University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics
Men's Basketball Set to Battle Radford on Saturday
02.20.2015 | Men's Basketball
ASHEVILLE, N.C. – The UNC Asheville men's basketball team returns home on Saturday as the Bulldogs celebrate homecoming and Senior Day when they host Big South rival Radford starting at 4:30 p.m.
Saturday's game will be televised locally on WMYA-TV (MY-40). It can also be seen on the Big South Network for free. Bulldog fans can also listen to the game on WWNC Radio (570-AM) and iHeartRadio with the pre-game show starting at 4 p.m.
The Bulldogs (13-13, 9-6 BSC) hope to snap a two-game losing streak on Saturday but it will not be easy against a very good Radford (19-9, 10-5 BSC) squad that is looking for its 20th win of the season. Asheville was part of a seven-team logjam for first place in the Big South Conference just 10 days ago but a home loss to Presbyterian last Thursday (69-65) and a 91-70 defeat at Winthrop on Wednesday have pushed the Bulldogs down to sixth place in the league standings. The Highlanders are in fourth place in the latest league standings and still have a shot at finishing in first place.
However, Asheville is just a game out of fourth place and if the Dogs could win their final three games they would stand a good chance of at least earning a bye at the Big South Conference Championship that will be held at Coastal Carolina in two weeks. The top five finishers in league play earn a bye and don't have to play a first-round game on March 4. Asheville looks for a season-sweep of the Highlanders after edging RU, 62-60 on Dec. 31 at the Dedmon Center.
Radford started league play with three straight losses but have won 10 of its last 12 league games. The Highlanders own two wins over High Point plus a road win at Winthrop. RU's three early losses were by a total of five points and two were in double overtime.
“We're going to have to play really well to have a chance at beating a very good Radford team on Saturday,” stated Bulldog coach Nick McDevitt. “This is a team that is a few points away from being 12-2 in league play. We played extremely well at Radford earlier this year and felt fortunate to get a win. It's going to take another great performance to win this time.”
Prior to Saturday's game, the Bulldogs will honor their three seniors. The trio are Chudier Pal, Corey Littlejohn and Jaleel Roberts.
Asheville is being led this season by sophomore guard Andrew Rowsey. He tops the Dogs in scoring with an 18.2 average. Rowsey is shooting .922 (107-116) from the free throw line and that's fifth best nationally. Sophomore guard David Robertson is averaging 11 points per game.
A bright spot in the 91-70 loss to Winthrop on Wednesday was the play of Roberts. The senior center set a school and Big South record by going 12-for-12 from the field as he finished with a career-high 25 points. The 12-of-12 performance is the second best shooting percentage in the nation this season. Only Amdia Brimah of Connecticut has had a better performance as he went 13-for-13 vs. Coppin State earlier this season.
“I thought Jaleel was outstanding at Winthrop Wednesday. It's hard to top 12-for-12 from the field,” commented McDevitt. “He's playing with more confidence and hopefully he'll keep playing that way.”
After Saturday's game, UNC Asheville plays its final home game Thursday evening against Big South tri-leader High Point at 7 p.m. Thursday's contest will be televised by ESPNU. The Dogs end the regular-season next Saturday at Liberty.
BULLDOG NOTES
The Bulldogs hold a 34-31 series advantage after they edged the Highlanders on Dec. 31, 62-60 at the Dedmon Center. Asheville has played well against RU over the past few years at home. The Bulldogs have won 12 of the last 13 games against the Highlanders in Asheville and is 2-0 against RU at Kimmel Arena.
Asheville is 11-2 when it out-rebounds its opponents.
One more BSC win will give Asheville its 10th league victory of the season. It will mark the eighth straight year the Bulldog program has posted double-digit league wins.
Jaleel Roberts is 48-of-61 (.787) from the field in his last 11 games.
Andrew Rowsey has sunk 22 straight free throws.
Asheville has struggled in the first half in its last few home games. Prior to the Winthrop game on Jan. 14, the Bulldogs had led at halftime in 22 straight home games and went 18-4 in that stretch. But Asheville has trailed at intermission in four of the last five games at Kimmel. In three of those contests, the Dogs trailed by at least 10 points at halftime. Asheville rallied for wins in two of those games – Campbell & Longwood – but fell to Winthorp and Presbyterian.
