University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics
Thursday, March 9
Lynchburg, VA
8 P.M.
UNC Asheville
vs
Longwood
Photo by: UNC Asheville
Women’s Basketball Prepared to Take on Longwood in Opening Round of Big South Championships
03.08.2017 | Women's Basketball
Asheville-Longwood Game Notes (PDF)
THE MATCHUP
Teams: No. 7 UNC Asheville (15-14, 9-9 Big South Conference)
No. 10 Longwood (4-25, 1-17 Big South Conference)
Location: Lynchburg, Va. / Vine Center
When: Thursday, March 9, 2017 / 8 p.m.
Video: Big South Network
Talent: Mike Tilley (PxP), Kelley Deyo (Analyst)
Radio: 100.3 FM
Talent: Mike Gore
Live Stats: www.uncabulldogs.com
Twitter: @ashevilledogs #ThePursuit
BULLDOG BITES
ASHEVILLE IN THE BIG SOUTH TOURNAMENT: UNC Asheville is 14-28 in the Big South Tournament. The Bulldogs have reached the championship game four times, including winning the crown in 2007 and 2016. The Bulldogs were runners up in 1998 and 2005. As the No. 7 Seed, UNC Asheville is 0-4, but in first-round games of the tournament, UNC Asheville is 3-2. The Bulldogs won first-round games in 1994, 2014 and 2015.
ALL-CONFERENCE SELECTIONS: UNC Asheville senior women's basketball players Chatori Major and KJ Weaver were honored by the Big South Conference Tuesday afternoon as both earned all-conference honors. Major earned her second first-team plaudits in as many years and was named to the All-Academic Team. Weaver was named an honorable mention selection. Major becomes just the fourth UNC Asheville women's basketball player to earn multiple All-Big South first team honors. She joins Jessica Guarneri (2000-01, 2001-02), Vicki Giffin (1994-95, 1995-96, 1996-97) and Wendy Beecher (1986-87, 1987-88) in the honor.
SERIES WITH LONGWOOD: Having won the last eight meetings between the two, UNC Asheville enters Thursday's game boasting a 9-4 record all-time against Longwood. Since Longwood joined the Big South Conference, Asheville is 8-1 over the Lancers.
THE LAST TIME THESE TWO MET (2/18/17): The UNC Asheville women's basketball team notched a key Big South Conference win inside Kimmel Arena. The Bulldogs snapped a four-game skid with an 84-53 win over Longwood on their home court. Asheville led from start to finish as Chatori Major spurred the Bulldogs on a 12-0 opening run with 10 points of her own. The Bulldog defense held the Lancers scoreless for the first 3:42 of the game. By the end of the first quarter, Asheville led the Lancers by 14, 25-11. Longwood was able to cut the Asheville lead to as few as nine early in the second quarter when Kemari Jones snuck through the Bulldog defenders for a layup, but that was closest the Lancers could muster as the Bulldogs once again pulled away and took an 11-point, 40-29 lead into the halftime break. Out of the intermission, it was once again all Bulldogs as they converted 56.7 percent (17-of-30) of their attempts from the field in the second half alone as they steadily built up the lead in the closing minutes. Asheville ended the game shooting 52.5 percent (31-of-59) from the field, including shooting a blistering 69.2 percent (9-of-13) in both the first and fourth quarters. Major led all scorers with 26 points off 9-for-17 (52.9 precent) shooting and is now just five points away from 1,000 for her collegiate career. The senior guard drained six three-pointers in the game, one shy of her career-high of seven set earlier this year at Presbyterian. Major also had a rebound, an assist and a block in 30 minutes of work. Two other Bulldogs ended the game in double-digit scoring with Jessica Wall finishing her 31 minutes of work with 14 points and five assists and Bronaza Fitzgerald scoring 13. Both Fitzgerald and fellow post KJ Weaver just missed out on double-double performance as Fitzgerald ended the night with nine boards and Weaver ended things with a game-high 13 rebounds to compliment nine points. Micaela Ellis led Longwood with 16 points off 6-for-12 shooting and also had five assists while Jones ended her 29 minutes with 12 points. Longwood ended the game shooting 42.0 percent (21-of-50) from the field, but was hampered by a 25.0 percent (3-for-12) shooting performance in the fourth quarter.
SCOUTING THE LANCERS: Longwood enters Thursday's opening round game of the Big South Conference Women's Basketball Championships having lost six straight games to close out the regular-season, including a 63-62 loss at home to Presbyterian on Saturday. The lone win in conference action came on Feb. 22 against Winthrop with the Lancers winning 83-78 at home over the Eagles. Longwood was led during the regular-season by Eboni Gilliam's 10.7 points per game. She started 27 of the 29 games she appeared in and averaged 27.5 minutes per contest. She is also the Lancers' leading rebounder, averaging 5.6 boards per game.
