Men's Basketball Plays at Coastal Carolina Monday Night

CONWAY, S.C. ? The UNC Asheville men's basketball team will attempt to stay unbeaten in Big South Conference play Monday night when the Bulldogs travel to Coastal Carolina for a game with the Chanticleers starting at 7 p.m. The game will be broadcast on WISE (1310-AM) and can be seen via video-streaming for a small fee at www.bigsouthsports.com.

The Bulldogs (16-4, 5-0 BSC) picked up an important league road win Saturday night as they won at Charleston Southern, 86-73. Asheville placed four players in double figures as Bryan Smithson led all scorers with 21 points.

The Bulldogs face a tough task when they play a talented Coastal Carolina squad on Monday. The Chanticleers are 9-9 on the season and 2-3 in league play. Senior guard Jack Leasure leads the CCU attack with a 16.3 scoring average. He is one of the best three-point shooters in the country. Senior guard Everege Richardson is talented and averages 13.8 points per game. Coastal Carolina is coached by former Clemson and Auburn head coach Cliff Ellis. The veteran coach is in his first season as head coach of the Chanticleer program.

“Coastal Carolina owns a win at High Point and has posted some impressive non-conference victories,” stated UNC Asheville coach Eddie Biedenbach. “Cliff Ellis knows how to win, and Coastal Carolina has always been a tough place for us to win. We played well at Charleston Southern on Saturday but we're going to have to play even better Monday night.”

Winning at Coastal Carolina has always been a tough task for the Bulldogs. And being unbeaten in league play has meant little for Asheville when it has played here. In the 1996-97 season, the Bulldogs were 7-0 in league play before falling to the Chanticleers, 70-60. In the 2001-02 season, Asheville began league play at 5-0 but fell at Coastal Carolina, 88-78. The Dogs had lost six straight games at Kimbel Arena before winning two games here last season in a five-day span. Asheville won during the regular season, 82-77 and then upset the Chanticleers in the quarterfinals of the BSC Tournament, 77-64.

The Bulldogs continue to be led in scoring by Bryan Smithson with an 18.2 average. K.J. Garland is averaging 14.3 points per game and dishing out 6.1 assists. Kenny George is coming off the bench and scoring 12.9 points per game. He is shooting 70.5 percent from the field and that leads the nation. Vincent James, after the first double-double of his career at Charleston Southern with 12 points and 11 rebounds, is averaging 11.3 points per game.

The Bulldogs are trying to be 6-0 in league play for the first time since the 1997-98 team went 8-0 before losing. Asheville has 16 wins and that's the most for a Bulldog program since that same 1997-98 team when 19-9. Asheville hasn't had a 16-4 record since the 1982-83 season.

NOTES ? UNC Asheville shot 54 percent from the field Saturday night at Charleston Southern and have shot at or better than 50 percent in 13 of 19 games this year...the Bulldogs have out-rebounded nine of their last 11 opponents...K.J. Garland has 445 career assists and needs just 16 to become UNC Asheville's all-time career leader in assists and surpass George Gilbert (460)...Asheville has started 5-0 in league play three different times, all under head coach Eddie Biedenbach...the Bulldogs have blocked 149 shots to just 35 for their opponents...UNC Asheville has won 20 of its last 25 games dating back to last season...the Bulldogs have used the same starting line-up for 15 straight games.

University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics

Men's Basketball Plays at Coastal Carolina Monday Night

Related News

Players Mentioned

K.J. Garland

Kenny George

Vincent James

Bryan Smithson

Related Videos