Dartmouth Men's Hoops Fends Off Furman for First Victory, 68-63

Tuesday, November 25

Hanover, N.H.

7:00 p.m.

Dartmouth College

1-3

FURMAN

1-3

Furman

Dartmouth

Dartmouth Men's Hoops Fends Off Furman for First Victory, 68-63

11/25/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

By: Dartmouth

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Boxscore

HANOVER, N.H. ? Senior Alex Barnett (St. Louis, Mo.) posted his third straight 20-point game with 24 to lead Dartmouth (1-3) to a 68-63 triumph over the visiting Furman Paladins (1-3). Both junior Elgin Fitzgerald (Colorado Springs, Colo.) and sophomore Ronnie Dixon (Danville, Ill.) scored 14 points to help lift the Big Green to their first victory of the 2008-09 season.

Furman had four players score in double figures led by Alex Opacic with 14 on 5-of-11 shooting, including one three-pointer. Noah States tallied 11 points, while Bryson Barnes and Justin Dehm came off the bench to score 10.

Barnett hit 9-of-14 from the floor and 3-of-4 from long range and at the line to account for his 24 points. But it was his final two that sealed the game. Trailing by two with 40 seconds to play, Furman played for a defensive stop but could not get it as Barnett drove the lane and put up a finger roll which bounced around and in with 20 seconds on the clock. A Furman miss in the lane and rebound by sophomore Clive Weeden (Stow, Mass.) with just six seconds to play made the lead insurmountable.

The Big Green had to overcome some missed opportunities at the foul line, hitting just 16-of-26 (.615). Six three-pointers on just 13 attempts (.462) were the difference, as both teams hit just under half of their total shots from the floor ? Dartmouth shot 47.9 percent (23-48) and Furman 47.1 percent (24-51). But the Paladins could only manage to shoot 25 percent (4-16) from downtown.

Trailing by a bucket with 9:30 to play in the first half, Dartmouth took control with a 12-0 run, beginning with a Fitzgerald jumper. A Barnett steal and thunderous dunk, followed by a three-pointer by Barnett, gave the Big Green a five-point lead. Fitzgerald added a pair of free throws and capped the run with a short jumper on a feed from Barnett, putting Dartmouth up by 10 at 30-20.

The Big Green maintained their 10-point advantage through the half at 38-28. Both Barnett and Fitzgerald scored 12, shooting a combined 9-of-13 from the floor. Dartmouth shot 55.6 percent (15-27) over the first 20 minutes while Furman managed just 42.3 percent (11-26). Both teams struggled at the line, hitting 5-of-10, and the Big Green held a slight advantage on the boards at 18-15.

In the second stanza, the Paladins got back within five with a little 9-2 spurt, fueled by consecutive baskets from Noah States with the second a dunk on a putback. But Barnett quickly pushed the lead back to 10 at 52-42 with a pair of free throws and a three-pointer.

Just as quickly, Furman pulled within one on a 9-0 run, capped by Connor Nolte's three-pointer. Again Dartmouth withstood the charge with Fitzgerald draining a couple of free throws and sophomore Ronnie Dixon (Danville, Ill.) sinking a long three-pointer. When the Paladins cut the lead to two at 60-58 with under three minutes to play, Dixon came through for the Big Green with another trifecta, giving him a career-high with his 14 points.

Nolte popped another trey with 40.4 seconds left to keep Furman within a possession at 65-63, which led to Barnett's drive and finish.

Dartmouth will complete its three-game homestand on Saturday when it hosts Lehigh at 2 p.m. Furman next travels to eighth-ranked Notre Dame to take on the Fighting Irish on Sunday at 2 p.m.