Greenville, S.C. – Furman's
Cooper Bowser and
Tom House were named to the Preseason All-Southern Conference Team and the Paladins were tabbed to finish second in the SoCon standings in voting by the league's 10 men's basketball coaches, it was announced on Wednesday morning at SoCon Media Day.
Bowser, a junior from Woodbridge, Va., returns to anchor the Paladin frontcourt this season after averaging 8.3 points, 4.7 rebounds and 1.6 blocks per game a year ago. The 6-foot-11 forward's 57 blocked shots, including 26 in league play, helped him earn a spot on the 2024-25 SoCon All-Defensive Team. Among his top performance last season, Bowser powered Furman to a victory over Seattle in Las Vegas with 17 points and 12 rebounds, helped the Paladins to an overtime win at The Citadel with 13 points and a career-best 14 boards, and totaled a career-high 21 points in a January win over Samford.
House, who arrived in Greenville from Florida State prior to the 2024-25 season, contributed 7.1 points and 2.6 rebounds per game in 34 contests while shooting 40.6% from behind the arc. The Dayton, Ohio, native excelled over the final month of the season scoring 26 and 19 points, respectively, in home wins over Mercer and The Citadel before netting 21 points in a SoCon Tournament win over Samford. Over Furman's last 10 games of the season, House averaged 11.4 points per game and shot 56.5% from three-point range.
Chattanooga and Furman each received five first-place votes with the Mocs taking the top spot in the preseason poll by a margin of 77 points to 73. Samford was picked third and ETSU fourth with UNC Greensboro, VMI, Western Carolina, Mercer, Wofford, and The Citadel rounding out the poll.
Head coach
Bob Richey, now in his ninth season at Furman, welcomes back six players who saw playing time in at least 31 games a year ago for a Furman squad that posted a 25-10 overall record, advanced to the Southern Conference Tournament finals, and received an at-large bid to the NIT.
Furman is set to open the newly-renovated Timmons Arena in front of a packed house on Sunday, October 26, when it hosts nationally-ranked Alabama in exhibition action. After taking on 2025 Big South champion High Point in Rock Hill, S.C., at The Field of 68 Tip-Off Marathon on November 3, Furman will entertain Sun Belt Conference champion Troy in the regular season home opener at Timmons Arena on November 7.
Click here to purchase single game and season tickets for 2025-26 Furman men's basketball and guarantee your seat inside Timmons Arena.
2025-26 Southern Conference Preseason Coaches Poll
| Team (1st-place votes) |
Total |
| 1. Chattanooga (5) |
77 |
| 2. Furman (5) |
73 |
| 3. Samford |
62 |
| 4. ETSU |
61 |
| 5. UNCG |
43 |
| 6. VMI |
41 |
| 7. Western Carolina |
32 |
| 8. Mercer |
30 |
| 9. Wofford |
21 |
| 10. The Citadel |
10 |
2025-26 Preseason Southern Conference Player of the Year
Rickey Bradley Jr, Sr., G, VMI
2025-26 Preseason All-Southern Conference team
Jaylen Smith, Jr., G, ETSU
Cooper Bowser, Jr., F, Furman
Tom House, Sr., G, Furman
Jadin Booth, Gr., G, Samford
Dylan Faulkner, Jr., C, Samford
Jikari Johnson, Gr., G, Chattanooga
Collin Mulholland, R-So., F, Chattanooga
Teddy Washington Jr., Gr., G, Chattanooga
Rickey Bradley Jr, Sr., G, VMI
Marcus Kell, R-Jr., F, Western Carolina
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