A POSITIVE RECORD: For the seventh time in program history, the UNC Asheville Bulldogs will finish with a positive record. The Bulldogs are all but guaranteed to finish with at least a .500 (15-15) record. Should the Bulldogs win Thursday, it will guarantee an above .500 record. Either way, it will mark just the seventh time in program history that an Asheville women's basketball team has finished with a positive record. The first winning record came during the 1996-97 season (14-13). The Bulldogs then rattled off four in a row from 2003-2007 (19-9, 18-12, 15-13, 21-12). Last season, head coach Brenda Mock Kirkpatrick guided the Bulldogs to a 26-7 record.
THREE FOR THREE: Senior guard Chatori Major is chasing teammate Tianna Knuckles for history. Last season, Knuckles set the school record for most three-pointers made in a single season with 73 treys. It was a mark that had stood for 25 years prior to Knuckles' junior year. After the regular-season finale last Saturday, March 4, Major now has 69 three-pointers on the year. Her 69 treys eclipses her previous career-high of 61 for three-pointers in a season set last year as a junior.
CORRALLING THEM IN: Senior KJ Weaver finished the regular-season with 231 rebounds, giving her 712 over her illustrious career. That career mark has her fifth in Asheville's NCAA Division I era and seventh all-time. The next milestone will be 720 career rebounds for sixth all-time and fourth in the D-1 era. Tonisha Jackson (1999-2004) currently holds those marks. Weaver's 231 rebounds as a senior are a career-high for rebounds in a season for her.
GET ON BOARD: UNC Asheville senior center KJ Weaver became the 108th player in Big South Conference women's basketball history to eclipse the 500 rebound plateau in the Bulldogs' win over Western Carolina on Nov. 18. She has since joined two more elite groups, becoming the 74th player in Big South history to eclipse the 600 rebound mark and the 50th player in league history to eclipse the 700 rebound mark.
BLOCK PARTY: KJ Weaver enters the Big South Conference Championships with 156 career blocks. That mark has her currently in the top-five in program history. This season, she has recorded multiple blocks in a game 17 times, including five in a row from Saturday, Feb. 4, through Saturday, Feb. 18. She had a season-high five blocked shots on Friday, Nov. 25 against Tennessee Tech. Weaver enters the tournament having recorded two blocks in each of the last two games.
1,000 CAREER POINTS: Chatori Major became the 106th Big South Conference player and 16th UNC Asheville women's basketball player to eclipse the 1,000-point mark in the Bulldogs' win over Winthrop on Feb. 21. The senior guard from Camp Lejeune, N.C., needed just five entering the game against Winthrop to hit the mark, and she accomplished that less than five minutes in. Major enters Thursday's game with 1,063 career points, 15th-most by a Bulldog.
SEEING DOUBLE: When KJ Weaver and Bronaza Fitzgerald each recorded a double-double in the Bulldogs' 68-53 win over Winthrop on Tuesday, Jan. 10, it was the first time the feat had been accomplished by two UNC Asheville women's basketball players since the 2010-11 season. That year, Lindsay Montgomery scored 20 points and brought down 10 boards while Kelli Riles chipped in 11 points and added 10 rebounds in a loss to Charleston Southern on Feb. 9, 2011. In fact, the duo of Montgomery and Riles accomplished the feat four times that season.
IT'S AN HONOR: Prior to the win over Wofford (Dec. 15), Tianna Knuckles was honored for joining the prestigious 1,000-point club at UNC Asheville. One of only 105 in Big South Women's Basketball history to surpass 1,000 points, Knuckles passed the 1,000-point mark in the Bulldog win over Western Carolina on Friday, Nov. 18, at Kimmel Arena. The senior guard out of Wendell, N.C. ended her playing career with 1,129 points, the 10th-most in program history.
