University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics
UNC Asheville
Longwood
Bulldogs Move Past Longwood, Remain at Top of Standings
01.30.2016 | Men's Basketball
THE RUNDOWN
Score: Asheville 88 – Longwood 74
Teams: Asheville (15-8, 8-3 BSC)
Longwood (6-17, 2-8 BSC)
Location: Kimmel Arena / Asheville, N.C.
ASHEVILLE, N.C. – After a back-and-forth first half that saw 10 lead changes, UNC Asheville put its foot down in the second half and led throughout the final 20 minutes as the Bulldogs grabbed an 88-74 victory at home over visiting Longwood.
The win ensures Asheville will remain tied atop the Big South standings at the completion of Saturday's games. High Point has the day off, while Winthrop plays later Saturday afternoon.
THE TURNING POINT
After being quiet the past few games, freshman Dwayne Sutton put his stamp on the box score, finishing with 20 points on 6-of-8 shooting, including three three-pointers, in 29 minutes of action.
NOTABLES
-All five of Asheville's starters finished with double-digit scoring afternoons, led by Ahmad Thomas' game-high 21 points. Sutton followed with 20 points, while Sam Hughes tallied 15 points, Dylan Smith had 13, and Kevin Vannatta notched 10 points. Both Thomas and Sutton each finished with nine rebounds in the win.
-The Bulldogs posted shooting percentages over 50 percent from both the floor and from three-point range, finishing with a 52.5 percent mark from the floor (31-of-59) as they hit eight of their 16 three-pointers, including five in the second half.
-Asheville led by as many as 14 points, with 13:18 left to play, but the game remained a single digit advantage for most of the afternoon. The game featured 10 lead changes, all in the first half, as the Bulldogs led for 33 minutes of action.
-Longwood had four players finish with double-digit scoring nights in the loss, as Tra'vaughn White and Lotanna Nwogbo each collected 19 points.
QUOTABLES FROM HEAD COACH NICK McDEVITT
On the game – “There were a couple points in the game there where we built the lead up to 13 points, and it was cut to nine on two quick possessions (by Longwood) when I thought we were sloppy with the basketball. Later, we had a 14-point lead and got sloppy again and it was cut to eight (point lead). Those are things we have to learn from and continue to play smart and together the entire night. As soon as you don't the other team takes advantage of, and hopefully that's something we learn from going forward.”
Evaluating the team halfway through BSC schedule – “I've said it before, we have to continue to get better. There are going to be some teams in this league that aren't satisfied with where they are right now. Some teams are starting to play really well. In order to win the league, we have to continue to improve. I like where we are, certainly when you are tied for first you have to like where you are, but I like where we are headed and hopefully we can finish strong.”
UP NEXT
-Following today's win, Asheville stays at home to host Charleston Southern on Wednesday night inside Kimmel Arena. The Bulldogs grabbed an 83-73 victory down in Charleston in the teams' first meeting back in early January.
