BOONE, N.C. - Appalachian State men's basketball trotted out gold uniforms and a 25-point first-half lead in handily defeating visiting Furman, 90-77, Thursday evening at the Holmes Center. ASU was paced by five players in double-digits with Jeremy Clayton's 14-point, 13-rebound and six-assist outing leading the way. Kellen Brand and Donald Sims also had 14 points behind Donte Minter's team-high 15 points. Appalachian (17-10, 12-6 SoCon) shot 48.6 percent from the field and 56.8 percent in the first half to open up the big lead with a season-best 51 points in the opening stanza. The halftime advantage came by virtue of a 17-5 run over the final six minutes of the first half behind Ryann Abraham's 10 first-half points. The Mountaineers also outrebounded Furman by a 23-10 margin in the first half as the Mountaineers' big men, buoyed by the return of Ike Butts, scored a season-high 44 points in the paint. Butts, making his first appearance in 10 games, showed little rust in scoring eight points with eight rebounds in 18 minutes of action. The first nine mintues of the opening were played relatively evenly until a 14-5 spurt gave ASU a 13-point lead at 32-19 with just over seven minutes left in the half which the Apps would quickly add to later in the stanza. Furman (6-21, 5-13 SoCon) managed to make to the contest appear more even in the second half, outscoring ASU 51-39. However, the majority of those points game after the game had already been decided, including an 8-0 run over final 2:28 of the game. George Brozos led Furman with a game-high 17 points while Connor Nolte had 16. Clayton's double-double was his second in three games, the sixth of the season and 20th of his career to help ASU notch its fourth-best scoring output ever against the Paladins. The Mountaineers will step out of conference for their next contest as they welcome MAAC frontrunner Niagara to the Holmes Center on Saturday. Tipoff between the Apps and Purple Eagles is scheduled for 1 p.m.