Furman’s tournament run ends in 75-52 loss to SDSU

ORLANDO, F.L. (FOX Carolina) - After a bracket-busting upset in the first round of the NCAA tournament, the Furman Paladins were hoping to continue their Cinderella streak in Orlando. Still, they couldn’t overcome the impressive offense of San Diego State.

No. 13 seed Furman clinched a stunning 68 to 67 win with a 3-pointer in the final seconds against No. 4 Virginia on Thursday.

On Saturday they returned to the court at Amway Center in hopes of securing a spot in the Sweet 16 with another upset against No. 5 San Diego State. However, the Aztecs dominated the court in a 75 to 52 victory.

The Paladins’ offense struggled and was worn down by the physically-imposing Aztecs in the second half. However, still an incredible season for Furman - who appeared in the NCAA tournament for the first time in 43 years. Round one was their first tournament win since 1974.

Needless to say, the Upstate and Paladins community are proud of their showing in March Madness.

GAME RECAP BLOG

Jalen Slawson said the team celebrated their first-round win a little bit, but was focused on preparation before round two.

“We have the rest of our lives to relish in the past 24 hours but you know, we only got one shot at the Sweet 16,” the Furman senior said. “So we’re going to get ourselves ready and come out and throw our best punch tomorrow.”

JP Pegues, the sophomore who made the game-winning shot, said he wanted to end Saturday’s game with no regrets.

“The last thing you want to do is go out and Sunday comes and we have regrets that we didn’t play our best, our fullest potential because we were still daydreaming about what happened on Thursday,” Pegues said.

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