ASHEVILLE, N.C. ? The UNC Asheville men's basketball team hopes to remain unbeaten as it travels to mountain rival Western Carolina Tuesday night. The Bulldogs and Catamounts tip-off at 7 p.m. and will be broadcast on www.uncabulldogs.com.
Asheville went to 4-0 on the season Saturday afternoon with an 83-71 victory at Campbell. It marked the first time the Bulldogs have been undefeated after four games since the 1981-82 season. UNC Asheville has never started a season 5-0.
Bulldog coach Eddie Biedenbach expects a very tough game with Western Carolina on Tuesday. The Catamounts are 2-2 and beat Bowling Green earlier this season and nearly beat Cincinnati on its home-court. Third-year coach Larry Hunter has led WCU to two straight wins over the Bulldogs, including a 61-46 decision at the Justice Center last year.
“We played very well in the second half at Campbell but we're going to have play even better to have a chance to win at Western Carolina,” stated Biedenbach. “Larry Hunter is an excellent coach and they (Western Carolina) make nothing easy for you. We're going to have play at our best for 40 minutes.”
Asheville got out of the gates slowly against Campbell and fell behind by 12 after the first 10 minutes at 31-19. The Bulldogs steadily chipped away at the lead and trailed 41-34 at intermission. Asheville took charge in the second half and out-scored the Camels, 49-30. Kenny George had another spectacular game as he became the first Bulldog in school history to record a triple-double with a career-high 20 points, a career-best 12 rebounds and a school-record tying 10 blocked shots. He was 8-of-8 from the field and played a career-best 26 minutes. Senior guard K.J. Garland had a sensational floor game with 23 points, six rebounds and seven assists. Freshman John Williams and Vincent James both scored 11 points each. James was a perfect 7-of-7 from the free throw line. The Bulldogs set yet another school record for blocked shots in a game with 16. Asheville has blocked 48 shots on the year (12 per game).
“Kenny did a great job on Saturday and K.J. played as well as I've ever seen him play,” commented Biedenbach. “We got out of the gates a little slowly but responded well in the second half.”
NOTES ? George is shooting 80 percent (24-of-30) from the field and has blocked 27 shots in four games...Garland needs just 11 points to reach 1,000 points in his career...junior forward Reid Augst leads the team in assists with 20 and has 13 in the last two games...Williams has averaged 11.5 points in the last two games and is second on the club in blocked shots with 11...the Bulldogs are shooting 53 percent (107-of-203) as a team...Asheville has won eight of its last nine games dating back to last season.
