GREENVILLE, S.C. -- Z. Mason had 20 points and Casey Jones had 13 and they both had 13 rebounds as Chattanooga opened Southern Conference play on Saturday with a 72-63 win over Furman.

The Mocs (7-8) led by one at halftime and slowly pulled way, opening a 14-point lead on Eric Robertson's 3-pointer with 3:04 to play. Ronrico White added 13 points and Gee McGhee had 11.

Stephen Croone had 19 points for the Paladins (6-8) with Kendrec Ferrara adding 13 and Larry Wideman 10.

Jones had a career-high eight assists to go with his career day in rebounding and Mason set a career mark with six blocks. Their inside domination helped the Mocs to a 38-20 advantage in points in the paint plus 17 second-chance points.

Furman was up 19-18 lead when Chattanooga took the lead on a Jones jumper. Mason followed with a 3 and a layup.