Dec. 5, 2009

Box Score

Greenville, S.C. - Richie Gordon scored Western Carolina's first seven points and maneuvered through foul trouble to lead the team with 15 while Jake Robinson added 13 points off the bench as the Catamounts pulled away in the closing minutes to claim their sixth-straight seasonal victory, 64-57, Saturday afternoon over Furman at Timmons Arena.

Western Carolina (7-1, 2-0 Southern Conference) held just a 55-53 lead with 1:51 left in the game, but Robinson converted a three-point play to spark a 9-to-4, game-winning run for the Catamounts which scored their fourth-straight victory over Furman and second-consecutive in Greenville.

Robinson muscled in a shot in the paint and buried a free throw with 1:18 left to up the Catamount lead to 58-53. Following back-to-back Furman turnovers, Brigham Waginger converted a layup on a fast break and finished the three-point play at the foul line to push the advantage to eight points with 30 seconds remaining. WCU made good on three free throws over the final 30 seconds to secure the victory.

WCU's six-consecutive wins are the programs most since 1999, while the 7-1 start is the program's best since becoming an NCAA Division I program back in 1976.

Gordon finished 7-for-9 from the floor for the Catamounts and was among three with a team-high six rebounds. Robinson was 4-for-8 from the floor and also hit all three of his team's 3-pointers in the win, moving into second-place on WCU's career 3-pointers made charts by-passing Casey Rogers (1999-02) currently with 209.

Waginger finished with nine points and five assists, while also swiping four steals to give him 214 for his career - just seven shy of WCU Hall of Famer and school all-time steals leader, Henry Logan (221, 1965-68).

Jordan Miller paced three Paladins in double figures with 15 points while Amu Saaka finished with 12 points and six rebounds and Justin Dehm scored 11.

Furman, which came into the game as the conference's most prolific 3-point shooting team in the conference making an average of 46.2-percent of their attempts per game, was held to a season-low 1-for-14

Western Carolina led Furman by five points at halftime and outscored the Paladins 36-34 in the second half. All told, the Catamounts outscored Furman 34-18 in the paint, and got 27 bench points. The Paladins' bench scored just seven points.

WCU continues its two-game road swing on Monday night as it visits the Bradley Braves in the Carver Arena in Peoria, Ill. It is the first-ever meeting between the two schools which rank 24th and 25th in this week's CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25 poll.

Post-game Notes:
- Saturday's win was Western Carolina's fourth-straight over Furman, matching the longest winning streak for the Catamounts over the Paladins in the head-to-head series history ... WCU also earned its second-straight win over Furman at Timmons Arena, capturing its first-ever victory in the facility which opened in 1998 a year ago;

- The win was WCU's sixth-straight triumph of the season, improving WCU to 7-1 on the year which is the best start to a season since the Catamounts became NCAA Division I back in 1976;

- Senior Jake Robinson tied and moved past former Catamount Casey Rogers (1999-02) for second-place on Western Carolina's career 3-pointers made chart with three made treys at Furman ... Robinson has 209 made three's for his career, chasing Anquell McCollum (245, 1993-96);

- Robinson also now has 973 career points, just 27 career points shy of 1,000 for his career;

- Senior guard Brigham Waginger made four steals on Saturday giving him 214 for his career, just seven behind WCU Hall of Famer and all-time steals leader, Henry Logan (221 from 1965-68).