UNC Asheville to Battle Gardner-Webb Tuesday

Game Notes | vs. Gardner-Webb (PDF)

ASHEVILLE, N.C. – UNC Asheville women's basketball will take on the Runnin' Bulldogs of Gardner-Webb in a 6 p.m. matchup, Tuesday, January 21, inside Kimmel Arena.

UNC Asheville (11-5, 5-2) has jumped out to a 5-2 record in Big South Conference play. Three of the Bulldogs five victories have come from inside Kimmel Arena as UNC Asheville has defeated Presbyterian, Campbell and High Point at home. The Bulldogs defeated USC Upstate in the Hodge Center for their first Big South road win of the season before taking down preseason favorite Radford inside the Dedmon Center last week.

Since conference play began on Dec. 28, two Bulldogs have averaged a double-digit point total as Nadiria Evans has scored 14.4 points per game in conference play while redshirt senior Sonora Dengokl is currently averaging 13.4 points per game through the first seven Big South games of the season. Brooke Jordan-Brown is leading the Big South Conference with 15 rebounds a game since conference play began.

Gardner-Webb has played to a 3-4 record since conference play began and an 8-8 record overall this season. The Runnin' Bulldogs have picked up wins against Charleston Southern, Winthrop and USC Upstate but have fallen to Longwood, Campbell, Presbyterian and Hampton.

Gardner-Webb leads the all-time series 13-19 between the two programs. Despite the slight lead that the Runnin' Bulldogs have all-time, UNC Asheville has won four of the last five matchups.

Last season, these two teams only matched up once in the regular season with Gardner-Webb securing the victory but the Bulldogs got their revenge in the quarterfinal game of the Big South Championships as UNC Asheville secured the 72-56 win to advance to the semifinal round.

Next, the Bulldogs will travel to Farmville, Va. to face the Longwood Lancers, Saturday, Jan. 25.

Notably

Senior center Brooke Jordan-Brown needs six rebounds to reach the career milestone of 500 rebounds. She corralled a career-high 23 rebounds in UNC Asheville's conference opening win against Presbyterian. Her 23 rebounds versus Presbyterian are only five short of the UNC Asheville DI record and tied the Big South record for rebounds in a league game. She has averaged 15 rebounds per game since Big South Conference play began on December 28. Jordan-Brown leads the Big South with 167 rebounds through the first 16 games this season.
The last time UNC Asheville and Gardner-Webb matched up was in the quarterfinals of the Big South Championships last season. UNC Asheville came away with the 72-56 victory inside the Dedmon Center in Radford, Va, to advance to the semifinal game. In fact, UNC Asheville has won four of the five last matchups between the two Bulldog programs.
UNC Asheville currently ranks 15th in the nation in offensive rebounds per game and 12th in rebounding margin. UNC Asheville is also 19th in total rebounds per game. The Bulldogs sit atop the Big South in all three categories. The Bulldogs have won or tied in the rebounding battle in 15 of their 16 games this season.
UNC Asheville is second in the Big South at this point in the season at limiting three pointers. The Bulldogs aren't just making noise in the Big South with their ability to limit the three as they are 37th in the nation in 3pt FG defense. Opposing offenses are shooting just 28.4% from the three-point line against the Bulldogs.
UNC Asheville is 18th in the nation in fewest points allowed and is currently second in the Big South in the category. UNC Asheville has allowed 60 points or less in all 11 of their victories this season.
UNC Asheville had a 26 point scorer in consecutive games last week. Sonora Dengokl scored a season-high 26 points in UNC Asheville's win against High Point. Nadiria Evans modeled that performance by scoring a career-high of 26 in the Bulldogs' win against Radford. Dengokl and Evans each scored in double figures in all four of the Bulldogs wins from Jan. 4-11.

UNC Asheville to Battle Gardner-Webb Tuesday

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Sonora Dengokl

Nadiria Evans

Brooke Jordan-Brown

University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics