University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics
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Big South Favorite UNC Asheville to Open Season at Atlantic 10 Favorite Rhode Island
11.08.2017 | Men's Basketball
Game Notes
2017-18 UNC Asheville Men's Basketball Media Guide
THE MATCHUP
Teams: UNC Asheville (0-0)
Rhode Island (0-0)
Location: Kingston, R.I. (Ryan Center)
Video: A-10 Network
Live Stats: uncabulldogs.com
Twitter: @ashevilledogs #ThePursuit
KINGSTON, R.I. - Big South Conference favorite UNC Asheville men's basketball opens its 2017-18 regular season by facing off against Atlantic 10 favorite Rhode Island on Friday, Nov. 10.
Tipoff is scheduled for approximately 7:30 p.m.
BULLDOG BITES
BULLDOGS PICKED TO WIN BIG SOUTH: The UNC Asheville men's basketball team was picked to win the Big South Conference at the annual league Media Day on Tuesday, Oct. 24, at the Renaissance Suites Hotel.UNC Asheville's choice as preseason No. 1 marks the first time since the 2011-12 preseason poll that the Bulldogs have been tabbed to finish first. The Bulldogs have now been picked five times (1989-90, 1997-98, 2002-03, 2011-12 and 2017-18) to win the league in the official preseason poll.
ONE OF THE TOP RETURNING DUOS IN THE COUNTRY: UNC Asheville sophomore guard MaCio Teague and senior guard Ahmad Thomas give the Bulldogs one of the top returning scoring duos in college basketball (see below).
NCAA Division I Top Returning Scoring Duos
(Points Per Game)
1. 39.1 Jaylen Adams (20.6) and Matt Mobley (18.5), St. Bonaventure
2. 37.9 Jonathan Stark (21.9) and Terrell Miller (16.0), Murray State
3. 37.6 Tiwian Kendley (21.0) and Phillip Carr (16.6), Morgan State
4. 36.8 Mike Daum (25.1) and Reed Tellinghuisen (11.7), South Dakota State
5. 36.7 Ike Smith (19.6) and Tookie Brown (17.1), Georgia Southern
6. 36.2 Chris Clemons (25.1) and Shane Whitfield (11.1), Campbell
7. 35.8 Tyler Hall (23.1) and Harald Frey (12.7), Montana State
8. 34.5 Cameron Morse (22.9) and Francisco Santiago (11.6), Youngstown State
9. 33.4 Ahmad Thomas (18.0) and MaCio Teague (15.4), UNC Asheville
10. 33.3 Shamorie Ponds (17.4) and Marcus LoVett (15.9), St. John's
11. 32.9 Trevon Bluiett (18.5) and J.P. Macura (14.4), Xavier
12. 32.8 Khadeen Carrington (17.1) and Desi Rodriguez (15.7), Seton Hall
13. 32.5 Matt Scott (17.0) and Kahlil Dukes (15.5), Niagara
14. 32.0 Joe Chealey (17.8) and Jarrell Brantley (14.2), College of Charleston
15. 31.4 Deandre Burnett (16.5) and Terence Davis (14.9), Ole Miss
BULLDOGS RANKED 24th IN PRESEASON MID-MAJOR POLL: The UNC Asheville men's basketball team will start the 2017-18 season in the same place they ended the season last year in the CollegeInsider.com Men's Basketball Mid-Major Top-25 at No. 24. The CollegeInsider.com Preseason Men's Basketball Mid-Major Top-25 poll was released the evening of Monday, Oct. 30, 2017. UNC Asheville is the only Big South Conference team ranked in the preseason top-25. The Bulldogs were ranked in the CollegeInsider.com Men's Basketball Mid-Major Top-25 for five straight polls to close out the 2016-17 season. UNC Asheville originally entered the poll at No. 24 on Feb. 13, 2017. Asheville was ranked as high as 19th last season before ending the year at No. 24.
NATIONAL COACH OF THE YEAR PREDICTION: There is the whole 2017-18 season ahead, but ESPN's Jeff Goodman believes that by the end of the season it will be UNC Asheville's Nick McDevitt that will be the National Coach of the Year. Goodman made the prediction in the official ESPN staff predictions that were released on Tuesday, Nov. 7.
