2025–26 Furman Paladins men's basketball team

2025–26 Furman Paladins men's basketball
2025–26 Furman Paladins men's basketball
SoCon tournament champions
NCAA tournament
Conference	Southern Conference
Record	22–12 (10–8 SoCon)
Head coach	Bob Richey (9th season);
Associate head coach	Pat Estepp
Assistant coaches	Klint Carlson; Kotie Kimble; Joe Pierre III; Rett Lister;
Home arena	Timmons Arena

2025–26 Southern Conference men's basketball standings
	Conf.				Overall
Team	W		L	PCT	W		L	PCT
East Tennessee State	13	–	5	.722	23	–	11	.676
Wofford	11	–	7	.611	19	–	13	.594
Samford	11	–	7	.611	18	–	14	.563
Mercer	11	–	7	.611	19	–	13	.594
Western Carolina	10	–	8	.556	15	–	16	.484
Furman †	10	–	8	.556	22	–	12	.647
UNC Greensboro	9	–	9	.500	15	–	19	.441
Chattanooga	7	–	11	.389	13	–	19	.406
The Citadel	7	–	11	.389	11	–	22	.333
VMI	1	–	17	.056	6	–	26	.188

† 2026 SoCon tournament winner As of March 9, 2026^[1]

The 2025–26 Furman Paladins men's basketball team represents Furman University during the 2025–26 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Paladins, led by ninth-year head coach Bob Richey, play their home games at Timmons Arena in Greenville, South Carolina as members of the Southern Conference (SoCon).

Previous season

The Paladins finished the 2024–25 season 25–10, 11–7 in SoCon play, to finish in fifth place.^[2] They defeated Samford^[3] and top-seeded Chattanooga,^[4] before falling to Wofford in the SoCon tournament championship game.^[5] They received an invitation to the NIT,^[6] where they would be defeated by North Texas in the first round.^[7]

Preseason

On October 1, 2025, the SoCon released their preseason coaches poll. Furman was picked to finish second in the conference, while receiving five first-place votes.^[8]

Preseason rankings

SoCon Preseason Poll
Place	Team	Points
1	Chattanooga	77 (5)
2	Furman	73 (5)
3	Samford	62
4	East Tennessee State	61
5	UNC Greensboro	43
6	VMI	41
7	Western Carolina	32
8	Mercer	30
9	Wofford	21
10	The Citadel	10
(#) first-place votes

Source:^[8]

Preseason All-SoCon Team

Preseason All-SoCon Team
Player	Year	Position
Cooper Bowser	Junior	Forward
Tom House	Senior	Guard

Source:^[8]

Roster

2025–26 Furman Paladins men's basketball team

Players

Coaches

Pos.	#	Name	Height	Weight	Year	Previous school	Hometown
G	0	Abijah Franklin	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	Fr	Wren High School	Greenville, South Carolina
F	1	Charles Johnston	6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)	225 lb (102 kg)	Sr	Cal State Monterey Bay	Sydney, Australia
G	2	Eddrin Bronson	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	184 lb (83 kg)	RS So	Tampa Catholic High School	Tampa, Florida
G	3	Asa Thomas	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	200 lb (91 kg)	RS So	Clemson	Lake Forest, Illinois
F	4	Ben Vander Wal	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	Sr	Timothy Christian School	Elmhurst, Illinois
F	5	Mason Smith	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	200 lb (91 kg)	So	Davidson Day School	Huntersville, North Carolina
G	6	Cole Bowser	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	200 lb (91 kg)	Fr	DeMatha Catholic High School	Bowie, Maryland
G	8	Collin O'Neal	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	200 lb (91 kg)	Fr	Montgomery Bell Academy	Nashville, Tennessee
G	10	Alex Wilkins	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	175 lb (79 kg)	Fr	Brooks School	Mattapan, Massachusetts
G	11	Gunnar Lewis	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)	165 lb (75 kg)	Fr	Christ Presbyterian Academy	Cottontown, Tennessee
G	12	Tom House	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	200 lb (91 kg)	Sr	Florida State	Dayton, Ohio
F	15	Owen Ritger	6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)	218 lb (99 kg)	Fr	Marist School	Atlanta, Georgia
F	21	Cooper Bowser	6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)	215 lb (98 kg)	Jr	Sunrise Christian Academy	Woodbridge, Virginia
F	30	Thomas Tillman	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	200 lb (91 kg)	Sr	Charleston Charter School For Math & Science	Charleston, South Carolina
F	77	Davis Molnar	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	215 lb (98 kg)	RS Jr	Terry Sanford High School	Fayetteville, North Carolina

Head coach

Bob Richey (North Greenville)

Assistant coach(es)

Pat Estepp (Cedarville)
Klint Carlson (Northern Iowa)
Kotie Kimble (Coastal Carolina)
Joe Pierre III (Oklahoma State)
Rett Lister (Furman)

