University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics
Celebrating 30 Years: Looking Back on the 1988-89 Big South Champion Bulldogs
03.06.2019 | Men's Basketball
**Story by UNC Asheville and Big South Hall of Famer Mike Gore**
In the 1988-89 season, the Bulldogs had a new coach and went through an up-and-down season before catching fire at the end of the year to win the Big South championship.
The tourney title also helped put aside some frustrating tournament losses from the previous years. Asheville had lost close semifinal tournament games to Baptist in 1986 and Campbell in 1987 and a heartbreaker to Winthrop the previous year.
Don Doucette had become Asheville's third head coach in the summer of 1988 after Jerry Green had left to work for Roy Williams as his top assistant coach at Kansas.
Doucette was a hot hire as he had led the University of Lowell (Mass.) to a Division II national championship in the spring of 1988.
But it was not an easy transition. Doucette inherited a talented team from Green but one that took time getting used to a new style of play.
The Bulldogs enjoyed some nice non-conference wins over Eastern Kentucky, Western Carolina and VMI but could never establish any kind of consistency.
Asheville went through a five-game losing streak in late January that included a disappointing 86-60 home loss to league rival Coastal Carolina.
But in February, the Bulldogs began to put things together and won four out of five games. In the final week of the season, Asheville showed it would be a team to watch out for in the Big South Tournament.
The Dogs went into ACC power N.C. State and gave the Wolfpack all it could before falling, 90-75. Junior guard Milton Moore put on a show against N.C. State with a career-high 39 points. Wolfpack coach Jim Valvano marveled at Moore's performance after the game.
"We tried everything we could to stop Milton Moore and didn't come close," stated Valvano. "He's a terrific player, and I don't want to face him anytime again.
The Dogs would finish the regular-season at home against a talented Radford squad coached by another first-year coach in Oliver Purnell, who would later go on to coach at Clemson where he would employ Asheville's current head coach Mike Morrell as an assistant coach.
Purnell's first visit to Justice Center would be one he would like to forget as the Bulldogs roared past the Highlanders, 105-76. The Dogs roared through Radford's press for dunks and easy layups, delighting the Homecoming crowd at Justice.
As luck would have it, Asheville would have to face Radford five days later in the quarterfinals of the league tournament at the Winthrop Coliseum.
The Highlanders slowed things down and kept the game close. Asheville would lead most of the way but could never pull away. RU would knot the game at 58-58. The Highlanders forced a turnover with 45 seconds left and had the ball and could play for the final shot (shot clocks were 45 seconds that year).
But Radford guard Phil Young would be called for a charge with 20 seconds left, giving the ball back to the Dogs. In an ironic twist, a year earlier the Bulldogs would be called for a charge at the same end of the floor, wiping out a tying basket against Winthrop.
Asheville took advantage as Moore would knock down a jumper off a pass from Maurice Caldwell to give the Dogs a 60-58 lead. Lance Mitchell would seal the victory with two free throws, and Asheville advanced to the semifinals.
But standing in the way of the semifinals was top-seeded Coastal Carolina. The Chanticleers had routed Asheville by 28 and 17 points earlier in the year. But this was a different Bulldog team. Doucette's club took charge midway through the first half and poured it on in the second. Asheville would roar to its first Big South title game with a decisive 88-76 win.
The 1989 Big South Championship game would be between second-seeded Campbell and the fourth-seeded Bulldogs. It would also be broadcast nationally, the first time a Big South Tournament game would be on national television.
Asheville would once again take control of the game late in the first half as it scored the final eight points to grab a 43-37 lead at intermission.
In the second half, the Dogs steadily pulled away with five players in double figures. Maurice Caldwell just missed a triple-double with 15 points, nine assists and nine rebounds. Harvey Shropshire, a player who wasn't playing early in the year, moved into the starting line-up and chipped in 14 points. Moore would put an exclamation point to seal the game with a steal and electrifying dunk. He would be named Big South Tournament MVP. Moore would be joined on the All-Tournament team by center Brent Keck and Shropshire.
The Big South didn't have an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament back then as it had to wait two more years to be eligible. However, that mattered little to the Bulldogs who were one of the few teams in the country to end their season with a victory. The final overall record was only 16-14 but most importantly Asheville was a champion for the first time in the Division I era. It would not be the last.
