University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics
Women's Basketball Hosts Mercer on Wednesday at Noon
12.20.2011 | Women's Basketball
ASHEVILLE, N.C. - The UNC Asheville women's basketball team returns home on Wednesday as the Bulldogs host Mercer at Kimmel Arena starting at Noon. Wednesday's game will be broadcast on WPEK Radio (880-AM) and be video-streamed at www.uncabulldogs.com.
The Bulldogs return hope to break a frustrating six-game losing streak. Asheville fell twice over the weekend on the road. The Bulldogs lost at Kennesaw State, 83-79 on Saturday night. Asheville led by 10 with six minutes remaining but couldn't hold the Owls off down the stretch. Shonese Jones scored a career-best 20 points in the loss. On Monday night at South Carolina State, the Bulldogs trailed by 26 points in the second half and almost came back before losing, 92-82. Jones set a new career-high with 30 points in the defeat. Asheville battles a Mercer team that is coming off a thrilling 67-57 overtime win over Troy on Sunday. Briana Williams scored 20 points to lead the Bears to the win.
"I was really proud of the way our freshmen fought back at South Carolina State and made that a game," commented Asheville coach Betsy Blose. "Our young kids are learning and doing a great job."
Mercer is 3-7 on the season but much improved from last season's 2-27 campaign. Veteran coach Susie Gardner has the Bears ready to make a move in the Atlantic Sun Conference. The Bulldogs rallied for a 76-73 win at Mercer last season.
"Mercer learned a lot last season, and you can see how much better they are this year," declared Blose. "We don't have much time to prepare for a tough game on Wednesday."
Lindsey Thompson and Shonese Jones are Asheville's leading scorers as they both have an 11.9 average. Mercer is led by Williams with a 14.0 scoring mark.
BULLDOG NOTES
Lindsey is #1: Senior guard Lindsey Thompson is UNC Asheville's all-time leader in three-pointers made. She became the school's all-time leader when she knocked down a trey at George Mason earlier this season. Thompson has 176 treys in her career as she surpasses Brittany Hendley's 168 three-pointers made. The Virginia native is also making a push at 1,000 career points. She has 859 points coming into today's game.
Last Year at Mercer: Kelli Riles had 22 points and nine rebounds as Asheville edged Mercer last Dec. 22, 76-73. Grace Blaylock added 18 points on six 3-pointers. The Bulldogs trailed 60-51 with nine minutes remaining but rallied for the victory with some clutch plays down the stretch. Blaylock helped spark the comeback with four of her long-distance shots coming in the final nine minutes. Riles' lay-up with 33 seconds left gave the Bulldogs a 74-73 lead. A steal from Bre Barksdale plus two free throws from Lindsey Thompson in the final 10 seconds sealed the Asheville road win.
Chairman of the Boards: Junior forward Kelli Riles continues to be the Chairman of the Boards this year. She leads not just the Bulldogs and Big South but the entire nation in rebounding with a 12.1 average. Riles has four double-doubles on the season and also picked up her 500th rebound earlier this year. Kelli comes into today's game with 543 rebounds as she is one of just 12 players in school history to collect more than 500 rebounds.
Bright Play from Brittany: Freshman guard Brittany Gwyn has really given the Bulldogs a lift with her play as of late. She missed the first month of the season due to a mouth injury suffered in practice back in October. Gwyn made her debut against Appalachian State and quickly found her groove with 14 points, five assists and three steals. She made her first start at Kennesaw State last Saturday and posted a career-high 18 points with two assists and two steals. The High Point native tallied 13 points with three assists against South Carolina State on Monday night.
Shonese Shines: Freshman guard Shonese Jones has also been playing very well for the Bulldogs in the past few games. She tallied 14 points against App State (12-10) before tallying 20 points at Kennesaw State Saturday night. The Brevard native exploded at South Carolina State Monday night with 30 points against the Lady Bulldogs. Jones went 9-of-11 from the field and 8-of-10 from the charity stripe.
