Greenville, S.C. – The Furman men's basketball team opens a crucial two-game homestand on Saturday afternoon when it hosts Southern Conference rival Western Carolina at Timmons Arena. This weekend's game is sponsored by Larkin's, the official hospitality partner of Furman basketball.
 
Saturday's tip-off is set for 2 p.m. and the game will be streamed live on ESPN+. Fans can listen to the action on The Fan Upstate at 97.7 FM and 1330 AM in Greenville, on 97.1 FM and 1490 AM in Spartanburg, or via the Audacy app. Links for the video stream, audio feed, and live statistics are available at FurmanPaladins.com.
 
Just 200 tickets remain for the Furman-Western Carolina matchup and can be purchased for $15 each as part of Furman's Flash Sale, which begins at 10 a.m. on Friday morning and runs 24 hours or while supplies last.
 
Furman (9-9, 3-2 SoCon) comes into Saturday riding a three-game winning streak after cruising to a 100-60 victory at VMI on Wednesday night in Lexington, Va. Alex Williams poured in a game-high 23 points to go with seven rebounds while Carter Whitt totaled 21 points on 5-of-8 shooting from three-point range. In his first game since December 2, Marcus Foster celebrated his return from injury by notching a double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds.
 
Saturday's game marks the 85^th all-time meeting between Furman and Western Carolina in a series that dates back to the 1976-77 campaign. Furman holds a 54-30 series lead and has won 15 of the last 16 meetings versus the Catamounts, including nine straight encounters in Greenville. Last season, Western Carolina claimed a 79-67 victory over the Paladins in Cullowhee, N.C., before Furman toppled the Catamounts, 93-59, at Timmons Arena. In the semifinal round of the SoCon Tournament in Asheville, N.C., Western Carolina rallied from a 20-point second half deficit to force overtime, but Furman prevailed, 83-80, en route to its first league tournament title and NCAA Tournament berth since 1980.
 
Western Carolina comes into Saturday's game at 15-3 overall and 4-1 in the SoCon following a 75-71 home loss to Samford on Tuesday night that snapped the Catamounts' nine-game winning streak.
 
The Paladins continue their homestand on Wednesday at 7 p.m. when they host first-place Samford. Tickets are available for both Saturday and Wednesday's games at FurmanPaladins.com.