ABOUT RHODE ISLAND: The defending Atlantic 10 champion Rams are the preseason favorite to repeat in the league. Rhode Island received all but one of the first-place votes in the preseason league tally. Senior guards E.C. Matthews and Jared Terrell were chosen to the preseason All-Atlantic 10 Team. Rhode Island is just out of the preseason top-25 in the AP (28th) and USA Today Coaches Poll (31).
SERIES: UNC Asheville and Rhode Island will be meeting for the second time on Friday. The Bulldogs fell 73-56 to Rhode Island on Nov. 25, 2013, in McDevitt's first season as head coach in the 2013-14 season.
TEAGUE AND THOMAS TABBED TO LOU HENSON AWARD PRESEASON WATCH LIST: UNC Asheville men's basketball standouts MaCio Teague and Ahmad Thomas were both tabbed to the Lou Henson Award Preseason Watch List on Wednesday, Nov. 8, 2017. The Lou Henson Award is presented annually to the nation's top Division I Mid-Major player.
TEAGUE NAMED TO LUTE OLSON AWARD PRESEASON WATCH LIST: UNC Asheville sophomore guard MaCio Teague has been selected to the 2017-18 Lute Olson National Player of the Year Award Preseason Watch List.The Lute Olson Award is presented annually to the nation's top Division I player who has played at least two seasons.
THOMAS TABBED PRESEASON ALL MID-MAJOR: UNC Asheville men's basketball senior guard Ahmad Thomas has been chosen preseason All-Mid Major by College Sports Madness. The Bulldog guard was tabbed as a third-team preseason All-Mid Major selection.
WNUK NOTED AS ONE OF THE MORE UNDERRATED PLAYERS IN COLLEGE BASKETBALL: UNC Asheville senior forward Alec Wnuk has been listed by College Court Report as one of the more underrated players in all of college basketball. Using the hashtag #Underrated351, College Court Report has been picking one player from each team in college basketball that they feel is underrated and will be a big part of the success of their team in the upcoming year. College Court Report notes, "key cog for the team this season. He'll get his due."
TEAGUE NAMED ONE OF TOP-25 SOPHOMORES IN COLLEGE BASKETBALL BY ESPN: UNC Asheville sophomore guard MaCio Teague has been ranked among the top 25 sophomores in all of men's college basketball by ESPN. Teague is listed at No. 25 in ESPN's draft rankings entering the 2017-18 season.
BANNER YEAR WITH BIG SOUTH REGULAR-SEASON TITLE NO. 6: UNC Asheville men's basketball had another banner year last year as the Bulldogs picked up their sixth Big South Conference regular-season title in the 2016-17 season (1996-97, 1997-98, 2001-02, 2007-08, 2011-12 and 2016-17). Asheville head coach Nick McDevitt has been a part of five of the six Big South Conference regular-season crowns either as a player, assistant coach or head coach (1997-98, 2001-02, 2007-08, 2011-12 and 2016-17).
BULLDOGS EARN NABC TEAM ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE AWARD: The UNC Asheville men's basketball team was noted for its performance in the classroom during the 2016-17 athletic year by earning the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Team Academic Excellence Award. The fifth annual Team Academic Excellence Awards, created by the NABC Committee on Academics, recognize outstanding academic achievement by teams with cumulative grade-point averages (GPA) of 3.0 or better for the 2016-17 season. In order to earn a NABC Team Academic Excellence Award, institutions in the NCAA, NAIA and NJCAA must count the grade-point averages of all men's basketball student-athletes who competed during the 2016-17 season. The UNC Asheville men's basketball team finished the 2016-17 athletic year with a cumulative team grade-point average of 3.094. "This honor means a great deal to our program," UNC Asheville men's basketball head coach Nick McDevitt said. "Our program truly takes a great deal of pride in taking care of things in the classroom, and this honor further emphasizes that our student-athletes care about winning on and off the court."
POSTSEASON PLAY: Last year's appearance in the CIT marked UNC Asheville's sixth appearance in a postseason tournament. The Bulldogs have advanced to the NCAA Tournament four times before (2003, 2011, 2012 and 2016) and the NIT (2008) once.
HOME SWEET HOME: UNC Asheville ended the 2016-17 season in the midst of a nine-game home winning streak. The Bulldogs closed out the regular season 13-1 on the year at home. UNC Asheville after the win over Liberty in the regular season finale is now 68-16 all-time at Kimmel Arena, including 48-10 in Big South Conference contests.
