Furman Basketball: 3 keys to upsetting Virginia in 2023 NCAA Tournament

Furman likes to shoot threes, but they need to get to the rim

The first key to a Furman upset may sound a bit weird but the Paladins need to do a lot of their offensive work inside the three-point arc. The Paladins are 13th in the country with over 46% of their field goal attempts coming from deep. The problem for Furman is that although they take a lot of threes, over 27 per game, they don’t exactly shoot it all that well, at just over 34%.

When it comes to inside the arc the Paladins are efficient as it gets. Overall they are the 33rd-best team in offensive efficiency, 11th in effective field goal percentage, and are the country’s No. 1 team in two-point field goal percentage, shooting 59.1% Four players Mike Bothwell, Jalen Slawson, JP Pegues, and Marcus Foster have combined to attempt 592 three-pointers, but shoot it at just 36%. In contrast, the threesome of Slawson, Pegues, and Foster make 56% of their two-point attempts.

Virginia’s halfcourt defense will force the Paladins to be patient and it will be important for them to not settle for perimeter jumpers. Attacking the rim early and often with success will open up the deep game for them later on. If the Paladins can punch Virginia in the mouth early from inside the arc, the dagger of an upset could come later in the game beyond it.