HOMEWOOD, ALA. – Lauren Bailey scored 15 points to lead a balanced Furman attack, and the Paladins rode a strong second half defensive effort and fourth quarter comeback to beat Samford, 70-62, in Southern Conference women's basketball action Saturday afternoon at the Pete Hanna Center.
 
The victory was the fourth straight win and seventh triumph in the last eight games for Furman (13-8, 5-1 SoCon), which notched its best six-game start in the league play since the 2004-05 season.  It also halted a four-game series losing skid to Samford (8-14, 1-4 SoCon).
 
Bailey's team high 15 points came on 5-of-9 work from 3-point range, with 12 of her points coming in the first half to help the Paladins survive a 25-point second quarter by Samford that sent the Bulldogs into the break with a 40-32 lead.
 
It was a different story in the second half as the Paladins ramped up the defensive pressure, limiting the Bulldogs to just 9-of-30 shooting (30.0%) and 22 points over the final 20 minutes of play.
 
After Samford pushed out to a 58-50 advantage two and half minutes into the fourth quarter, Furman responded with a 10-0 run as four players — Raina McGowens, Brooklyn King, Chantelle Stuart, and Clare Coyle — combined to defy the team's 61 percent season free throw shooting slate by converting 8-of-10 opportunities from the stripe to give the Paladins a 60-58 lead with five minutes to go.
 
The Bulldogs' Sierra Godbolt tied it a 60-60 with a layup a minute later, but Furman responded with consecutive layups by King, Alyssa Ervin, and Coyle to stretch its advantage to 66-60 and help the Paladins finish the contest with a 20-4 run.
 
Coyle and Stuart followed Bailey in the scoring column with 13 points apiece, and Ervin finished with 12 and McGowens 10.
 
Coyle complemented her seventh double-double of the season with a game high 15 rebounds that earned the Paladins a decisive 42-28 advantage on the glass.  The Jacksonville, Fla., sophomore forward also registered a career high six assists.
 
King delivered seven points and eight rebounds off the bench.
 
Furman shot 41.1 percent from the field, connecting on 23-of-56 attempts, and dialed in 7-of-18 offerings from 3-point range (38.9%).
 
Samford converted 6-of-12 treys in the first half, but the Paladins limited the Bulldogs to just 2-of-16 shooting from beyond the arc in the second half.
 
Godbolt, Kaylee Yarbrough, and Briana Rivera paced Samford with 13 points apiece.
 
The Paladins play next Friday at Wofford in Spartanburg.