HIGH POINT, N.C.?Linda Aughburns recorded her first career double-double with 10 points and 15 rebounds but it was High Point that placed four players in double figures in a 59-51 victory over UNC Asheville Monday night at the Millis Center.
Aughburns and High Point's Shamia Brown hooked up in a battle of two of the top freshmen in the Big South. Brown finished the night with 16 points and 15 rebounds, Mackenzie Maier, last season's Big South Freshman of the Year, had 16 points and seven blocked shots to lead the Panthers.
LaTeisha Dean scored the Panthers' final seven points of the game to finish with 11 points and seven assists while Jurica Hargraves added 10 points. High Point improved to 10-10 on the season and 6-1 in the Big South.
Asheville (7-13, 4-3 Big South) was led by 12 points, six assists, and five steals by Ana Baker. Baker is now six steals shy of Vicki Giffin's (1993-97) school record of 244 career steals. Jessica Monroe added 10 points and five rebounds for the Bulldogs.
Both teams shot poorly in the first half which saw five ties and five lead chances. Asheville shot 34.6 percent in the opening half but managed to jump out to an early 16-10 lead at the 8:26 mark. High Point shot 26.5 percent half answered with a 7-0 run to take the lead at 17-16 with 5:41 to go in the period.
Monrie and Aughburns had back-to-back hoops to put Asheville back up by three points at 20-17. The Bulldogs would score just two points in the final 4:49 as the Panthers used a 7-2 run to take a 24-22 lead into halftime.
High Point made five of its first six shots jumping out to its largest lead 35-26 with an 11-4 run to start the second half. Asheville answered with an 11-2 run to tie the game at 37 with 12:16 left to play.
Aughburns went 1-for-2 at the free throw line to give Asheville its only lead of the second half 38-37 at the 10:31 mark. High Point got a basket from Andrea Tucker to retake the lead and begin a 7-0 run as the Bulldogs went scoreless for the next 3:17. Baker's steal and lay-up with 7:01 left to play pull the Dogs to within four points but that would be as close as Asheville would come.
High Point shot 50 percent from the floor in the second half to finish the game at 37.1 percent. Asheville shot just 27 percent in the second half to finish at 30 percent for the game. The Bulldogs were 3-for-21 from three-point range .
The Bulldogs out-rebounded the Panthers 48-42 but converted that into just a 12-11 advantage in second chance points. Asheville's bench out-scored High Point's bench 18-3 but High Point held a 15-12 advantage in points off turnovers and had 10 blocked shots in the game.
Both teams return to action on Saturday, Jan. 31. Asheville returns home to host Winthrop in a 2 p.m. game at the Justice Center. High Point travels to league-leading Liberty for a 2 p.m. game.
