GREENVILLE, S.C. -- Furman's women's basketball team is preparing for a trio of games this week at the Georgia State Thanksgiving Tournament in Atlanta.
The Paladins (4-2), winners in their last two outings, the latest being a 101-47 triumph over Bob Jones on Saturday, will face Campbell on Tuesday in a 2:30 p.m. contest at the GSU Convocation Center, followed by a Wednesday noon clash versus host Georgia State. Furman's final foe this week will be Purdue Fort Wayne, which the Paladins will battle on a 2:30 p.m. Thursday.
Furman's Wednesday clash against Georgia State will be live streamed via ESPN+. Â The Campbell and Purdue Fort Wayne games will not be streamed. All three contests feature Georgia State-driven StateBroadcast live stats, with links available through the women's basketball schedule page on FurmanPaladins.com.
Furman has demonstrated impressive depth and balance six games into the 2024-25 campaign, with 10 players averaging over 10 minutes per game and four scoring in double figures. Â Those numbers could receive an additional boost when senior All-SoCon forward
Jada Session (12.1 ppg, 8.1 rpg in 2023-24) returns to action following a preseason injury, though that exact date has yet to be announced.
Senior All-SoCon forward
Kate Johnson (13.4 ppg, 6.8 rpg), who played at Cherokee High School in the Metro Atlanta area, leads the Paladins in scoring and field goal percentage (.596) and is coming off a 19-point, 11-rebound performance in the win over Bob Jones.
Another Atlanta area product, graduate guard
Tate Walters from Buford High School, follows, averaging 11.7 points and 6.3 rebounds per game, while also contributing 20 assists and team leading 15 steals. Â With 939 career points, the All-SoCon combination guard is closing in on becoming the 27th player in Furman history to reach 1,000 points, and her 354 assists ranks seventh all-time.
Two other Paladins averaging in double figures are juniors — forward
Sydney Ryan (10.5 ppg) and
Niveya Henley (10.0 ppg).
The start of the 2024-25 campaign has featured an influx of talented freshmen, led by forward
Clare Coyle, who is contributing 7.7 ppg along with a team leading 9.3 rpg, good for second in the SoCon. Â The Jacksonville, Fla., native is also shooting 61.3 percent from the field through six games. Â Two other newcomers earning attention include guard
Raina McGowens (7.0 ppg) and combination guard
Chantelle Stuart (3.7 ppg, 17 ast.).Â
Graduate transfer
Bella LaChance from Vanderbilt has delivered improved production (team high 22 assists) at point guard for head coach
Pierre Curtis' squad.
Tuesday's clash with Campbell will mark only the third meeting on the hardwood between the two schools, who last squared off during the 1990-91 season in a game the Paladins won, 93-69, in the Vanderbilt Invitational in Nashville.
Furman and Georgia State will meet for only the ninth time when they square off on Wednesday.  The Paladins hold a 5-3 edge in the series with the Panthers, who claimed the last meeting — a 78-59 verdict in Atlanta — during the 2020-21 season.
The Furman-Purdue Fort Wayne contest represents the series inaugural.