Way down yonder in New Orleans (La.), Furman’s J.P. Pegues, PJay Smith and Alex Williams combined to score 75 points Thursday night.
It wasn’t enough.
Led by Jaylen Forbes with 26 points and Kevin Cross with a triple double — 25 points, 12 rebounds and 12 assists — Tulane (7-2) won a wild 117-110, double-overtime, nerve-wracker over the Paladins, who can’t buy a breakthrough win.
Since defeating Coastal Carolina on Nov. 17, Furman (5-6) has lost by seven to Wyoming, six to UAB, one to Princeton and 14 to Arkansas. The victories have been by eight over South Carolina State and 42 over Bob Jones.
Collin Holloway added 18 points, Tre Williams 14, and Kolby King 13 to give the Green Wave six players in double figures.
For Furman, Garrett Hien added 10 before fouling out. Davis Molnar contributed career-highs with nine points and nine boards, while Whitt posted eight points and eight rebounds.
Tulane connected on its final five shots, including four consecutive three-pointers, to outlast Furman in double overtime, 117-110, at Fogelman Arena.
The Paladins mounted a furious rally from a 16-point second-half deficit and grabbed a 92-89 lead on Pegues’ triple with 0.8 seconds left, but Tulane’s Cross was fouled on a turnaround three-pointer with 0.3 to go and drained all three of his free throws to force overtime.
After Cross evened the game from the foul line with 1:21 to go in the first extra period, the Paladins had two possessions with a chance to grab the lead. Carter Whitt’s three missed with 57 seconds left and Pegues missed from near the top of the key following a defensive stop as the game went to double overtime at 99-99.
In the second overtime period, Furman took the lead on three straight possessions, but the Green Wave answered each time with a Forbes triple, the last of which gave Tulane a 110-108 advantage with 2:24 remaining. A turnover led to a Kolby King three and a 6-0 Green Wave run as Tulane finished the game on a 10-2 spurt to claim the victory.
Tulane (7-2) recorded 17 steals on the night and forced Furman into 22 turnovers. The Green Wave shot .559 from the field, including 12/22 three-pointers, and made good on 29/44 trips to the foul line.
The Paladins, who amassed a 47-36 rebounding edge, shot .481 and connected on 18/42 three-point tries. Furman went 18/25 from the foul line, led by Williams 7/7 effort.
Trailing 76-63 with under eight minutes to play in regulation, the Paladins hit five triples down the stretch to rally in the final minutes.
It was the first double-overtime contest for the Paladins since a 90-88 win over Western Carolina in December 2018 at Timmons Arena.
Presbyterian (7-4 entering a Saturday home game against Kennesaw State) visits Timmons Arena next Tuesday for a 7 p.m. game.
Take a look at the stats here.
Back at Timmons Arena, typically a happier purple place, Jada Session put up a career-best 21 points as Pierre Curtis’s women’s team ran roughshod over Elon, 73-47.
Furman (7-5) ran away from Elon (2-8) in the first half. Maraja Pass led the Phoenix with 12 points.
Session, a junior forward from Locust Grove, Ga., connected on 9/14 shots and all three free throw, which topped her previous career best of 20, scored against Georgia Tech earlier this year. She scored nine of her points in the first quarter to fuel a 17-0 Furman run that helped the Paladins overcome a 13-4 deficit for a 21-13 lead after one period.
The Paladins’ extended the run to 23-0 by scoring the first six points of the second quarter on 3-pointers by Niveya Henley and Sydney Ryan.
By the time the smoke cleared, the Paladins led by 20 (37-17) at halftime.
The Paladins were never threatened in the second half, halting a four-game series skid to the Phoenix, a former Southern Conference rival.
Henley added 14 points and Kate Johnson had 12 for the Paladins.
Furman shot .453 from the field, connecting on 29/64 shots. Elon, which drained five of its first six shots in taking the early lead, finished the contest just 16/54 (.296) from the field.
The Paladins dominated on the boards, posting a 45-30 advantage behind Session’s game-high eight rebounds.
Furman plays at Kentucky on Sunday in a 1 p.m. contest.
Take a look at the stats here.
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