GREENVILLE, S.C. – The Anderson University (5-6) men's basketball team ended the 2023 calendar year on a victorious note as they picked up a 79-74 exhibition win over the Paladins of Furman University (6-7) on Saturday, December 30 in Timmons Arena.
Senior Garrett Denbow (Ashland, Ohio) led the way for the Trojans with 27 points and knocked down five three-pointers including the nail in the coffin in the final minute of action. Sophomore Luke Denbow (Ashland, Ohio) racked up 12 points in the contest while freshman AJ Wright Jr. (Tampa, Fla.), senior Mack Burgett (Richmond, Va.) and junior Austin Webb (South Point, Ohio) each tallied eight. Sophomore Cole Middleton (Atlanta, Ga.) brought in 14 rebounds to lead the Trojans.
Anderson led the contest in points in the paint (42), second chance points (17) and fast break points (4). Their largest lead was 11 points early in the second half as they were able to hold the lead for 22:18 of the contest. The Trojans held the Paladins to a 2-20 mark (10%) from beyond the arc while knocking down 33.3% of their shots from long range in the contest.
Anderson was able to score the first points of the contest as Middleton was able to finish a fastbreak lay-up. The Trojans have a slight edge 4-3 record this season when scoring the first points of the contest, though the Paladins were able to go on a 9-0 run in response before the Trojans were able to score their next points on a dunk from sophomore James Repass (Jacksonville Beach, Fla.).
The Black and Gold were able to close the gap to just two points with a timely three-point basket by Garrett Denbow before bringing the contest to just a one-point differential with another three from Denbow 13-12. Halfway through the first half and the Paladins had reopened the lead to three points, but the Trojans continued to battle throughout the half.
That battle paid off for the Trojans as though Furman was able to extend their lead back out to seven at 31-24, the Trojans were able to take their second lead of the contest off a beautiful acrobatic rebound by Wright that saw Garrett Denbow hit a knock-down three-pointer to give the Trojans the 32-31 lead with just over three minutes to play in the first. Furman was able to retake the lead quickly with a lay-up on the other end but that was the finals points that they would score in the half as Anderson finished the half on a 7-0 run that saw them take the 39-34 lead into the halftime break.
The Trojans were able to strike first in the second half and were able to outscore the Paladins by an 8-2 margin in the opening minutes, taking their lead into double-digits at 47-36. Furman began to cut into the Anderson advantage over the next few minutes, going on a short 5-2 run before the under 16 media timeout. A 5-0 run from the Trojans offense increased their advantage back out to double digits, but the Paladins continued to respond as they scored the next five points of the game to bring the score back to 54-49.
The action continued to exchange hands back and forth over the next four minutes of action as the Trojans were able to score six points over that stretch, with the Paladins adding five points to their total, keeping the contest within single digits. That lead would fluctuate within a point or two throughout the remainder of the second half, though the Paladins were able to close the gap to as few as five points the Trojans did not relinquish the advantage in the second. Garrett Denbow was able to knock down a three-pointer with just under a minute to go in the contest that put the contest out of reach for good with the Trojans taking the 79-74 win.
The Trojans return to action on the other side of the New Year holiday as they head to Mars Hill, N.C. to take on the Lions on Saturday, January 6 for a 4:00 p.m. tip.