Legend

(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible
(W) Walk-on

Injured
Current redshirt

Roster
Last update: October 24, 2025

Schedule and results

Date time, TV	Rank^#	Opponent^#	Result	Record	Site (attendance) city, state
Exhibition
October 26, 2025* 3:00 pm, ESPN+		No. 15 Alabama	L 71–96	–	Timmons Arena (2,750) Greenville, SC
Non-conference regular season
November 3, 2025* 6:30 pm		vs. High Point Field of 68 Opening Day Marathon	L 71–97	0–1	Rock Hill Sports & Events Center (473) Rock Hill, SC
November 7, 2025* 7:00 pm, ESPN+		Troy	L 61–64	0–2	Timmons Arena (2,207) Greenville, SC
November 10, 2025* 6:30 pm, ESPN+		Columbia International	W 89–59	1–2	Timmons Arena (1,967) Greenville, SC
November 14, 2025* 7:00 pm, ESPN+		at Northern Iowa	L 54–70	1–3	McLeod Center (3,585) Cedar Falls, IA
November 19, 2025* 6:30 pm, ESPN+		Ohio Christian	W 79–44	2–3	Timmons Arena (1,767) Greenville, SC
November 23, 2025* 5:00 pm, ESPN+		Queens SoCon/ASUN Challenge	W 90–79	3–3	Timmons Arena (2,167) Greenville, SC
November 27, 2025* 11:00 am, ESPN2		vs. Richmond ESPN Events Invitational Imagination bracket semifinals	W 73–72	4–3	State Farm Field House Bay Lake, FL
November 28, 2025* 3:00 pm, ESPN2		vs. Illinois State ESPN Events Invitational Imagination bracket championship	L 65–72	4–4	State Farm Field House (502) Bay Lake, FL
December 3, 2025* 7:00 pm, FloCollege		at Elon	W 97–88	5–4	Schar Center (1,468) Elon, NC
December 6, 2025* 2:00 pm, ESPN+		Harvard	W 79–69	6–4	Timmons Arena (2,187) Greenville, SC
December 9, 2025* 6:30 pm, ESPN+		Bob Jones	W 105–57	7–4	Timmons Arena (1,737) Greenville, SC
December 18, 2025* 7:00 pm, ESPN+		at Manhattan	W 75–68	8–4	Draddy Gymnasium (576) Riverdale, NY
December 21, 2025* 2:00 pm, ESPN+		Charleston Southern	W 84–76	9–4	Timmons Arena (1,867) Greenville, SC
SoCon regular season
December 31, 2025 12:00 pm, ESPN+		Mercer	W 74–72	10–4 (1–0)	Timmons Arena (2,117) Greenville, SC
January 3, 2026 4:00 pm, ESPN+		Western Carolina	L 77–80 ^OT	10–5 (1–1)	Timmons Arena (2,500) Greenville, SC
January 7, 2026 5:00 pm, CBSSN		at Chattanooga	W 78–67	11–5 (2–1)	McKenzie Arena (3,487) Chattanooga, TN
January 10, 2026 2:00 pm, ESPN+		VMI	W 69–48	12–5 (3–1)	Timmons Arena (2,447) Greenville, SC
January 14, 2026 7:00 pm, ESPN+		at Samford	W 77–73	13–5 (4–1)	Pete Hanna Center (1,833) Homewood, AL
January 17, 2026 5:00 pm, ESPN+		Wofford	L 70–74	13–6 (4–2)	Timmons Arena (2,500) Greenville, SC
January 21, 2026 7:00 pm, ESPN+		at The Citadel	L 75–77 ^OT	13–7 (4–3)	McAlister Field House (1,433) Charleston, SC
January 23, 2026 5:00 pm, ESPN+		at UNC Greensboro	W 89–66	14–7 (5–3)	Bodford Arena (814) Greensboro, NC
January 29, 2026 5:00 pm, CBSSN		Samford	W 78–73	15–7 (6–3)	Timmons Arena (2,037) Greenville, SC
February 1, 2026 1:00 pm, ESPN2		Chattanooga	W 75–70	16–7 (7–3)	Timmons Arena (1,000) Greenville, SC
February 4, 2026 7:00 pm, ESPN+		at East Tennessee State	L 71–75 ^OT	16–8 (7–4)	Freedom Hall Civic Center (4,072) Johnson City, TN
February 8, 2026 1:00 pm, ESPN2		UNC Greensboro	L 64–67	16–9 (7–5)	Timmons Arena (2,497) Greenville, SC
February 11, 2026 7:00 pm, ESPN+		at Mercer	L 64–69	16–10 (7–6)	Hawkins Arena Macon, GA
February 14, 2026 1:00 pm, ESPN+		at VMI	W 90–72	17–10 (8–6)	Cameron Hall (2,233) Lexington, VA
February 18, 2026 6:30 pm, ESPN+		East Tennessee State	L 69–78	17–11 (8–7)	Timmons Arena (2,500) Greenville, SC
February 21, 2026 7:00 pm, ESPN+		at Wofford	W 76–67	18–11 (9–7)	Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium (3,181) Spartanburg, SC
February 25, 2026 6:30 pm, ESPN+		The Citadel	W 72–51	19–11 (10–7)	Timmons Arena (2,500) Greenville, SC
February 28, 2026 5:30 pm, ESPN+		at Western Carolina	L 67–86	19–12 (10–8)	Ramsey Center (3,486) Cullowhee, NC
SoCon tournament
March 7, 2026 6:00 pm, ESPN+	(6)	vs. (3) Samford Quarterfinals	W 86–81	20–12	Harrah's Cherokee Center Asheville, NC
March 8, 2026 6:30 pm, ESPNU	(6)	vs. (7) UNC Greensboro Semifinals	W 81–75	21–12	Harrah's Cherokee Center (5,285) Asheville, NC
March 9, 2026 7:00 pm, ESPN	(6)	vs. (1) East Tennessee State Championship	W 76–61	22–12	Harrah's Cherokee Center Asheville, NC
NCAA tournament
March 20, 2025* 10:00 p.m., TBS	(15 E)	vs. (2 E) No. 7 UConn Round of 64			Xfinity Mobile Arena Philadelphia, PA
*Non-conference game. ^#Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. E=East. All times are in Eastern.

