Celebrating 90 Years - #SCTop10 Love for the Bulldogs in 2013-14 Season-Opening Win

Video of Game-Winning Shot by Paige Love

Former Bulldog women's basketball player Paige Love got to live a dream that every player has and that's to be on ESPN's SportsCenter Top Plays.

UNC Asheville will face Furman at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 28, at Kimmel Arena as the Bulldogs play their final non-conference game of the regular season against the Paladins. Thursday's game brings back some great memories of an incredible game at Kimmel Arena four years ago.

Asheville would open the 2013-14 season at home against Furman. The Bulldogs were looking to improve on the previous season when Asheville went through an injury-riddled 2-28 campaign as first-year coach Brenda Mock Kirkpatrick faced an incredible amount of adversity.

There was cautious optimism heading into the season as Asheville was healthier than it had ever been the year before plus a talented freshmen recruiting class was now in the program. One player ready to make an impact was sophomore guard Paige Love.

Paige had been a bright spot in her freshman year for the Bulldogs. She was forced to play different positions throughout the year and had handled them all very well.

The Bulldogs were definitely improved but they would be tested by a strong Furman team that would go on to have a great year and play in the postseason.

"We were excited about the start of the season. Everyone had put in a lot of hard work and we wanted to improve on the previous year," stated Love, who is now an assistant coach at Texas State of the Sun Belt Conference. "We knew Furman was good and it would be a high-energy game."

Furman built a six-point lead late in the first half and seemed to be taking charge of the game but a late 12-2 Bulldog run gave Asheville a 34-30 halftime lead. Rookie center KJ Weaver started the run with six straight points before junior guard Brittany Gwyn hit two three-pointers in the final minute to give the home team a lead.

The momentum carried over to the second half as Asheville pushed the lead to 10. But a veteran Furman team would roar back with 15 straight points and would lead by six with less than five minutes remaining.

But just like at the end of the first half, the Blue & White would rise to the occasion. The Paladins would go ice cold from the three-point line while five different Bulldogs would score over the next two minutes to put Asheville in front 65-61.

Furman would stop the momentum and when the Paladins top player – Holli Wilkins – hit two free throws, the game was tied at 65-65 with under two minutes remaining.

Asheville couldn't score and Furman would have a chance to win the game in regulation after a missed Bulldog shot with 12 seconds left.

"We were ready to stop them on Furman's final possession," stated Love. "Coach Kirkpatrick and her staff always did a great job preparing us for what an opponent would do late in the game. We knew we had to stop Holli Wilkins and switch on all screens."

The ball would get to Wilkins but her 15-footer was off. Gwyn would get the rebound and pass it to Love.

"Brittany (Gwyn) tapped the ball out to me. I knew we didn't have much time, so I saw the clock, dribbled as far as I could and just let go," remembered Love.

The shot she let go was beyond half-court. It went straight in the air and headed for the basket.

"I wasn't even thinking about making the shot at first," explained Love. "I just wanted to shoot it and see what happens."

What happened is the ball banked off the backboard and went in just as the final buzzer sounded. The Bulldogs had their first win of the season, 68-65.

"As the ball kept going closer to the basket, I thought that might have a shot to get close. Then it banked in and went in the basket and I was just shocked," commented Love. "There was this tremendous rush of people that suddenly came on the floor and then the team tackled me. I'll never forget that shot."

It was a shot that was shown again and again on UNC Asheville's website and local photographer Tommy Moss got a great shot of Love when she put the shot up.

The next day, Love admits she wanted to watch SportsCenter and see if it made the program's Top 10 plays.

"I'll have to admit that I waited around to watch SportsCenter to see if the shot made their Top 10. I couldn't believe when I saw it on SportsCenter," said Love.

"Anybody who plays basketball as a little kid, you dream about making a big shot and being on ESPN and I was lucky enough to have the dream come true," added Love. "My dad called me and started singing the SportsCenter theme to me.

"It was a memorable shot but most importantly it was a big win for our program and Coach Mock," Love also said. "We beat a good team that day in Furman and learned we could play with just about anybody on our schedule."

The Bulldogs would be improved in 2013-14 but would be a little inconsistent as young teams have a tendency to do. Asheville would finish the year at 10-19 but the seeds had been planted for a championship that would come just two years later.

**In celebration of UNC Asheville's 90th anniversary, Hall of Famer Mike Gore will look back on important moments in athletics department history over the course of the 2017-18 athletic year**

University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics

Celebrating 90 Years - #SCTop10 Love for the Bulldogs in 2013-14 Season-Opening Win

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