After a nine day break, and a trip up to New York City, Furman found themselves in a battle with Manhattan. The rust was evident early on, which translated into a hard-fought battle. Furman showed some guts down the stretch led by strong performances from Bowser and Wilkins. Let’s jump into the takeaways:
Turnovers and free throws: These two were the story of the game. Manhattan played a shifting defense, but often sat back in zone. Guys were trying to do the right thing, getting it into the middle with Bowser, but were not being firm and decisive enough in their passes. This led to a lot of fastbreaks from the top of the zone, where Manhattan would have an automatic 3-on-2 break. It seemed like the Jaspers may have been ready to lay down when Furman was building a lead early, but these easy points helped build their confidence even when missing shots.
The defense had a defined shape early and held Manhattan to 3-13 start. The Jaspers were really missing shots, mostly due to the defensive pressure they faced. It was only after turnovers gave them transition opportunities that they began to settle down and feel more comfortable.
Early fouls on got Manhattan into the bonus and onto the line. The Paladins picked up quick fouls early on, which put Manhattan into the bonus with about six minutes left. One play that stuck out was Asa fouling on an inbound pass, with only 3 seconds on the shot clock.
One thing Asa Thomas has done well thus far in the season is just making shots when nothing else is working. Manhattan was threatening to take a lead into halftime, going up 32-28 with 1:52 left. Asa made two straight threes, helping Furman keep a 34-33 lead at the half. He finished with 12 points on 4/8 from three.
Cooper Bowser was…Cooper Bowser. He shot 100% yet again, going 8-8 and adding on 3 blocks and a steal. Bowser just scoops up anything thrown his direction and puts it in the basket. Bowser was absent for the final five and a half minutes, after landing awkwardly going for a rebound at the 6:42 mark. Cooper was put into a boot and it is unlikely he will play on Sunday, but I would be surprised if he was out for an extended period.
Jaden Winston (#2), was really impressive, beating Furman guards off the bounce. When Furman switched into a 1-3-1, it put a stop to that penetration and the Dins could take advantage of their length. Down the stretch he had been slowed enough to lose his rhythm and Furman could get some stops.
Ben VanderWal was great running the floor, and filled the stat sheet with 9 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 steals. He is an important guy in the defense and has a knack for offensive rebounds. However, there is no way around the free throw issue for him. He was 1-8 last night, and had two bad airballs late in the game, one of which was luckily rebounded by Johnston with a minute left. His free throw shooting prevents him from playing late in games. He was probably only in last night due to the injury to Bowser. Eventually teams may start fouling him intentionally and it was somewhat surprising that Manhattan didn't apply that strategy to get back into the game.
No tech for six players on the court? Furman inbounded the ball while Manhattan was playing six guys and the Jaspers somehow avoided a technical. That’s a clear cut call that was a bit ridiculous for the refs to let go.
Chuck and Alex were great down the stretch. Wilkins has a size advantage on most guards, which he put to use last night getting inside and finishing. Chuck hit a big three to extend the lead and grabbed rebounds on both ends. Eddrin Bronson came in for VanderWal late and finished a huge putback to get the lead out to 5 and practically seal the game. Johnston finished with another double double, but more importantly he has hit 5 of his last 9 from three over the last two games. Wilkins finished 18 points and 7 assists.
A win is a win right? Furman has won 4 in a row, and 7-of-8 since their 1-3 start. Sometimes you come out sloppy and it’s better when those games still end in the win column. Furman has 3 home games coming up, starting with Charleston Southern on Sunday, before starting conference play vs. Mercer.
Stats vs. Manhattan via ESPN below: look away when you see the free throws