1,000 POINTS, 500 REBOUNDS: The 2016-17 Big South Conference Defensive Player of the Year, Ahmad Thomas will enter his senior season in the 2017-18 season with 1,098 points and 519 rebounds. The 56th player in Big South Conference history to score over 1,000 points and collect over 500 rebounds, Thomas with 189 steals in his career is nearing becoming just the sixth player in league history with 1,000 points, 500 rebounds and 200 steals. Thomas' 99 steals this past season for the Bulldogs is a program record.
TREMENDOUS FRESHMAN: The 2016-17 Big South Conference Freshman of the Year last year, MaCio Teague ended his first year in a Bulldog uniform with 509 points to become just one of seven players in league history to record 500 or more points during their freshman season.
OVER 900: Junior guard Kevin Vannatta will enter his senior season in the 2017-18 season with 913 career points.
IMPRESSIVE FREE THROW STREAK COMES TO A CLOSE: MaCio Teague connected on his first three free throws in the Gardner-Webb game on Feb. 23, 2017, to extend his made free throw streak to 29. When he missed his fourth attempt on the night it snapped the impressive streak.
WIN NO. 75: UNC Asheville men's basketball head coach Nick McDevitt picked up his 75th win in charge of the Asheville men's basketball program in the Bulldog win over Presbyterian on Feb. 15, 2017.
FASTEST TO 20: UNC Asheville's win over Longwood on Feb. 11, 2017, allowed last year's Bulldog men's basketball team to reach 20 wins in the fewest number of games (27) in the Bulldogs' time in the Big South Conference.
SPECIAL LEAGUE STREAK CONTINUES: With the UNC Asheville win over High Point on Feb. 9, 2017, UNC Asheville assured itself of at least 10 wins in Big South Conference play for the 10th straight year, which is a new league record.
ELITE GROUP: With the win over Presbyterian on Thursday, Jan. 26, 2017, UNC Asheville head coach Nick McDevitt became just the third coach in Big South history to win at least 15 games in his first four seasons in the league. McDevitt joined Radford's Ron Bradley and Winthrop's Gregg Marshall in the elite grouping. Gardner-Webb's Tim Craft became the fourth and joined McDevitt in the elite group later in the 2016-17 regular season.
2017-18 UNC Asheville Men's Basketball Media Guide
THE MATCHUP
Teams: UNC Asheville (0-0)
Rhode Island (0-0)
Location: Kingston, R.I. (Ryan Center)
Video: A-10 Network
Live Stats: uncabulldogs.com
Twitter: @ashevilledogs #ThePursuit
KINGSTON, R.I. - Big South Conference favorite UNC Asheville men's basketball opens its 2017-18 regular season by facing off against Atlantic 10 favorite Rhode Island on Friday, Nov. 10.
Tipoff is scheduled for approximately 7:30 p.m.
BULLDOG BITES
BULLDOGS PICKED TO WIN BIG SOUTH: The UNC Asheville men's basketball team was picked to win the Big South Conference at the annual league Media Day on Tuesday, Oct. 24, at the Renaissance Suites Hotel.UNC Asheville's choice as preseason No. 1 marks the first time since the 2011-12 preseason poll that the Bulldogs have been tabbed to finish first. The Bulldogs have now been picked five times (1989-90, 1997-98, 2002-03, 2011-12 and 2017-18) to win the league in the official preseason poll.
ONE OF THE TOP RETURNING DUOS IN THE COUNTRY: UNC Asheville sophomore guard MaCio Teague and senior guard Ahmad Thomas give the Bulldogs one of the top returning scoring duos in college basketball (see below).