LAST TIME OUT (Gardner-Webb, 3/4/17): It was a fitting end to the regular-season for the UNC Asheville women's basketball team. The Bulldogs honored their four seniors, Ja'Da Brayboy, Tianna Knuckles, Chatori Major and KJ Weaver, prior to the game and then picked up a key Big South Conference victory, 67-49 over Gardner-Webb inside Kimmel Arena. Before the game, the Bulldogs (15-14, 9-9 Big South) recognized the quartet for their outstanding achievements both on the court and off of it. Then, all four started their final regular-season game together despite Brayboy and Knuckles being injured. After the ceremonial start, the home Bulldogs scored the first two points, but Gardner-Webb (11-18, 6-12 Big South) quickly found the answer. At the first break in the action, with 4:47 to go in the opening quarter, the two teams were deadlocked at 7-7. Asheville was able to edge ahead 11-9 after the first quarter, but Gardner-Webb didn't give Asheville much breathing room. Every time the home Bulldogs pulled away in the first half, the visitors found a way to answer. With two minutes to go in the second quarter, the two teams were tied for the fifth time at 21-all. The Bulldogs in blue and white were able to edge ahead for a 25-23 advantage heading into the halftime intermission despite a last-second attempt by Gardner-Webb's Tierra Hunstman. The Runnin' Bulldogs of GWU opened the second half by edging out to a couple leads over the first few minutes, but Asheville retook the lead for good with 5:41 to go in the third quarter when Jessica Wall hit a jumper in the paint. The home Bulldogs closed the quarter on a 9-5 run to take a 41-36 lead into the fourth quarter. The final quarter saw Asheville close out the game out-scoring Gardner-Webb 26-13 to claim the 67-49 win. Four players finished in double figure scoring led by Weaver's 14 points. The senior center went 6-for-9 from the field, hit both of her free throw attempts, corralled in eight rebounds and had two blocks in 26 minutes of work. Sonora Dengokl and Bronaza Fitzgerald both ended the game with 12 points while Major scored 10 points. Dengokl went 4-for-7 from the field, converted all four of her free throw attempts and just missed out on a double-double with nine boards. Major led the team with two three-pointers, giving her 69 three-pointers on the season. Hunstman led the Runnin' Bulldogs with a game-high 15 points. She went 5-for-12 from the field and 3-for-4 from beyond the three-point arc in 37 minutes of work. As a team, Asheville ended the game shooting 47.4 percent (27-for-57) from the field, including a blistering 66.7 percent (8-for-12) in the fourth quarter alone. On the other side of the court, Gardner-Webb shot 33.3 percent (18-for-54) from the field.
QUOTABLES
"Our girls are focusing on dominating the controllable details such as communication, valuing possession, effort and rebounding in Thursday night's game against Longwood. We are excited about the opportunity and desire to play with our best effort for these seniors and for each other. We are fortunate to have recently played at Liberty within the past couple of weeks so the girls are familiar with the environment." – Brenda Mock Kirkpatrick
THE MATCHUP
Teams: No. 7 UNC Asheville (15-14, 9-9 Big South Conference)
No. 10 Longwood (4-25, 1-17 Big South Conference)
Location: Lynchburg, Va. / Vine Center
When: Thursday, March 9, 2017 / 8 p.m.
Video: Big South Network
Talent: Mike Tilley (PxP), Kelley Deyo (Analyst)
Radio: 100.3 FM
Talent: Mike Gore
Live Stats: www.uncabulldogs.com
Twitter: @ashevilledogs #ThePursuit
BULLDOG BITES
ASHEVILLE IN THE BIG SOUTH TOURNAMENT: UNC Asheville is 14-28 in the Big South Tournament. The Bulldogs have reached the championship game four times, including winning the crown in 2007 and 2016. The Bulldogs were runners up in 1998 and 2005. As the No. 7 Seed, UNC Asheville is 0-4, but in first-round games of the tournament, UNC Asheville is 3-2. The Bulldogs won first-round games in 1994, 2014 and 2015.
ALL-CONFERENCE SELECTIONS: UNC Asheville senior women's basketball players Chatori Major and KJ Weaver were honored by the Big South Conference Tuesday afternoon as both earned all-conference honors. Major earned her second first-team plaudits in as many years and was named to the All-Academic Team. Weaver was named an honorable mention selection. Major becomes just the fourth UNC Asheville women's basketball player to earn multiple All-Big South first team honors. She joins Jessica Guarneri (2000-01, 2001-02), Vicki Giffin (1994-95, 1995-96, 1996-97) and Wendy Beecher (1986-87, 1987-88) in the honor.
SERIES WITH LONGWOOD: Having won the last eight meetings between the two, UNC Asheville enters Thursday's game boasting a 9-4 record all-time against Longwood. Since Longwood joined the Big South Conference, Asheville is 8-1 over the Lancers.
