The Furman Paladins finished the 2004-05 season with a record of 16-13 straight up, including a Southern Conference record of 9-7, which was good for fourth place in the Southern Division. The Paladins were far less successful on the board, however, as they finished a dreadful 7-15-1 against the spread, finishing as one of the least profitable teams in college basketball. The Paladins got the cash in just three of their final thirteen games of the season.
Sluggish start Furman Paladins
Furman opened the 2005-06 season with an unlined 100-58 win over Macalester. They then took to the road for their first lined game against the Southeastern Conference’s Vanderbilt Commodores and scored a 60-81 loss as 14.5-point dogs. That was then followed by another matchup against the big time as Texas Tech of the Big 12 hosted Furman, as the Paladins got the cash in a 74-83 loss as 16.5-point dogs.
The Paladins then went back off the board for a pair of games starting with a 91-55 home win over Johns Hopkins followed by a 79-78 overtime win at Campbell. Furman then returned to the board in a home game against San Diego, which they lost 73-80 as 6-point dogs.
Back off the board at NC-Asheville, the Paladins lost 65-79. Back home in an unlined game against Sewanee, the Paladinssi scored a 99-69 blowout win to complete a sluggish start of 4-4 straight up and 1-2 against the college basketball pointspreads.
Cranking cash
The Paladins next traveled to Missouri and scored a 63-72 loss/cover as 10.5-point dogs. That was followed by yet another unlined home game, in which they beat Kennesaw State 83-76.
South Carolina State came a callin’ to Furman next and the Paladins scored a 75-64 win and cover as 10-point home chalks. That was followed by a 76-71 home win over Chattanooga as 4.5-point favorites. There was a brief break in the profits as Furman lost as Charleston 53-66 as 7-point dogs but the Paladins resumed cranking cash with an 83-52 win at Wofford as 3.5-point dogs.
Furman next hosted Davidson and scored a 70-66 win as 3-point home dogs. That was then followed by a 66-63 win at Georgia Southern as 6.5-point dogs and then an 81-57 win over Citadel as 17-point home chalks to complete a four game payoff streak and 7-1 run against the pointspread in their last eight games.
Depleted Value Furman Paladins
Lower to mid-major teams such as Furman will often be attractive to gamblers that are looking for a clever or sleeper type of angle/team but will also quickly lose value on the board after attracting just a few looks from the public. Furman’s excellent pointspread run would cause this to happen th rest of the way beginning with a 77-81 overtime loss at Elon University as 2-point dogs.
After an unlined 73-61 home win over North Dakota State the Paladins next scored a 76-85 loss at Western Carolina as 2.5-point chalks. That was then followed by a 59-65 loss at NC-Greensboro in a pick’em for a third straight loss against the spread.
Up and down finish
Furman next scored a 76-64 home win over Appalachian State as 8-point chalks. That was then followed by a 65-67 home loss to Charleston as 3.5-point chalks. Next came a 67-59 home win over Wofford as 6.5-point chalks followed by a 59-77 loss at Davidson as 9.5-point dogs. The Paladins completed an up and down finish to the regular season with a 64-41 win at Citadel as 9-point chalks followed by a 61-86 home loss to Georgia Southern as 3-point chalks. In the Southern Conference tournament, the Paladins scored a 53-65 loss to Citadel as 12-point overlays to complete the season with a 3-7 pointspread run.