University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics
UNC Asheville
Furman
Women's Hoops Edges Furman, 66-62 - UNC Asheville Bulldogs Official Athletics Site
01.01.1970 | Women's Basketball
Dec. 10, 2005
ASHEVILLE, N.C. - Ashton Barton scored a career-high 20 points to lead UNC Asheville to a hard-fought 66-62 win over Furman Saturday afternoon at Justice Center.
The win was the Bulldogs (5-1) first over the Lady Paladins (3-4) since the 1984-85 season. Asheville's 5-1 start is its best since the 1984-85 season. Furman dropped to 3-4.
Barton, a sophomore guard from Rosman, N.C., went 9-of-12 from the field and 2-of-3 from beyond the arc. She was joined in double figures by Kristal Hood with 10 points. Hood contributed seven assists and five steals.
Furman was led by Lauren Few with 16 points. She was 5-of-10 from the field and 4-of-6 from the three-point line. Tommi Parris added in 11 points.
The Bulldogs defense was the difference as they held Furman scoreless in the final 4:30 of the game. A three-pointer from Sarah Baker of Furman had tied the game at 62-62.
Katie Baldwin gave Asheville the lead for good on a lay-up at the 3:19 mark for a 64-62 lead. The teams exchanged misses over the next three minutes before Hood scored on a coast-to-coast lay-up at the 35-second mark to give the Bulldogs a 66-62 lead. Furman missed two shots and committed a turnover in the final 35 seconds.
"This was a big victory for us against a very good Furman team," commented Asheville coach Besty Blose. "We really played good defense down the stretch and made enough plays to win the game
"I thought the difference in the game was when we went to four guards and that seemed to pick up our defense," added Blose.
Furman led throughout the first half and built a nine-point lead before settling for a 37-33 halftime margin. Barton kept the Bulldogs in the game with 15 points. Furman's pressure defense forced 13 Bulldog turnovers.
"Furman wants a high-scoring game, and I knew we couldn't win by giving up 37 points in the second half," added Blose. "In the second half, our defense was much better."
The Bulldogs shot a season-high 58 percent (29-of-50) from the field and shot 61 percent (14-of-23) in the second half. Asheville's defense limited the Paladins to just 30 percent (9-of-30) shooting from the field in the second half.
The Bulldogs will play their third straight team from the Southern Conference this Wednesday night at Justice Center when they host defending regular-season champion Chattanooga at 7 p.m. Furman opens Southern Conference play against Davidson at home next Saturday afternoon at 3 p.m.
