University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics
UNC Asheville
0-1,0-0Big South
UAB
-10,00 CUSA
Men’s basketball falls in opener at UAB Tuesday
11.09.2021 | Men's Basketball
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The UNC Asheville men's basketball team traveled to Birmingham for its 2021-22 season opener on Tuesday evening, falling to the Conference USA preseason favorite UAB Blazers 102-77.
Drew Pember scored 13 points in the first half as the teams remained close, but UAB would outscore the Bulldogs 58-41 in the second half to take the contest. Ten Bulldogs scored in the effort as LJ Thorpe led the way with 16 points on 7-for-13 shooting, adding four assists in the process. The Blazers, who finished last season fourth in the country in turnover margin (+5.4) and scoring defense (60.3 ppg), were able to force 16 turnovers while committing just five.
"Proud of our guys' fight for the majority of the game," said head coach Mike Morrell. "Obviously, after cutting it to four early in the second half, their run really got us on our heels and we didn't recover. Their pressure really gave us trouble and they are an extremely good offensive rebounding team. A lot of credit to UAB. Looking forward to getting back in Kimmel Arena on Thursday night in front of our fans."
What's Next
The Bulldogs will return to Asheville on Thursday, hosting Brevard College at 6:30 p.m. to its home opener.
The Game at a Glance
- Pember scores 13 in first on three 3-pointers
- Thorpe leads Asheville with 16 points, adds four assists
- Bulldogs shoot 47.4% from the floor, 55.6% from 3-point range
- UAB wins turnover battle (16-5), second-chance points (24-14)
How it Happened
The game was fast-paced to start, as Pember connected three times from downtown to keep the Bulldogs in the back-and-forth contest. With six minutes to play, Thorpe found Tajion Jones for the knock-down trey as Asheville cut the deficit to two (31-29). UAB would finish the half on a run, taking a 44-36 lead into the break.
Thorpe and Jones had strong takes early in the second, as Asheville made the score 46-42. From here, UAB would embark on a 14-0 run to take command of the game, keeping Asheville at a distance before taking the opener 102-77.
