By MONTE DUTTON Alex Wilkins (Furman photo) Click here. Furman must go into Friday night’s game against Connecticut with illogical expectations. A cynic would call it delusions of grandeur. The Paladins must believe they are going to win. Period. There’s no other way. When Furman hits the Xfinity Mobile Arena floor, every corner of the …
Tag: Furman Paladins
Paladins set sights on UConn, Philly
By MONTE DUTTON Alex Wilkins (Monte Dutton photos) Click here. Furman University is practicing football, competing in numerous spring sports, and dancing. Basketball is not over. Not yet. The Paladins are headed to Philadelphia, Pa., City of Brotherly Love, and where Furman pulled an NCAA first-round upset of South Carolina on March 9, 1974. I’m …
Short-term hoops fatigue
By MONTE DUTTON Click here. “Six Days on the Road (and I’m A-Gonna Make It Home Tonight)” was written by Earl Green and Carl Montgomery. It’s my favorite trucker song. I don’t have a lot. A man who drives pickups doesn’t count as a trucker. I was, however, on the road for six days. I …
Furman closes deal with gusto, 76-61
By MONTE DUTTON Alex Wilkins (44) changed jerseys after ripping the front of his No. 10 (Monte Dutton photos). Click here. ASHEVILLE, N.C. -- The Southern Conference tournament is a meeting of warring tribes. Most times when a team pulls out a game at the end, fans take a breath, smile and say, Had it …
Wilkins leads Paladins into finals, 81-75
By MONTE DUTTON Alex Wilkins (10) conjuring up magic (Monte Dutton photos) Click here. ASHEVILLE, N.C. – Winning the Ingles SoCon Men’s Basketball Championship requires hustle and bustle. It requires the touch of a poet and the toughness of a prize fighter. The tournament matches its home. Asheville may have more automobiles papered with bumper …
Some kind of SoCon shootout
By MONTE DUTTON (Monte Dutton photos) Click here. ASHEVILLE, N.C. – The basketball teams I follow can play with anybody, and anybody can play with them. Man, oh, man, did Furman and Samford ever play with each other. Don’t take that the wrong way. The shooting was out of Pleasantville. The plot was out of …
I barely know where I am, but I know the way
By MONTE DUTTON (Monte Dutton photos) Click here. This morning brings confusion, upon awakening, over where I am. I’m in Johnson City, Tenn., writing about Asheville, N.C. I really wish I were still in Asheville, where in a little over an hour, the Furman University women’s basketball team – which is seeded higher than the …
Continue reading I barely know where I am, but I know the way
Now for something different
By MONTE DUTTON Click here. What’s that commercial? Head for the mountains! I spent Tuesday packing, leaving some stuff at the storage unit and bringing some back to the camper-trailer, which, no, I’m not towing to the mountains. I’ll be in cheap motel rooms. I won’t be doing anything there but sleep. Once I was …
In my element
By MONTE DUTTON Click here. On Sunday night, I watched a healthy portion of Believers: Boston Red Sox, a documentary that centers on the 2004 World Series. At the same time, I was switching to a basketball game between Charleston and UNC Wilmington. The Cougars came from 15 points behind and won. I watched Miami …
Cats claw Paladins on boards, 86-67
By MONTE DUTTON Eddrin Bronson led Furman with 16 points (Furman photo). Click here. Cullowhee was awful on Saturday. Instead of rounding into shape for the Ingles SoCon Men’s Basketball Champions, Furman fell into a latter-half trap that was unexpected but common of the regular season’s final day. Four of the top seven schools lost, …
Nightrider's Lament 