One of the best aspects of being a sportswriter is learning to appreciate a good game even when one doesn’t have a rooting interest.
It is also one of the worst aspects.
Dimes are important in football. Receivers stop on one and catch one from the quarterback.
A lot of teams enjoy boat racing. Wonder why? Are boat races usually blowouts? That’s what happens when one team dominates another. Ask any broadcaster.
Teams often enroll down the field. That’s what “matriculate” means.
On many pass plays, both the receiver and the defender interfere. I could stand a few offsetting interference penalties. Holding and interference are endemic, particularly in the college game.
The refs’ job is a tough one, and I sympathize with them. It seems as if no one else does.

Have no fear. PJay Smith Jr. is fine.
He played fine in Furman’s 77-63 victory in Cambridge, Mass., over Harvard on Saturday afternoon.
The senior from Lavergne, Tenn., who dislocated a shoulder against South Carolina State a week earlier and missed the Montreat game, scored 25 points, snagged seven rebounds, passed out five assists and made two steals to power Furman past the Crimson at Lavietes Pavilion.

J.P. Pegues, now at Auburn, seemed irreplaceable at point guard, as once did Alex Hunter.

‘T’ain’t so.

Furman (12-1) has never won 12 regular-season, non-conference games before. In the greater scheme of things, what counts is the Southern Conference schedule.

The Paladins outscored Harvard, 46-31, in the second half, finishing the game on a 34-18 run,.
After Furman took the lead early in the second half, Harvard used a 11-0 spurt to take a 45-43 advantage on Chandler Pigge’s triple with 13:21 to play. Furman answered with 10 straight points.

Charles Johnston drained a go-ahead three and Nick Anderson hit a jumper from the baseline before converting on three trips to the foul line.

Garrett Hien capped the run with a second-chance opportunity in the paint to put Furman ahead 53-45 with under 10:30 to go.
Harvard (3-8) responded by trimming the Paladin lead back to three points on three separate occasions and trailed 59-56 with under seven minutes left, but Smith nailed a 3-pointer and Furman forced the Crimson into turnovers on three of their next four possessions. Smith converted on a pair of free throws prior to Anderson hitting a floater near the foul line with 4:09 remaining to push the margin to 66-56.

The Paladins limited Harvard to just two baskets over the final four minutes.
Smith went 8/11 from the field, including 5/7 from behind the arc, while making all four of his free throws to top 20 points for the fourth time this season. Anderson posted 16 points, and Hien added 10. The Paladins shot .519 from the floor and connected on 10/24 from deep. Furman edge the Crimson 32-30 edge on the glass and outscored the Harvard 30-20 in the paint.

Harvard shot just .379 from the field. Pigge led the Crimson with 16 points and nine rebounds. Thomas Batties II scored 14 points, and Evan Nelson and Louis Lesmond had 11 apiece.

Furman built a nine-point lead in the first half, but the Crimson ended the period on a 14-3 run to take a 32-31 lead into the locker room. The 11-0 run midway through the second half gave Furman a lead it would not relinquish.
Furman returns to action on Jan. 1 when it opens SoCon play versus Western Carolina at Ramsey Center in Cullowhee, N.C.
Take a look at the stats here.

Eight new prospects are to dot the women’s soccer roster next year.
They are Callah Dando (Beaufort), Jessica Mattson (Waxhaw, N.C.), Caroline Moseley (Atlanta, Ga.), Katelyn Nixon (Atlanta, Ga.), Imani Okunlola (Lawrenceville, Ga.), Kasey Sitko (Cumming, Ga.), Avery Stanley (Milton, Ga.), and Alla Summers (Elkin, N.C.).

“We are thrilled to add these eight young ladies to the Furman soccer family,” said head coach Andrew Burr. “The class includes several players who have a chance of making an immediate impact on our program and all eight are great fits for Furman, both in the classroom and on the field.”

“Life is hard no matter where you go. It’s a tortured path, tough row to hoe. When the wheels spin, got a heavy load, hoping I can get to the paved road.”

Wellpilgrim.com is adjusting to the winter chill.
Times are changing. I am aware of how irrelevant what I do for a living has become and thus how unimportant my efforts are. The readers appreciate them, but there aren’t enough of them. I doubt there ever will be again.
It’s what I do. It’s what I know.

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In the off chance you’d like to read my novels and other books, they’re available on Amazon and many prominent bookseller sites.
You can read them on your phones and other devices for a modest cost. I make a bit more if you purchase the actual books, but what I mainly want is for folks to read them.

The Latter Days is a baseball novel about a former player and manager, Clyde Kinlaw, trying to prove the game hasn’t passed him by. His proof is a raw talent named Taiquan Wattson.
Photo galleries are posted on Instagram @furmanatt and @laurenscountysports.
Thanks for putting up with me.