Elon University men’s basketball entered Wednesday night looking to build upon a solid start to the season. For much of the first half, they looked poised to do so - knocking down long threes and getting stops on the defensive end. 

The energy in Schar Center was palpable as the Phoenix built an early 18 point lead. However, the Phoenix couldn’t sustain momentum as Furman University surged in the second half to hand Elon a home defeat on Dec. 3.

Elon held the Paladins without a field goal for more than five minutes early in the first half, until Furman eventually went on a 17-1 run to tie the game at half. 

Graduate student guard Ja’Juan Carr said there were a number of factors that contributed to the team’s struggles towards the end of the first half.

“Just being out of control, anxious,” Carr said. “Shots weren’t falling. And next time, you just have to be composed.”

The momentum shift carried into the second half as Furman attacked the paint repeatedly, with junior forward Cooper Bowser finishing a perfect 7-for-7 from the field - with the majority of his buckets coming at the rim. Elon’s offense, meanwhile, fell into another scoring drought while defensive breakdowns led to transition points the other way.

Head coach Billy Taylor said the Phoenix simply didn’t respond well when Furman started to take control. While there were encouraging moments during the game, Taylor stressed the importance of maintaining that level.

“When they punched back, we didn’t respond the right way,” Taylor said. “We need more of those moments strung together over the course of 40 minutes.”

Elon also scored just 18 points from its bench - a number Taylor wants to be higher.

“You need that production all around. It can’t just be the starters,” Taylor said. “You need your bench guys.”

However, Taylor said he also wants to see more efficient scoring from the starting group as well.

“It wasn’t just the bench,” Taylor said. “We had some starters that didn’t really step up and help us as much as we needed today.” 

After leading all scorers with 25 points, graduate student forward Chandler Cuthrell said the group must quickly shift its mindset. 

“We will be better moving forward next game,” Cuthrell said. “We have no time to, you know, dwell on this loss. We just got to move forward and be better next time.”

With their 97-88 loss, the Phoenix now have a 4-4 record. The Phoenix will have a bounce back opportunity Dec. 6 at Wofford College.