Greenville, S.C. – Junior JP Pegues tallied a game-high 23 points and posted career highs with nine rebounds and nine assists to propel Furman to a 99-76 victory over Belmont in a showdown of mid-major powers on Friday night at Timmons Arena.
 
The victory marked Furman's (2-0) 17^th in its last 19 games overall and its 34^th in its last 36 regular season non-conference contests inside Timmons. 
 
Senior Garrett Hien ignited the Paladins early by scoring all 13 of his points in the first half as the Furman shot 48.6% from the field and connected on 5-of-12 triples to build a 46-31 lead at intermission. The Bruins went 0-for-10 on three-point attempts in the first half and just 3-for-21 from long range on the night.
 
The Paladins used a 10-3 run, capped by Pegues' four-point play with 16:14 remaining, to open a 56-39 second-half lead and answered a 9-2 Belmont run with an 11-3 spurt to up the lead to 69-51 on Ben VandwerWal's basket with 12:20 to go. The Bruins reeled off 10 straight points to trim the margin to 69-61 with under 11 minutes to play, but the Paladins outscored Belmont 30-15 over the final 10:30 to pull away. 
 
Pegues went 7-for-13 from the field and 6-of-8 at the foul line to lead the Paladins in his first game of the season while Marcus Foster netted 16 points on 4-of-9 shooting from behind the arc and PJay Smith Jr. added 15 points. Hien finished with 13 points and freshman Cooper Bowser rounded out Furman's group of five double-figure scorers with 10.
 
Furman posted a 51-34 edge on the glass and shot 52.1% from the field, including 41.4% (12-29) behind the arc. The Paladins dished out 25 assists as a team and outscored the Bruins by 27 points from three-point range.
 
Ja'Kobi Gillespie led Belmont (1-1) with 21 points while Kyler Vanderjagt and Jayce Willingham added 12 and 11 points, respectively, off the bench. 
 
The Paladins travel to the Myrtle Beach Invitational November 16-19. Furman takes on Liberty in opening round play on November 16 before facing either Wichita State or host Coastal Carolina on Friday, November 17. The tournament concludes with a game against one of College of Charleston, St. Louis, Vermont, or Wyoming on Sunday, November 19 at the HTC Center in Conway, S.C. 
 
Single game tickets are available at FurmanPaladins.com. Fans can secure season tickets for the 2023-24 season by clicking here.