GREENVILLE, S.C. -- Winners of its last two games, including a 64-51 triumph over Wofford on Saturday, Furman's women's basketball team is set to open its final road swing of the regular season on Thursday when it takes on Mercer in Southern Conference action at Hawkins Arena.
Tipoff for the ESPN+ streamed contest is set for 7:00 p.m.
The Paladins conclude the two-game swing on Saturday in a 5:30 p.m. ET contest at Samford.
Furman (14-12, 4-6 SoCon), which earned a 58-56 win over Mercer (11-16, 5-6 SoCon) in Greenville on Jan. 27, will be looking for its first regular season sweep of the Bears since Mercer joined the SoCon in 2014. The Paladins, who are 3-10 all-time in Macon, claimed a 69-66 win in Hawkins Arena two seasons ago.
In the season's first encounter in Greenville,
Niveya Henley paced Furman with 14 points, followed by
Sydney James and
Sydney Ryan with 12 points apiece. The Paladins hit on 6-of-12 3-pointers in the victory.
Solid shooting and strong defense keyed Furman in its win over second place Wofford, as the Paladins connected on 11-of-26 3-pointers (42.3%) while limiting the Terriers to 17-of-54 shooting (31.5%).
Tate Walters proved to be the major catalyst, coming off the bench to score 17 points in 21 minutes of play. The redshirt junior guard, who missed a stretch of four games due to injury before returning to deliver a critical assist on a late go-ahead basket in the 58-53 win over Western Carolina on Feb. 11, connected on 5-of-7 shots, including all four 3-point attempts versus Wofford.
Walters (9.9 ppg) is part of a balanced Paladin attack that also features junior forward
Jada Session (12.1 ppg), Henley (11.4 ppg), and Ryan (11.0 ppg). Henley has put up 51 points in the last three games, including a career high 24 against UNC Greensboro on Feb. 8.
Session is Furman's top rebounder (8.5 rpg).
Furman's two wins have come without injured junior forward
Kate Johnson (11.4 ppg, 7.0 rpg), who exited the lineup early in the second quarter of the Paladins' 79-62 loss at Chattanooga on Feb. 3. Her expected return date is unknown.
With 14 wins first-year head coach
Pierre Curtis' squad has already topped last year's 11-win tally, and Furman has also improved in league play with four victories this season.
Furman concludes the regular season with home games versus Chattanooga (Feb.29) and East Tennessee State (Mar. 2).
