Rafferty leads Furman past UNC Asheville 83-72

Dec 5, 2017, 10:17 pm

GREENVILLE, S.C. -- Matt Rafferty knocked down 8 of 9 shots from the field, made all six of his free throws and scored a season-high 22 to lead Furman to an 83-72 victory over UNC Asheville on Tuesday night.

Rafferty added nine rebounds, three assists and three steals for the Paladins (6-3), who won for the fourth time in five games, beat the Bulldogs (5-4) for the first time since 2010 and evened the all-time series at eight apiece. Devin Sibley finished with 16 points and five assists, while Andrew Brown contributed 11 points, four rebounds, four steals and three assists.

Kevin Vannatta made 7 of 10 shots and scored 18 to pace UNC Asheville. MaCio Teague scored 14 and Alec Wnuk added 12 points and eight rebounds. The Bulldogs came into the game shooting 44.6 percent from long range, seventh best in the country, but made just 4 of 13 (30.8 percent) against Furman.

Both teams shot 50.9 percent (29 of 57) from the field, but Furman made 17 of 22 free throws, while the Bulldogs hit 10 of 13. UNC Asheville committed 21 turnovers, including 14 Paladins steals.