THE LAST TIME THESE TWO MET (2/18/17): The UNC Asheville women's basketball team notched a key Big South Conference win inside Kimmel Arena. The Bulldogs snapped a four-game skid with an 84-53 win over Longwood on their home court. Asheville led from start to finish as Chatori Major spurred the Bulldogs on a 12-0 opening run with 10 points of her own. The Bulldog defense held the Lancers scoreless for the first 3:42 of the game. By the end of the first quarter, Asheville led the Lancers by 14, 25-11. Longwood was able to cut the Asheville lead to as few as nine early in the second quarter when Kemari Jones snuck through the Bulldog defenders for a layup, but that was closest the Lancers could muster as the Bulldogs once again pulled away and took an 11-point, 40-29 lead into the halftime break. Out of the intermission, it was once again all Bulldogs as they converted 56.7 percent (17-of-30) of their attempts from the field in the second half alone as they steadily built up the lead in the closing minutes. Asheville ended the game shooting 52.5 percent (31-of-59) from the field, including shooting a blistering 69.2 percent (9-of-13) in both the first and fourth quarters. Major led all scorers with 26 points off 9-for-17 (52.9 precent) shooting and is now just five points away from 1,000 for her collegiate career. The senior guard drained six three-pointers in the game, one shy of her career-high of seven set earlier this year at Presbyterian. Major also had a rebound, an assist and a block in 30 minutes of work. Two other Bulldogs ended the game in double-digit scoring with Jessica Wall finishing her 31 minutes of work with 14 points and five assists and Bronaza Fitzgerald scoring 13. Both Fitzgerald and fellow post KJ Weaver just missed out on double-double performance as Fitzgerald ended the night with nine boards and Weaver ended things with a game-high 13 rebounds to compliment nine points. Micaela Ellis led Longwood with 16 points off 6-for-12 shooting and also had five assists while Jones ended her 29 minutes with 12 points. Longwood ended the game shooting 42.0 percent (21-of-50) from the field, but was hampered by a 25.0 percent (3-for-12) shooting performance in the fourth quarter.
SCOUTING THE LANCERS: Longwood enters Thursday's opening round game of the Big South Conference Women's Basketball Championships having lost six straight games to close out the regular-season, including a 63-62 loss at home to Presbyterian on Saturday. The lone win in conference action came on Feb. 22 against Winthrop with the Lancers winning 83-78 at home over the Eagles. Longwood was led during the regular-season by Eboni Gilliam's 10.7 points per game. She started 27 of the 29 games she appeared in and averaged 27.5 minutes per contest. She is also the Lancers' leading rebounder, averaging 5.6 boards per game.
A POSITIVE RECORD: For the seventh time in program history, the UNC Asheville Bulldogs will finish with a positive record. The Bulldogs are all but guaranteed to finish with at least a .500 (15-15) record. Should the Bulldogs win Thursday, it will guarantee an above .500 record. Either way, it will mark just the seventh time in program history that an Asheville women's basketball team has finished with a positive record. The first winning record came during the 1996-97 season (14-13). The Bulldogs then rattled off four in a row from 2003-2007 (19-9, 18-12, 15-13, 21-12). Last season, head coach Brenda Mock Kirkpatrick guided the Bulldogs to a 26-7 record.
THREE FOR THREE: Senior guard Chatori Major is chasing teammate Tianna Knuckles for history. Last season, Knuckles set the school record for most three-pointers made in a single season with 73 treys. It was a mark that had stood for 25 years prior to Knuckles' junior year. After the regular-season finale last Saturday, March 4, Major now has 69 three-pointers on the year. Her 69 treys eclipses her previous career-high of 61 for three-pointers in a season set last year as a junior.
CORRALLING THEM IN: Senior KJ Weaver finished the regular-season with 231 rebounds, giving her 712 over her illustrious career. That career mark has her fifth in Asheville's NCAA Division I era and seventh all-time. The next milestone will be 720 career rebounds for sixth all-time and fourth in the D-1 era. Tonisha Jackson (1999-2004) currently holds those marks. Weaver's 231 rebounds as a senior are a career-high for rebounds in a season for her.
GET ON BOARD: UNC Asheville senior center KJ Weaver became the 108th player in Big South Conference women's basketball history to eclipse the 500 rebound plateau in the Bulldogs' win over Western Carolina on Nov. 18. She has since joined two more elite groups, becoming the 74th player in Big South history to eclipse the 600 rebound mark and the 50th player in league history to eclipse the 700 rebound mark.
BLOCK PARTY: KJ Weaver enters the Big South Conference Championships with 156 career blocks. That mark has her currently in the top-five in program history. This season, she has recorded multiple blocks in a game 17 times, including five in a row from Saturday, Feb. 4, through Saturday, Feb. 18. She had a season-high five blocked shots on Friday, Nov. 25 against Tennessee Tech. Weaver enters the tournament having recorded two blocks in each of the last two games.
