GREENVILLE, S.C. – The UNCG men's basketball team suffered its second straight close defeat Monday night as the Spartans dropped a 79-72 contest to Southern Conference foe Furman at Timmons Arena. The loss drops the Spartans to 5-7 in league play while the Paladins improve to 9-4 in the conference and 11-1 at home this year. UNCG returns to action Thursday night when it travels to Lexington, Va., for a meeting with VMI at 7 p.m.

Senior forward Kayel Locke (Baltimore, Md./McDonogh) led four Spartans in double figures with 19 points and five rebounds as he was 9-of-15 from the field, including 8-of-10 on 2-point field goals. Junior guard Diante Baldwin (Greensboro, N.C./High Point Christian) added 12 points, eight assists and six rebounds in the loss.

UNCG (9-16, 5-7 SoCon) falls to 1-11 on the road this season as the Spartans shot 43.1 percent (28-of-65) from the field and just 24 percent (6-of-25) from 3-point land. The Spartans also only hit 10-of-16 (62.5%) from the free throw line, including just 7-of-12 in the second half.

Furman (15-11, 9-4 SoCon) connected on 52.9 percent (27-of-51) from the field and hit 19-of-25 (76%) from the free throw line. Stephen Croone led the Paladins with 17 points while Kris Acox added 15 points and eight rebounds in the victory.

The Spartans came out of the gate quickly, opening to an early 12-4 lead. Freshman guard Francis Alonso (Malaga, Spain/Cushing Academy) hit his first two 3-pointers to ignite the Spartans. Furman settled into its home court and responded with a 17-2 run to take a 21-14 lead. Kris Acox started the Paladins with six points on three straight possessions while Geoff Beans hit a pair of 3-pointers to give Furman a seven-point lead.

The Spartans turned the momentum as sophomore forward Marvin Smith (Richmond, Va./Fork Union Military Academy) hit a 3-pointer. Locke scored nine points in the first half while freshman guard Demetrius Troy (Raleigh, N.C./Word of God) hit a free throw with 1:58 remaining to tie the game at 31-31.

Furman's Stephen Croone hit two free throws with 18.8 seconds left but Baldwin nailed a pair from the charity stripe with 3.5 seconds left to send the game into halftime tied at 33-33. The Spartans connected on 48.1 percent (13-of-27) from the field and hit 4-of-11 (36.4%) from distance in the first half. Locke led with nine points in the half while Alonso and Baldwin each chipped in six points. Furman connected on 50 percent (13-of-26) from the field but was just 3-of-10 (30%) from long range. Beans led the Paladins with nine points off the bench while Acox added eight points.

Furman came out of the break and opened to a 47-39 lead with a 9-2 run. Forward Matt Rafferty scored seven of the nine points for the Paladins during the stretch. The Spartans battled back and pulled within three at 53-50 forcing a Furman timeout with 13:11 left. Senior Asad Lamot (Mebane, N.C./Eastern Alamance) hit a 3-pointer in the stretch while White and Baldwin added back-to-back baskets.

The Spartans kept battling but could not get closer than three points down the stretch. Each time UNCG pulled within three points, the Paladins would score on consecutive possessions to extend the lead back to seven or eight points throughout the half. UNCG had its last chance with 1:37 remaining after pulling with six at 73-67. Lamot had a good look at a 3-pointer but his shot rolled around the rim and out, sealing the Furman victory.

Alonso finished the game with 12 points on 4-of-8 shooting from the field while White added 10 points and nine rebounds in 31 minutes of action.

-UNCG-