University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics
Tuesday, January 10
Rock Hill, S.C.
7:00 p.m.
UNC Asheville
8-6, 2-1
68
at
53
Winthrop
1-14, 0-3
1st quarter1
2nd quarter2
3rd quarter3
4th quarter4
FinalF
Asheville
16
11
21
20
68
Winthrop
14
21
4
14
53
Photo by: UNC Asheville
Strong Third Quarter Leads Asheville Women to Third Straight Win Over Winthrop
01.10.2017 | Women's Basketball
ROCK HILL, S.C. – A huge team effort in the second half and a pair of double-double performances down low helped the UNC Asheville women's basketball team defeat Winthrop 68-53 on the road Tuesday night inside the Winthrop Coliseum in Big South Conference action.
Winthrop (1-14, 0-3 Big South Conference) started the game off well, taking a 35-27 lead into the locker room at halftime. The Eagles shot 44 percent (14-32) from the field in the opening half while holding the Bulldogs (8-6, 2-1 Big South Conference) to just 29 percent (9-31) from the field. Asheville netted 15 points off five three-pointers in the first 20 minutes of play.
Out of the intermission, the Bulldogs responded by opening the second half with an impressive 21-4 run through the third quarter to go up 48-39, including converting six straight field goals at one point early in the stanza. Asheville's defense was also stingy as ever as the Bulldogs kept the Eagles from converting a field goal until 44 seconds left in the period. The Bulldog women forced four Eagle turnovers in the stanza.
The fourth quarter saw Asheville continue the hot shooting streak with an 8-0 run through the first 3:02 of the quarter, forcing Winthrop to call a timeout trailing 56-39. Out of the timeout, Bronaza Fitzgerald stripped the ball from Winthrop's Erica Williams and turned the Winthrop turnover into two points to extend the streak to 10-0 before Winthrop was able to score four straight points, including a three-ball from Noell Kellers with 5:18 left in regulation.
Despite the small spurt from Winthrop, Asheville cruised down the stretch to net the third straight win over Winthrop in the series.
Centers KJ Weaver and Fitzgerald led the charge for Asheville with a pair of double-doubles, combining to score 32 points and corral in 23 rebounds. Weaver led all scorers with 19 points off an outstanding 9-for-10 shooting effort from the field while bringing down a balanced six rebounds off both the offensive and defensive glass for 12 total boards. Fitzgerald was just as stout down low, scoring 13 points off a 5-for-8 performance while also adding 11 rebounds, five offensive and six defensive. Guard Chatori Major was the third Bulldog to end the game in double-digit scoring numbers with 13 points, including draining three treys.
As a team, Asheville ended the game shooting 42.9 percent (27-63) from the field. That effort included going 18-for-32 (56.3 percent) from the field in the second half alone while the Bulldogs' defense held the Eagles to just 24.1 percent (7-29) in the second half. Winthrop was able to manage a 34.4 percent (21-61) shooting effort for the game led by Williams' 18 points.
BULLDOG BITES
THE SERIES WITH THE EAGLES: UNC Asheville claimed the 70th meeting between the Bulldogs and the Eagles and now own a 41-29 record over Winthrop, including winning the last three meetings.
CLEANING THE GLASS: Senior center KJ Weaver corralled in 12 rebounds Tuesday night, giving her 599 for her career. She is currently eighth in UNC Asheville's Division I era for career rebounds and is 10th all-time in program history.
SEEING DOUBLE PART 1: Junior center Bronaza Fitzgerald recorded her first double-double of the season Tuesday night with 13 points and 11 rebounds. It is the first time she has accomplished the feat since late last season when she scored 18 points and corralled in 15 rebounds while leading the Bulldogs to a 91-68 win over Charleston Southern on Mar. 1, 2016.
SEEING DOUBLE PART 2: Weaver's double-double performance Tuesday against Winthrop was the third of the season for the senior center. In those three games, she has averaged 14.7 points and 14.3 boards per contest. In the trio of games, she has snagged 21 offensive rebounds.
QUOTABLES
"Tonight was a tale of two halves, for sure, and a heroic effort by both KJ and Bree (Fitzgerald) making tough shots in the paint and getting on the glass. When you have two centers who record double-doubles, you consider yourself very fortunate. Winthrop came out swinging and we weren't covering their actions well in man. We settled for threes and took quick shots playing into their hands a bit as well on offense. We had a great discussion at halftime regarding adjustments we needed to make and the kids understand. I was so proud of our third quarter effort and intensity. It was some of the best we've had all year. Chatori Major also played one of her best games of the year. She was intense on both ends and led us very well." – Brenda Mock Kirkpatrick
UP NEXT
Asheville returns home this Saturday, Jan. 14, for a Big South Conference game against High Point. The game against the Panthers will begin a stretch where the Bulldogs will play four of their next six games within the friendly confines of Kimmel Arena.