Sources:^[9]^[10]

References

^ "SoCon Men's Basketball 2025-2026 Standings". SoConSports.com. Retrieved February 28, 2026.
^ "2024-25 Standings". SoCon. Retrieved October 24, 2025.
^ "Anderson scores 26 as Furman downs Samford 95-78 in Southern Conference Championship quarterfinal". AP News. Retrieved October 24, 2025.
^ "Top-seeded UTC men lose SoCon semifinal in overtime". Chattanooga Times Free Press. Retrieved October 24, 2025.
^ "Wofford men's basketball wins SoCon tournament, advances to March Madness for time since 2019". The Greenville News. Retrieved October 24, 2025.
^ "What to know about the 2025 NIT: Bracket, schedule and how to watch the games". NBC Bay Area. Retrieved October 24, 2025.
^ "Floyd's 19 lead North Texas past Furman 75-64 in NIT". CBS Sports. Retrieved October 24, 2025.
^ ^a ^b ^c "SoCon men's hoops preseason all-conference team, poll announced". SoCon. Retrieved October 24, 2025.
^ "2025-26 Men's Basketball Schedule". Furman University. Retrieved October 24, 2025.
^ "Furman Paladins 2025-26 Regular Season NCAAM Schedule". ESPN. Retrieved October 24, 2025.

[MBBStandings-1] "SoCon Men's Basketball 2025-2026 Standings". SoConSports.com. Retrieved February 28, 2026.

[2] "2024-25 Standings". SoCon. Retrieved October 24, 2025.

[3] "Anderson scores 26 as Furman downs Samford 95-78 in Southern Conference Championship quarterfinal". AP News. Retrieved October 24, 2025.

[4] "Top-seeded UTC men lose SoCon semifinal in overtime". Chattanooga Times Free Press. Retrieved October 24, 2025.

[5] "Wofford men's basketball wins SoCon tournament, advances to March Madness for time since 2019". The Greenville News. Retrieved October 24, 2025.

[6] "What to know about the 2025 NIT: Bracket, schedule and how to watch the games". NBC Bay Area. Retrieved October 24, 2025.

[7] "Floyd's 19 lead North Texas past Furman 75-64 in NIT". CBS Sports. Retrieved October 24, 2025.

[poll-8] "SoCon men's hoops preseason all-conference team, poll announced". SoCon. Retrieved October 24, 2025.

[9] "2025-26 Men's Basketball Schedule". Furman University. Retrieved October 24, 2025.

[10] "Furman Paladins 2025-26 Regular Season NCAAM Schedule". ESPN. Retrieved October 24, 2025.

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Furman Paladins men's basketball
Venues	Old Textile Hall (195?–1958) Greenville Memorial Auditorium (1958–1996) Herman W. Lay Physical Activities Center (1996–1997) Timmons Arena (1997–present)
People	Head coaches Statistical leaders
Seasons	List of seasons 1919–20 1920–21 1921–22 1922–23 1923–24 1924–25 1925–26 1926–27 1927–28 1928–29 1929–30 1930–31 1931–32 1932–33 1933–34 1934–35 1935–36 1936–37 1937–38 1938–39 1939–40 1940–41 1941–42 1942–44 1944–45 1945–46 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50 1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25 2025–26