NCAA Division I Top Returning Scoring Duos
(Points Per Game)
1. 39.1 Jaylen Adams (20.6) and Matt Mobley (18.5), St. Bonaventure
2. 37.9 Jonathan Stark (21.9) and Terrell Miller (16.0), Murray State
3. 37.6 Tiwian Kendley (21.0) and Phillip Carr (16.6), Morgan State
4. 36.8 Mike Daum (25.1) and Reed Tellinghuisen (11.7), South Dakota State
5. 36.7 Ike Smith (19.6) and Tookie Brown (17.1), Georgia Southern
6. 36.2 Chris Clemons (25.1) and Shane Whitfield (11.1), Campbell
7. 35.8 Tyler Hall (23.1) and Harald Frey (12.7), Montana State
8. 34.5 Cameron Morse (22.9) and Francisco Santiago (11.6), Youngstown State
9. 33.4 Ahmad Thomas (18.0) and MaCio Teague (15.4), UNC Asheville
10. 33.3 Shamorie Ponds (17.4) and Marcus LoVett (15.9), St. John's
11. 32.9 Trevon Bluiett (18.5) and J.P. Macura (14.4), Xavier
12. 32.8 Khadeen Carrington (17.1) and Desi Rodriguez (15.7), Seton Hall
13. 32.5 Matt Scott (17.0) and Kahlil Dukes (15.5), Niagara
14. 32.0 Joe Chealey (17.8) and Jarrell Brantley (14.2), College of Charleston
15. 31.4 Deandre Burnett (16.5) and Terence Davis (14.9), Ole Miss
BULLDOGS RANKED 24th IN PRESEASON MID-MAJOR POLL: The UNC Asheville men's basketball team will start the 2017-18 season in the same place they ended the season last year in the CollegeInsider.com Men's Basketball Mid-Major Top-25 at No. 24. The CollegeInsider.com Preseason Men's Basketball Mid-Major Top-25 poll was released the evening of Monday, Oct. 30, 2017. UNC Asheville is the only Big South Conference team ranked in the preseason top-25. The Bulldogs were ranked in the CollegeInsider.com Men's Basketball Mid-Major Top-25 for five straight polls to close out the 2016-17 season. UNC Asheville originally entered the poll at No. 24 on Feb. 13, 2017. Asheville was ranked as high as 19th last season before ending the year at No. 24.
NATIONAL COACH OF THE YEAR PREDICTION: There is the whole 2017-18 season ahead, but ESPN's Jeff Goodman believes that by the end of the season it will be UNC Asheville's Nick McDevitt that will be the National Coach of the Year. Goodman made the prediction in the official ESPN staff predictions that were released on Tuesday, Nov. 7.
ABOUT RHODE ISLAND: The defending Atlantic 10 champion Rams are the preseason favorite to repeat in the league. Rhode Island received all but one of the first-place votes in the preseason league tally. Senior guards E.C. Matthews and Jared Terrell were chosen to the preseason All-Atlantic 10 Team. Rhode Island is just out of the preseason top-25 in the AP (28th) and USA Today Coaches Poll (31).
SERIES: UNC Asheville and Rhode Island will be meeting for the second time on Friday. The Bulldogs fell 73-56 to Rhode Island on Nov. 25, 2013, in McDevitt's first season as head coach in the 2013-14 season.
TEAGUE AND THOMAS TABBED TO LOU HENSON AWARD PRESEASON WATCH LIST: UNC Asheville men's basketball standouts MaCio Teague and Ahmad Thomas were both tabbed to the Lou Henson Award Preseason Watch List on Wednesday, Nov. 8, 2017. The Lou Henson Award is presented annually to the nation's top Division I Mid-Major player.
TEAGUE NAMED TO LUTE OLSON AWARD PRESEASON WATCH LIST: UNC Asheville sophomore guard MaCio Teague has been selected to the 2017-18 Lute Olson National Player of the Year Award Preseason Watch List.The Lute Olson Award is presented annually to the nation's top Division I player who has played at least two seasons.
THOMAS TABBED PRESEASON ALL MID-MAJOR: UNC Asheville men's basketball senior guard Ahmad Thomas has been chosen preseason All-Mid Major by College Sports Madness. The Bulldog guard was tabbed as a third-team preseason All-Mid Major selection.
WNUK NOTED AS ONE OF THE MORE UNDERRATED PLAYERS IN COLLEGE BASKETBALL: UNC Asheville senior forward Alec Wnuk has been listed by College Court Report as one of the more underrated players in all of college basketball. Using the hashtag #Underrated351, College Court Report has been picking one player from each team in college basketball that they feel is underrated and will be a big part of the success of their team in the upcoming year. College Court Report notes, "key cog for the team this season. He'll get his due."
TEAGUE NAMED ONE OF TOP-25 SOPHOMORES IN COLLEGE BASKETBALL BY ESPN: UNC Asheville sophomore guard MaCio Teague has been ranked among the top 25 sophomores in all of men's college basketball by ESPN. Teague is listed at No. 25 in ESPN's draft rankings entering the 2017-18 season.
