By Kenneth Cross
ORLANDO – The Furman Paladins’ created history with just their second NCAA Tournament win in history as it spelled a 68-67 upset victory over Virginia. A pass interception by Garrett Hien was a big play as he followed in with a pass to an open JP Pegues on the right wing. He drilled the three for the game-winner and the Paladins moved to the Final 32 in a matchup with San Diego State.
Virginia guard Kihei Clark took the inbounds pass and was hustled with a Furman full-court pressure. Clark tried to throw over the top but Hien’s interception and the shot by Pegues spelled the win.
“We did a pretty good job denying out, making them force a tough pass which he did,” explained Pegues.
Mike Bothwell, Furman’s leading scorer, had already fouled out of the game, so Pegues, Jalen Slawson, and Marcus Foster had to find a way to take over the game with their shooting skills and ability to lead as the Paladins trailed by eight win six minutes to play.
Slawson scored nine consecutive points to give the Paladins their first lead at 57-54 with 5:02 remaining. Pegues followed with a layup and a pair of free throws before his game winner.
“We got some good actions and these guys did a great job getting me good looks and I was able to knock them down ,” said Slawson.
San Diego State will be in the Paladins’ way of a Sweet 16 with their consistently solid defense that allowed the Aztecs to pass high-flying Charleston, 63-57.
The Cougars tied the Aztecs at 53-53 on a layup by Ante Brzovic with 3:27 to play. SDSU is one of the nation’s best teams at being able to control and close games. A Matt Bradley layup and a Micah Parrish three pushed the Aztecs into a decisive 58-53 lead with 1:45 to play.
“I feel like right now, I am in a good place mentally, where late in the games, my teammates and coaches trust me,” said Bradley, who finished with 17 points and seven rebounds.
The Aztec’s defense will be a filter that Furman will have to play through as they held Charleston to 5-of-24 from three after the Cougars averaged nine makes and 30 three-point attempts per game.
“We’re one of the few teams that when the offense isn’t going, we can play defense and rebound well enough to stay in the game until we can make some timely shots,” said Aztecs head coach Brian Dutcher.