In the 1988-89 season, the Bulldogs had a new coach and went through an up-and-down season before catching fire at the end of the year to win the Big South championship.
The tourney title also helped put aside some frustrating tournament losses from the previous years. Asheville had lost close semifinal tournament games to Baptist in 1986 and Campbell in 1987 and a heartbreaker to Winthrop the previous year.
Don Doucette had become Asheville's third head coach in the summer of 1988 after Jerry Green had left to work for Roy Williams as his top assistant coach at Kansas.
Doucette was a hot hire as he had led the University of Lowell (Mass.) to a Division II national championship in the spring of 1988.
But it was not an easy transition. Doucette inherited a talented team from Green but one that took time getting used to a new style of play.
The Bulldogs enjoyed some nice non-conference wins over Eastern Kentucky, Western Carolina and VMI but could never establish any kind of consistency.
Asheville went through a five-game losing streak in late January that included a disappointing 86-60 home loss to league rival Coastal Carolina.
But in February, the Bulldogs began to put things together and won four out of five games. In the final week of the season, Asheville showed it would be a team to watch out for in the Big South Tournament.
The Dogs went into ACC power N.C. State and gave the Wolfpack all it could before falling, 90-75. Junior guard Milton Moore put on a show against N.C. State with a career-high 39 points. Wolfpack coach Jim Valvano marveled at Moore's performance after the game.
"We tried everything we could to stop Milton Moore and didn't come close," stated Valvano. "He's a terrific player, and I don't want to face him anytime again.
The Dogs would finish the regular-season at home against a talented Radford squad coached by another first-year coach in Oliver Purnell, who would later go on to coach at Clemson where he would employ Asheville's current head coach Mike Morrell as an assistant coach.
Purnell's first visit to Justice Center would be one he would like to forget as the Bulldogs roared past the Highlanders, 105-76. The Dogs roared through Radford's press for dunks and easy layups, delighting the Homecoming crowd at Justice.
As luck would have it, Asheville would have to face Radford five days later in the quarterfinals of the league tournament at the Winthrop Coliseum.
The Highlanders slowed things down and kept the game close. Asheville would lead most of the way but could never pull away. RU would knot the game at 58-58. The Highlanders forced a turnover with 45 seconds left and had the ball and could play for the final shot (shot clocks were 45 seconds that year).
But Radford guard Phil Young would be called for a charge with 20 seconds left, giving the ball back to the Dogs. In an ironic twist, a year earlier the Bulldogs would be called for a charge at the same end of the floor, wiping out a tying basket against Winthrop.
Asheville took advantage as Moore would knock down a jumper off a pass from Maurice Caldwell to give the Dogs a 60-58 lead. Lance Mitchell would seal the victory with two free throws, and Asheville advanced to the semifinals.
But standing in the way of the semifinals was top-seeded Coastal Carolina. The Chanticleers had routed Asheville by 28 and 17 points earlier in the year. But this was a different Bulldog team. Doucette's club took charge midway through the first half and poured it on in the second. Asheville would roar to its first Big South title game with a decisive 88-76 win.
The 1989 Big South Championship game would be between second-seeded Campbell and the fourth-seeded Bulldogs. It would also be broadcast nationally, the first time a Big South Tournament game would be on national television.
Asheville would once again take control of the game late in the first half as it scored the final eight points to grab a 43-37 lead at intermission.
In the second half, the Dogs steadily pulled away with five players in double figures. Maurice Caldwell just missed a triple-double with 15 points, nine assists and nine rebounds. Harvey Shropshire, a player who wasn't playing early in the year, moved into the starting line-up and chipped in 14 points. Moore would put an exclamation point to seal the game with a steal and electrifying dunk. He would be named Big South Tournament MVP. Moore would be joined on the All-Tournament team by center Brent Keck and Shropshire.
The Big South didn't have an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament back then as it had to wait two more years to be eligible. However, that mattered little to the Bulldogs who were one of the few teams in the country to end their season with a victory. The final overall record was only 16-14 but most importantly Asheville was a champion for the first time in the Division I era. It would not be the last.
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