BANNER YEAR WITH BIG SOUTH REGULAR-SEASON TITLE NO. 6: UNC Asheville men's basketball had another banner year last year as the Bulldogs picked up their sixth Big South Conference regular-season title in the 2016-17 season (1996-97, 1997-98, 2001-02, 2007-08, 2011-12 and 2016-17). Asheville head coach Nick McDevitt has been a part of five of the six Big South Conference regular-season crowns either as a player, assistant coach or head coach (1997-98, 2001-02, 2007-08, 2011-12 and 2016-17).
BULLDOGS EARN NABC TEAM ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE AWARD: The UNC Asheville men's basketball team was noted for its performance in the classroom during the 2016-17 athletic year by earning the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Team Academic Excellence Award. The fifth annual Team Academic Excellence Awards, created by the NABC Committee on Academics, recognize outstanding academic achievement by teams with cumulative grade-point averages (GPA) of 3.0 or better for the 2016-17 season. In order to earn a NABC Team Academic Excellence Award, institutions in the NCAA, NAIA and NJCAA must count the grade-point averages of all men's basketball student-athletes who competed during the 2016-17 season. The UNC Asheville men's basketball team finished the 2016-17 athletic year with a cumulative team grade-point average of 3.094. "This honor means a great deal to our program," UNC Asheville men's basketball head coach Nick McDevitt said. "Our program truly takes a great deal of pride in taking care of things in the classroom, and this honor further emphasizes that our student-athletes care about winning on and off the court."
POSTSEASON PLAY: Last year's appearance in the CIT marked UNC Asheville's sixth appearance in a postseason tournament. The Bulldogs have advanced to the NCAA Tournament four times before (2003, 2011, 2012 and 2016) and the NIT (2008) once.
HOME SWEET HOME: UNC Asheville ended the 2016-17 season in the midst of a nine-game home winning streak. The Bulldogs closed out the regular season 13-1 on the year at home. UNC Asheville after the win over Liberty in the regular season finale is now 68-16 all-time at Kimmel Arena, including 48-10 in Big South Conference contests.
1,000 POINTS, 500 REBOUNDS: The 2016-17 Big South Conference Defensive Player of the Year, Ahmad Thomas will enter his senior season in the 2017-18 season with 1,098 points and 519 rebounds. The 56th player in Big South Conference history to score over 1,000 points and collect over 500 rebounds, Thomas with 189 steals in his career is nearing becoming just the sixth player in league history with 1,000 points, 500 rebounds and 200 steals. Thomas' 99 steals this past season for the Bulldogs is a program record.
TREMENDOUS FRESHMAN: The 2016-17 Big South Conference Freshman of the Year last year, MaCio Teague ended his first year in a Bulldog uniform with 509 points to become just one of seven players in league history to record 500 or more points during their freshman season.
OVER 900: Junior guard Kevin Vannatta will enter his senior season in the 2017-18 season with 913 career points.
IMPRESSIVE FREE THROW STREAK COMES TO A CLOSE: MaCio Teague connected on his first three free throws in the Gardner-Webb game on Feb. 23, 2017, to extend his made free throw streak to 29. When he missed his fourth attempt on the night it snapped the impressive streak.
WIN NO. 75: UNC Asheville men's basketball head coach Nick McDevitt picked up his 75th win in charge of the Asheville men's basketball program in the Bulldog win over Presbyterian on Feb. 15, 2017.
FASTEST TO 20: UNC Asheville's win over Longwood on Feb. 11, 2017, allowed last year's Bulldog men's basketball team to reach 20 wins in the fewest number of games (27) in the Bulldogs' time in the Big South Conference.
SPECIAL LEAGUE STREAK CONTINUES: With the UNC Asheville win over High Point on Feb. 9, 2017, UNC Asheville assured itself of at least 10 wins in Big South Conference play for the 10th straight year, which is a new league record.
ELITE GROUP: With the win over Presbyterian on Thursday, Jan. 26, 2017, UNC Asheville head coach Nick McDevitt became just the third coach in Big South history to win at least 15 games in his first four seasons in the league. McDevitt joined Radford's Ron Bradley and Winthrop's Gregg Marshall in the elite grouping. Gardner-Webb's Tim Craft became the fourth and joined McDevitt in the elite group later in the 2016-17 regular season.
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