Box Score (PDF)

GREENVILLE, S.C. – The Citadel men's basketball team fell to Furman 83-68 on Saturday afternoon to close out play in 2016.
 
Furman (8-6, 1-0 SoCon) started the game on a 5-0 run but Warren Sledge answered with a three-pointer and then took a charge on the next possession to give the Bulldogs (7-8, 0-2 SoCon) some momentum.  
 
With 16:06 remaining in the game, Greenville, South Carolina, native Preston Parks checked in and drilled a three-pointer to make it a two-point game. The freshman finished the first half with five points.
 
Six minutes later, Sledge nailed a three-pointer to give the Bulldogs their first lead of the game, 17-15. Frankie Johnson helped push that lead to four after bringing down a rebound and making a tough layup with 9:31 left in the first half. Furman fell cold for five minutes during the first frame, going scoreless and committing three of its 10 first half turnovers during that time.
 
With 3:12 left to play, the Paladins found their rhythm. With the score tied at 27-27, Furman retook the lead after making a jumper and would not relinquish it for the rest of the contest. The Paladins ended the first 20 minutes of play on a 12-0 run while the Bulldogs went scoreless for the last 3:33 of the half, allowing Furman to take a 37-27 lead into the break. Johnson and Sledge paced the Bulldogs with six points each.
 
The Citadel opened the second half with back-to-back threes and then a technical foul on Furman and two made free throws by Parks made it just a six-point lead for the Paladins. But the Bulldogs fell cold again and Furman was able to push their lead to 12 before a layup by Parks cut the lead to 10 with 12:32 remaining.
 
A few minutes later, Parks connected on back-to-back threes to make it an eight-point game. The Citadel was able to trim the lead to seven with 5:45 remaining but that was the closest they would get as Furman clinched the Southern Conference win.   
 
Parks led the 'Dogs with 24 points, marking his fourth consecutive 20-point game and seventh of the season. Kaelon Harris finished with nine points, five rebounds and three assists in his first career start while Johnson chipped in nine points.The Citadel was held to just eight treys in the contest and Furman shot 53.4 percent from the field.
 
The Bulldogs wrap up the road trip with a 7 p.m. tip at Wofford on Monday. The game will be broadcast on ESPN3 with live stats available at CitadelSports.com.
 
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