three minutes to play before the half. WCU was able to slice into the lead by closing the opening 20 minutes with a 10-4 spurt to trail at intermission, 41-29.

Western was able to again pull within 10 with an Aldridge lay-up out of the halftime locker room, but Furman outscored WCU 9-to-3 after that bucket to lead by 16, 50-34, off the second of two Alex Opacic free throws. Following the charity toss, the Catamounts used the 15-to-4 run, capped by a Robinson trey and an Aldridge free throw, to pull to within five. After cutting the game to four, 61-57, Furman outscored Western 18-to-10 down the stretch to hold on for the victory.

Furman (9-9, 3-4 SoCon) guard Robby Bostain hit 13-of-14 free throw attempts en route to a game-high 23 points to pace the Paladins, with Jadee Jones scoring 15 in the win.

For the game, Western earned a 39-to-35 edge on the boards, but Furman shot 35-of-38 (92-percent) from the free throw line in the win.

Western returns home on Monday night to host SoCon North Division foe, Elon, at 7:00 pm in the Ramsey Center for the sixth annual Beach Night game, presented by the Comfort Suites of Charleston, S.C., and the Catamount Travel Center. Fans are encouraged to dress in their favorite beach attire and will have chances to win great prizes, including tanning packages and spring break travel packages.

Monday's game will be broadcast by the Catamount Sports Network and can be heard in Western North Carolina on WWCU-FM, Power 90dot5 in Cullowhee or online at www.WWCUFM.com and www.CatamountSports.com. The CSN broadcast will also be heard on Sirius satellite radio Channel 121.