University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics
Women's Basketball Travels to Coastal Saturday
02.27.2015 | Women's Basketball
ASHEVILLE, N.C. – The UNC Asheville women's basketball team wraps up the regular season Saturday afternoon when the Bulldogs travel to Coastal Carolina for a 2:00 p.m. contest against the Chanticleers at the HTC Center in Conway, S.C.
Saturday's game can also be heard locally on WPEK Radio (880-AM) and iHeartRadio. Fans can also watch the game for free on the Big South Network.
Asheville (7-21, 6-13 BSC) is in the midst of a five-game losing streak heading into the matchup with Coastal. The Bulldogs fell on Tuesday on the road against Radford 50-47. The Blue & White led at the break 23-16, thanks to a 14-0 run to close out the first half, but Radford got hot in the second half, converting on 10-of-17 (58.8%) field goals to turn the game in their favor. Tianna Knuckles led the Bulldogs with 11 points.
"Coastal Carolina has one of the highest powered offenses in the conference and they play well at home. We will have to continue playing solid defense but also value possessions on offense and stick our open looks. We are looking forward to an exciting game and another opportunity to get better,” head coach Brenda Mock Kirkpatrick said.
Coastal (12-16, 6-13 BSC) returns home following a two-game road losing streak, including a 78-69 loss at Campbell on Tuesday night. The Chanticleers are 10-6 at home this season, but are just 4-5 inside the HTC Center in Big South play. The Bulldogs took care of Coastal, 68-61, at Kimmel Arena back in January, as Coastal pulled used Anna Vogt's jumper with 1:52 left to go to get within one point, but the Bulldog defense stood tall as they closed the afternoon out on a 7-0 run highlighted by a pair of tough baskets inside from K.J. Weaver.
In the last meeting back on January 24, the Bulldogs saw Shonese Jones finish with a team-high 13 points, while Page Love filled her stat sheet with an eight-point, 10 rebound effort. Coastal Carolina was led by Jas Adams' 18 points, as A.J. Jordan and Ced Gibson also finished in double figures, notching 14 points and 13 points, respectively.
Jones is scoring 11.7 points per contest in league games this season for Asheville. Knuckles is the team's second-leading scorer with 8.4 a game. KJ Weaver leads the team in rebounding (135) and blocks (33). Senior Brittany Gwyn has dished out a team-best 73 assists this season.
After Sunday's contest, the Bulldogs will return home to prepare for the Big South Championships before turning around and making a return trip to Conway for the tournament. While full seeding has yet to be determined, the Bulldogs know they will face the Chanticleers again in the No. 8 vs. No. 9 matchup on Tuesday, March 3 at 6:00 p.m. in the first round of the conference tournament.
