Furman Falls 82-78 As Mountaineers Tie School Record for 3-Pointers with 13

BOONE, N.C. ‹ In Southern Conference women¹s basketball action, Appalachian and Furman met for the second time in six games this afternoon at the Holmes Center, with the Mountaineers taking the 82-78 victory. All scoring was led by a career-high performance from Mountaineer (7-12, 3-7) Aisha Bryant (Durham, N.C.), who put up 30 points and five three-pointers.

The Paladins (11-10, 6-6) were led by Monica Pope¹s 20 points and six assists.

Appalachian tied the school record of 13 three-pointers in a game. The game started out on a fast pace in a first half that saw two Paladins and three Mountaineers reach double figures. The first stanza was led by Furman¹s Monica Pope, who had 15 points, five of those from a perfect performance from the line. Heading Appalachian in the first 20:00 was Bryant, who contributed 12 points, striking three times from behind the arc. The Mountaineers shot a blistering 70 percent from three-point range, hitting seven treys in the first, and were 48 percent from the floor. The Paladins shot 56 percent from the floor in the first. The lead changed 10 times, and at the break the Apps were on top, 47-46.

Out of the lockerroom, the seesawing battle continued- there were four ties in the first few minutes of play before the Paladins went on a 8-0 run at the 13:10 mark. Appalachian battled back, but Furman held on, leading until a 78-78 tie with 2:32 left to play. Bryant made two free throws to put ASU up two with just 10 seconds on the clock. Then Joanie White (Newton, N.C.) stole the ball from Althea Bufford, got fouled, and proceeded to hit both free throws to end the game with a four-point Mountaineer advantage. Both teams had four players in double figures.

For Furman, Pope (20), Kim Lawrence (15), Bufford (13), and Mary Brock (10) reached doubles, and the Paladins were 47 percent from the floor for the half. On the ASU side of the ball, Bryant (30), Tiffani Johnson (Covington, Ga.) (13), Lindsay Smith (Winston-Salem, N.C.) and Ashleigh Fuller (Duncan, S.C.) each had 10, with Smith adding six assists.

The Lady Paladins will host the Davidson Wildcats Tuesday at 7 p.m.