Winthrop (1-14, 0-3 Big South Conference) started the game off well, taking a 35-27 lead into the locker room at halftime. The Eagles shot 44 percent (14-32) from the field in the opening half while holding the Bulldogs (8-6, 2-1 Big South Conference) to just 29 percent (9-31) from the field. Asheville netted 15 points off five three-pointers in the first 20 minutes of play.
Out of the intermission, the Bulldogs responded by opening the second half with an impressive 21-4 run through the third quarter to go up 48-39, including converting six straight field goals at one point early in the stanza. Asheville's defense was also stingy as ever as the Bulldogs kept the Eagles from converting a field goal until 44 seconds left in the period. The Bulldog women forced four Eagle turnovers in the stanza.
The fourth quarter saw Asheville continue the hot shooting streak with an 8-0 run through the first 3:02 of the quarter, forcing Winthrop to call a timeout trailing 56-39. Out of the timeout, Bronaza Fitzgerald stripped the ball from Winthrop's Erica Williams and turned the Winthrop turnover into two points to extend the streak to 10-0 before Winthrop was able to score four straight points, including a three-ball from Noell Kellers with 5:18 left in regulation.
Despite the small spurt from Winthrop, Asheville cruised down the stretch to net the third straight win over Winthrop in the series.
Centers KJ Weaver and Fitzgerald led the charge for Asheville with a pair of double-doubles, combining to score 32 points and corral in 23 rebounds. Weaver led all scorers with 19 points off an outstanding 9-for-10 shooting effort from the field while bringing down a balanced six rebounds off both the offensive and defensive glass for 12 total boards. Fitzgerald was just as stout down low, scoring 13 points off a 5-for-8 performance while also adding 11 rebounds, five offensive and six defensive. Guard Chatori Major was the third Bulldog to end the game in double-digit scoring numbers with 13 points, including draining three treys.
As a team, Asheville ended the game shooting 42.9 percent (27-63) from the field. That effort included going 18-for-32 (56.3 percent) from the field in the second half alone while the Bulldogs' defense held the Eagles to just 24.1 percent (7-29) in the second half. Winthrop was able to manage a 34.4 percent (21-61) shooting effort for the game led by Williams' 18 points.
BULLDOG BITES
THE SERIES WITH THE EAGLES: UNC Asheville claimed the 70th meeting between the Bulldogs and the Eagles and now own a 41-29 record over Winthrop, including winning the last three meetings.
CLEANING THE GLASS: Senior center KJ Weaver corralled in 12 rebounds Tuesday night, giving her 599 for her career. She is currently eighth in UNC Asheville's Division I era for career rebounds and is 10th all-time in program history.
SEEING DOUBLE PART 1: Junior center Bronaza Fitzgerald recorded her first double-double of the season Tuesday night with 13 points and 11 rebounds. It is the first time she has accomplished the feat since late last season when she scored 18 points and corralled in 15 rebounds while leading the Bulldogs to a 91-68 win over Charleston Southern on Mar. 1, 2016.
SEEING DOUBLE PART 2: Weaver's double-double performance Tuesday against Winthrop was the third of the season for the senior center. In those three games, she has averaged 14.7 points and 14.3 boards per contest. In the trio of games, she has snagged 21 offensive rebounds.
QUOTABLES
"Tonight was a tale of two halves, for sure, and a heroic effort by both KJ and Bree (Fitzgerald) making tough shots in the paint and getting on the glass. When you have two centers who record double-doubles, you consider yourself very fortunate. Winthrop came out swinging and we weren't covering their actions well in man. We settled for threes and took quick shots playing into their hands a bit as well on offense. We had a great discussion at halftime regarding adjustments we needed to make and the kids understand. I was so proud of our third quarter effort and intensity. It was some of the best we've had all year. Chatori Major also played one of her best games of the year. She was intense on both ends and led us very well." – Brenda Mock Kirkpatrick
UP NEXT
Asheville returns home this Saturday, Jan. 14, for a Big South Conference game against High Point. The game against the Panthers will begin a stretch where the Bulldogs will play four of their next six games within the friendly confines of Kimmel Arena.
Team Stats
AVL
WUW
FG%
.429
.344
3FG%
.231
.313
FT%
.667
.857
RB
51
28
TO
16
11
STL
6
4
Game Leaders
Pts
13
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
3
Pts
13
FGM
5
3FGM
3
FTM
0
Pts
9
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
1
Players Mentioned
C
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