Going Dancing! Furman men’s basketball earns spot in 2026 NCAA Tournament
.png "The Furman men’s basketball team celebrates after winning the SoCon tournament championship game on March 9, 2026 in Asheville. With the win, the Paladins advance to their second NCAA Tournament in four years.")
For the second time in the last four years, the Furman men’s basketball team is headed to the NCAA Tournament.
The Paladins clinched their spot in the Big Dance with a 76-61 win over East Tennessee State on Monday night in the Southern Conference tournament championship game at the Harrahs Cherokee Center in Asheville, North Carolina.
Forward Cooper Bowser led Furman with 21 points and 11 rebounds. Guard Tom House added 13 points off the bench. Guard Alex Wilkins, who had 34 points in Sunday’s semifinal, scored 12 and was named tournament MVP.
“We kept believing, and we kept trying,” Furman coach Bob Richey said in a postgame interview on ESPN. “And when you get a group to never lose belief and never lose try, then you can accomplish great things. There was some people that wrote us off when we lost four of five games. But we kept believing.”
It’s Furman’s eighth NCAA Tournament appearance and first since 2023. The last two March Madness appearances are under Richey, a Florence native.
Furman was playing in its fourth SoCon Championship game in the last five seasons.
Furman made it to the second round in its last NCAA Tournament appearance, defeating No. 4 Virginia as a 13 seed before losing to No. 8 San Diego State.
The Paladins, who finished sixth in the SoCon regular season standings, defeated No. 3 Samford (86-81) then rallied from 11 points down in the semifinals against UNC Greensboro, 81-75, before knocking off top-seeded ETSU in the title game.
ETSU won the SoCon’s regular-season championship and is coached by former Irmo High basketball standout Brooks Savage.
The Paladins shot 60 percent in the first half and led 42-35 at halftime. Furman’s lead grew to 16 points before ETSU got it within 70-61. But Wilkins’ dunk and Bowser’s basket pushed the lead back to 13 points with 1:32 left.
Brian Taylor led ETSU with 16 points. Former Clemson guard Asa Thomas, who transferred to Furman last year, had eight points and shot 2-5 on 3-pointers.
The Paladins will find out their location and first-round opponent when the men’s NCAA Tournament bracket is released Sunday (6 p.m., CBS).
This story was originally published March 9, 2026 at 9:03 PM.
