Charleston, S.C. The Citadel fell to Furman, 69-51, in Southern Conference action at McAlister Field House on Saturday. Furman shot an impressive 70.8 percent in the first half and held on to lead for the entire game.
Starting off the game, the Bulldogs were down early as Furman's Diagne Moussa recorded the first nine of 11 points for the Paladins, putting them up, 11-2, by the first media timeout at 15:56. The Bulldog picked up the pace and got back into the game, bringing the score within two points at 3:28 with a jumper by Demetrius Nelson that made the score 27-25. However, Paladin Eric Webb quickly widened the margin back to five points with a 3-point shot at 3:05 that started a 14-0 run to end the half, 41-25.
“We are very disappointed in our guys during that stretch,” head coach Ed Conroy said about the last four minutes of the first half. “We got inattentive and I am very puzzled by that. I'm still looking for the answer. It's very disappointing because we've been very good against the zone all year.”
The Paladins (14-12, 8-7 Southern) shot a season-high 70.8 percent in the first half, shooting 17-of-24 from the field and 5-of-11 from long range for 45 percent. The Citadel shot 37 percent from the field, connecting on 10-of-27 baskets including two from long range. Moussa led both teams with 11 points at the half and three blocks, while Nelson had seven for the Bulldogs. Everhart led the half with five boards.
Both teams struggled to get into the game starting off the second period, as the Bulldogs were never able to take the lead. Trading baskets some at the beginning of the period, Webb connected on his third from long range at 9:40 to put the Paladins up by 23 at 59-36. Stanley Jones followed with a free throw at 9:01 that gave the Furman their largest lead of the game at 60-36.
The Bulldogs won the battle in the paint, outscoring Furman 26-22 but the Paladins out rebounded The Citadel, 31-28. The Citadel fought back in the second half, shooting 40.9 percent and 4-for-8 both from downtown and from the charity stripe. Nelson led the Bulldogs with 13 points and five boards, while Furman's Jadee Jones totaled 14 points, shooting a perfect 4-of-4 from the field and 4-of-4 from the charity stripe.
The Citadel drops to 7-19 overall and 4-11 in the Southern Conference. They head to Georgia Southern on Monday for a 7:30 p.m. tip-off before returning to Charleston to take on crosstown rival College of Charleston on Thursday, Feb. 22 at 7 p.m. For stats or more information on Bulldog Basketball or The Citadel Athletics, go to www.CitadelSports.com.
