University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics
UNC Asheville
1-1,0-0Big South
Brevard
0-1,0-0USA South
Men’s basketball cruises in home opener against Brevard
11.11.2021 | Men's Basketball
ASHEVILLE, N.C. – The UNC Asheville men's basketball team faced Brevard in its home opener on Thursday night, defeating the Tornados 101-44.
Thursday night was not only a celebration of 10 years in Kimmel Arena but also marked the first time fans have been in attendance since March 3, 2020 when the Bulldogs topped Campbell in the Big South Tournament First Round.
"I thought on the 10th anniversary it was a great crowd," said UNC Asheville head coach Mike Morrell. "Really appreciate all of our student-athletes who came out tonight and I really thank them and their coaches. There was an atmosphere tonight. It helped us and you can't overstate that."
The win moves Asheville's record to an even 1-1 on the young season. Despite starting a little slow, the Bulldogs outscored the Tornadoes 45-21 in the first and were red hot in the second, shooting 62.1 percent from the floor and 55.6 percent from 3-point range.
"I think there were some jitters early," said Morrell. "It felt like we were living and dying on every shot, it was like we're supposed to score on every possession and I thought that affected us early on the defensive end, just being disciplined and getting stops. I thought the second half we really settled in."
Coty Jude led the scoring, knocking down four 3-pointers in the second to finish with 16 points, while Tajion Jones was an efficient 5-for-7 from downtown to finish with 15 points. Newcomer Drew Pember (Tennessee) led the squad in rebounds (8) and blocks (4), adding 13 points in the process.
"It's confidence and we've got good shooters," Morrell said of his team's shooting performance. "And I think those guys are unselfish in finding each other. If we're open we want to shoot it. When those guys are winding it up I feel good about it going in,"
What's Next
After playing two games in three days, the Bulldogs have another quick turnaround, traveling to Chattanooga for a matchup with the SoCon-favorite Mocs on Sunday at 2:00 p.m.
"We have a real challenge on Sunday," Morrell said. "We've had two really close games at Chattanooga. They've got a really, really good team and I've seen very few publications that haven't picked them to win the Southern Conference. We'll enjoy this one tonight and focus on those guys the next couple of days."
The Game at a Glance
- Asheville knocks down 17 three-pointers, hauls in 46 rebounds
- Bulldogs shoot 52.5% from floor, 45.9% from 3-point range (10-for-18 in second half)
- Six Bulldogs reach double figures, 11 players score
How it Happened
Jones and Battle connected from downtown early in the first before Pember knocked down a trey to double up Brevard at the 11:42 mark (16-8). The balanced scoring would start to kick in from here, as Asheville slowly extended its lead to the 24-point margin it would take into the break.
Jones opened up the second with a pair of 3-pointers before Jude would take over in the middle of the second, connecting four times from behind the arc as the advantage soared to 54, with a Luke Lawson dunk and 3-pointer putting the exclamation point on the evening.
One for the Record Books
- 101 points is most since November 21, 2019 (vs. St. Andrews)
- 46 rebounds is most since November 8, 2018 (St. Andrews)
- 17 three-pointers is second most in Morrell era (19 vs. St. Andrews, 2019 – program record)
- 56 points in a half is the most since November 9, 2019 (The Citadel)
- Bulldogs shoot 52.5% from floor, 45.9% from 3-point range
- 57-point margin is most since December 10, 2016 (Warren Wilson)
- 41 points is fewest allowed since December 5, 2015 (Johnson & Wales)
