University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics
Saturday, December 19
High Point, N.C.
2 p.m.
UNC Asheville
2-4, 1-0BSC
63
at
54
High Point
2-4, 0-1BSC
1
2
3
4
F
UNC Asheville
14
14
14
21
63
High Point
9
15
9
21
54
Evans’ 34 Points Lead Bulldogs Past High Point in Big South Opener
12.19.2020 | Women's Basketball
HIGH POINT, N.C. – Senior Nadiria Evans netted a career-high 34 points to lead the UNC Asheville women's basketball team to a 63-54 victory at High Point Saturday afternoon. The win, which marks the third time in the last four seasons that Asheville has started Big South play on the winning side, improves the Bulldogs' record to 2-4.
Evans' 34 points marked the most by any Bulldog since January 15, 2019, when Sonora Dengokl scored 36 points against USC Upstate. Furthermore, her 34 points was not far off from the program's Division I single-game record for points, which is 39 set by Vicki Griffin on January 18, 1997, against UMBC. The Gainesville, Florida native finished the day 10-for-18 from the field and 14-for-15 from the free throw line to go with six rebounds and four assists.
Asheville began Saturday's contest playing well as it built a nine-point lead, 14-5, with a little over three minutes remaining in the first quarter. Freshman Abigail Wilson supplied a spark off the bench knocking down a pair of 3-pointers to generate some quick offense for the Bulldogs.
High Point, however, came charging back with an 11-0 run in the late stages of the first quarter and early in the second to tie the score and briefly take the lead. Evans was able to put the Bulldogs back in front scoring eight points in the stanza. Asheville, which took a 28-24 lead into halftime, also finished the first half out rebounding the Panthers, 25-21. Kai Carter led the way with six rebounds with the trio of Evans, Raquel Cassidy and Amanda Blake each totaled four boards in the game's first 20 minutes.
When the second half started, the Bulldogs turned to their defense to maintain their lead. Asheville held High Point to 20 percent shooting from the field in the third and forced four turnovers. With the Panthers struggling to generate consistent offense, Evans continued to roll scoring 10 of Asheville's 14 points in the frame to help the Bulldogs take a 42-34 lead into the fourth.
High Point bounced back in the fourth to score a game-high 21 points. However, the Bulldogs attacked the basket to put the Panthers into foul trouble and get some free throw attempts. Asheville got to the line 11 times in the final 10 minutes and converted on each try. Evans continued her stellar play knocking down all nine of her attempts in the fourth to seal the Bulldog victory.
In addition to Evans, Carter also had a good day scoring 13 points to go with 10 rebounds and three steals. It marks her first double-double of Carter's career and the first for any Bulldog this season.
As a team, some standout stats for the Bulldogs were going 19-for-20 (.950) from the free throw line and grabbing 48 rebounds. Both marks were new season-highs for Asheville.
The Bulldogs and Panthers will be back in action on Sunday to conclude the season series. Tip-off for that contest is set for 2 p.m. and can be viewed on ESPN+.
Evans' 34 points marked the most by any Bulldog since January 15, 2019, when Sonora Dengokl scored 36 points against USC Upstate. Furthermore, her 34 points was not far off from the program's Division I single-game record for points, which is 39 set by Vicki Griffin on January 18, 1997, against UMBC. The Gainesville, Florida native finished the day 10-for-18 from the field and 14-for-15 from the free throw line to go with six rebounds and four assists.
Asheville began Saturday's contest playing well as it built a nine-point lead, 14-5, with a little over three minutes remaining in the first quarter. Freshman Abigail Wilson supplied a spark off the bench knocking down a pair of 3-pointers to generate some quick offense for the Bulldogs.
High Point, however, came charging back with an 11-0 run in the late stages of the first quarter and early in the second to tie the score and briefly take the lead. Evans was able to put the Bulldogs back in front scoring eight points in the stanza. Asheville, which took a 28-24 lead into halftime, also finished the first half out rebounding the Panthers, 25-21. Kai Carter led the way with six rebounds with the trio of Evans, Raquel Cassidy and Amanda Blake each totaled four boards in the game's first 20 minutes.
When the second half started, the Bulldogs turned to their defense to maintain their lead. Asheville held High Point to 20 percent shooting from the field in the third and forced four turnovers. With the Panthers struggling to generate consistent offense, Evans continued to roll scoring 10 of Asheville's 14 points in the frame to help the Bulldogs take a 42-34 lead into the fourth.
High Point bounced back in the fourth to score a game-high 21 points. However, the Bulldogs attacked the basket to put the Panthers into foul trouble and get some free throw attempts. Asheville got to the line 11 times in the final 10 minutes and converted on each try. Evans continued her stellar play knocking down all nine of her attempts in the fourth to seal the Bulldog victory.
In addition to Evans, Carter also had a good day scoring 13 points to go with 10 rebounds and three steals. It marks her first double-double of Carter's career and the first for any Bulldog this season.
As a team, some standout stats for the Bulldogs were going 19-for-20 (.950) from the free throw line and grabbing 48 rebounds. Both marks were new season-highs for Asheville.
The Bulldogs and Panthers will be back in action on Sunday to conclude the season series. Tip-off for that contest is set for 2 p.m. and can be viewed on ESPN+.
Team Stats
UNC-A
HPU
FG%
.362
.262
3FG%
.154
.226
FT%
.950
.867
RB
48
38
TO
17
16
STL
7
4
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
34
FGM
10
3FGM
0
FTM
14
Pts
13
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
3
Pts
6
FGM
2
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Pts
4
FGM
2
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
F
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's Basketball
Guard
/ Women's Basketball
Guard
/ Women's BasketballF
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