Furman basketball defeats ETSU to advance to March Madness

ASHEVILLE, NC − Cooper Bowser’s double-double with 21 points and 11 rebounds helped Furman basketball advance to its first NCAA Tournament since 2023.

His performance helped the No. 6-seeded Paladins (22-12) knock off No. 1 seed East Tennessee State 76-61 in the Southern Conference Tournament championship game on March 9 at the Harrah’s Cherokee Center.

Bowser recorded his most points since his 20-point performance against UNC Greensboro on Feb. 8. He was perfect from the field with eight attempts and didn’t miss his first shot until there were nine minutes left in the second half.

Furman defeated the Buccaneers (23-11) despite leading-scorer Alex Wilkins finishing with 12 points and two assists on 4-of-12 shooting and 2-of-8 from 3-point range. He also had four turnovers.

Wilkins had 20 points in the quarterfinal against Samford and 34 in the semifinals against UNC Greensboro.

The last time the Paladins reached March Madness, they pulled one of the biggest upsets of the tournament. JP Pegues made a last-second 3-pointer for No. 13 Furman to knock off No. 4 Virginia .