1,000 CAREER POINTS: Chatori Major became the 106th Big South Conference player and 16th UNC Asheville women's basketball player to eclipse the 1,000-point mark in the Bulldogs' win over Winthrop on Feb. 21. The senior guard from Camp Lejeune, N.C., needed just five entering the game against Winthrop to hit the mark, and she accomplished that less than five minutes in. Major enters Thursday's game with 1,063 career points, 15th-most by a Bulldog.
SEEING DOUBLE: When KJ Weaver and Bronaza Fitzgerald each recorded a double-double in the Bulldogs' 68-53 win over Winthrop on Tuesday, Jan. 10, it was the first time the feat had been accomplished by two UNC Asheville women's basketball players since the 2010-11 season. That year, Lindsay Montgomery scored 20 points and brought down 10 boards while Kelli Riles chipped in 11 points and added 10 rebounds in a loss to Charleston Southern on Feb. 9, 2011. In fact, the duo of Montgomery and Riles accomplished the feat four times that season.
IT'S AN HONOR: Prior to the win over Wofford (Dec. 15), Tianna Knuckles was honored for joining the prestigious 1,000-point club at UNC Asheville. One of only 105 in Big South Women's Basketball history to surpass 1,000 points, Knuckles passed the 1,000-point mark in the Bulldog win over Western Carolina on Friday, Nov. 18, at Kimmel Arena. The senior guard out of Wendell, N.C. ended her playing career with 1,129 points, the 10th-most in program history.
LAST TIME OUT (Gardner-Webb, 3/4/17): It was a fitting end to the regular-season for the UNC Asheville women's basketball team. The Bulldogs honored their four seniors, Ja'Da Brayboy, Tianna Knuckles, Chatori Major and KJ Weaver, prior to the game and then picked up a key Big South Conference victory, 67-49 over Gardner-Webb inside Kimmel Arena. Before the game, the Bulldogs (15-14, 9-9 Big South) recognized the quartet for their outstanding achievements both on the court and off of it. Then, all four started their final regular-season game together despite Brayboy and Knuckles being injured. After the ceremonial start, the home Bulldogs scored the first two points, but Gardner-Webb (11-18, 6-12 Big South) quickly found the answer. At the first break in the action, with 4:47 to go in the opening quarter, the two teams were deadlocked at 7-7. Asheville was able to edge ahead 11-9 after the first quarter, but Gardner-Webb didn't give Asheville much breathing room. Every time the home Bulldogs pulled away in the first half, the visitors found a way to answer. With two minutes to go in the second quarter, the two teams were tied for the fifth time at 21-all. The Bulldogs in blue and white were able to edge ahead for a 25-23 advantage heading into the halftime intermission despite a last-second attempt by Gardner-Webb's Tierra Hunstman. The Runnin' Bulldogs of GWU opened the second half by edging out to a couple leads over the first few minutes, but Asheville retook the lead for good with 5:41 to go in the third quarter when Jessica Wall hit a jumper in the paint. The home Bulldogs closed the quarter on a 9-5 run to take a 41-36 lead into the fourth quarter. The final quarter saw Asheville close out the game out-scoring Gardner-Webb 26-13 to claim the 67-49 win. Four players finished in double figure scoring led by Weaver's 14 points. The senior center went 6-for-9 from the field, hit both of her free throw attempts, corralled in eight rebounds and had two blocks in 26 minutes of work. Sonora Dengokl and Bronaza Fitzgerald both ended the game with 12 points while Major scored 10 points. Dengokl went 4-for-7 from the field, converted all four of her free throw attempts and just missed out on a double-double with nine boards. Major led the team with two three-pointers, giving her 69 three-pointers on the season. Hunstman led the Runnin' Bulldogs with a game-high 15 points. She went 5-for-12 from the field and 3-for-4 from beyond the three-point arc in 37 minutes of work. As a team, Asheville ended the game shooting 47.4 percent (27-for-57) from the field, including a blistering 66.7 percent (8-for-12) in the fourth quarter alone. On the other side of the court, Gardner-Webb shot 33.3 percent (18-for-54) from the field.
QUOTABLES
"Our girls are focusing on dominating the controllable details such as communication, valuing possession, effort and rebounding in Thursday night's game against Longwood. We are excited about the opportunity and desire to play with our best effort for these seniors and for each other. We are fortunate to have recently played at Liberty within the past couple of weeks so the girls are familiar with the environment." – Brenda Mock Kirkpatrick
Players Mentioned
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