Women's Basketball Hosts Gardner-Webb on Senior Day & Homecoming

ASHEVILLE, N.C. – The UNC Asheville women's basketball team plays its final home game of the season on Saturday afternoon when the Bulldogs host Gardner-Webb for homecoming at Kimmel Arena starting at 2 p.m.

Saturday's game will be televised locally by WMYA-TV (MY-40) and can also be seen on the Big South Network for free. Fans can also listen to the game on WPEK Radio (880-AM) or on iHeartRadio with the pre-game show at 1:45 p.m.

Asheville (7-19, 6-11 BSC) looks to snap a frustrating three-game losing streak on Saturday. The Blue & White has lost those three games by a total of 11 points and had chances in two of those games to tie on a three-pointer in the final seconds. The Bulldogs fell at High Point on Tuesday night, 57-54. Shonese Jones scored a season-high 26 points and helped lead Asheville back from a 15-point second-half deficit to lead 54-53 late in the game before the Panthers hit four free throws to escape with the win.

Gardner-Webb (12-15, 8-10 BSC) has been playing some good basketball lately. The Runnin' Bulldogs have won five of their last seven games, including a 75-62 whipping of defending Big South champion Winthrop last Saturday. GWU fell at home to Campbell on Wednesday, 72-62. The teams played earlier this year at Gardner-Webb with Asheville winning in Boiling Springs for the first time in four seasons with a 64-55 victory.

“Gardner-Webb has always been a tough match-up for us. We are looking forward to playing our final home game of the year in front of a great crowd,” declared Bulldog coach Brenda Mock Kirkpatrick. “This is the last time that our five seniors on the team will be playing at home. I know that our entire team wants to play well for them tomorrow and continue battling and improving down this final stretch of games.”

Prior to Saturday's game, the Bulldogs will honor their five seniors playing their final home game. The five are Jeannie Buckner, Brittany Gwyn, Shonese Jones, Leah Wormack and Tacey Trammell.

The last time the teams played came on Jan. 17 with the Bulldogs winning in Boiling Springs for the first time in four years, 64-55. Shonese Jones scored 16 points and Chatori Major added 15 in the victory. Asheville's defense limited the Runnin' Bulldogs to just 25 percent shooting from the field in the win.

Asheville finishes the regular season on the road with its final two games. The Bulldogs travel to Radford Tuesday night and then finish the season at Coastal Carolina next Saturday at 2 p.m. Asheville will then return to the Myrtle Beach area a few days later to take part in the Big South Championships. The Bulldogs will play in the first round of the tournament on Tuesday, March 3 against an opponent and a time yet to be determined.

BULLDOG NOTES

Senior guard Shonese Jones tied a school record on Tuesday night when she sank seven 3-pointers in Asheville's loss at High Point. The Etowah native scored a season-high 26 points and almost single-handily led the Bulldogs to a huge road upset. She ties the single-game record that was first set by Grace Blaylock against Winthrop in the 2011-12 season. Shonese is Asheville's leading scorer with an 11.7 average. She's averaging 12.5 points in league games. In BSC contests, she's tied for the league in three-point percentage at .431 and her 44 treys lead the league.

Five of Asheville's last six Big South Conference losses have come by five points or less. Four have come by three points or less. Two of the last three defeats have come by the score of 57-54.

Asheville has out-rebounded five of its last seven opponents.

Senior guard Brittany Gwyn has averaged seven rebounds per game in the last three contests.

Shonese Jones has averaged 23 points in the last two games with 20 points vs. Campbell and 26 at High Point last Tuesday. She is 11-of-22 from beyond the arc in both games. Shonese is the Big South's current all-time leading scorer with 1,332 points. She is sixth all-time at Asheville in career scoring.

The Bulldogs have two seniors who are planning to go to medical school upon graduation. They are Jeannie Buckner and Leah Wormack.