University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics
Monday, March 21
Daytona Beach, FL
3:30 p.m.
UNC Asheville
17-15
84
vs
87
Northern Colorado
22-15
1
2
F
Northern Colo.
38
49
87
UNC Asheville
41
43
84
Men’s basketball takes Northern Colorado to the wire, falls 87-84
03.21.2022 | Men's Basketball
Bulldogs drop quarterfinal game of College Basketball Invitational
DAYTONA BEACH, Florida – After claiming the program's first postseason win since 2011, the UNC Asheville Men's Basketball team came up just short in the quarterfinal round of the College Basketball Invitational, falling to Northern Colorado 87-84 on at the Ocean Center Monday evening.
The game was back and forth for nearly 40 minutes, as the Bears took a three-point lead with 56 seconds to play, but failed to extend the advantage, leading to 3-point attempts from Coty Jude and Drew Pember that would not fall for the Bulldogs.
"Guys really battled, hopefully we learned a lot from being down here," UNC Asheville head coach Mike Morrell said. "We had a great look at it at the end. Unfortunately, it didn't go in. Guys had great effort all week…I hate it for the guys but this was a great experience for us. A great experience to advance, especially after the way we lost in the conference tournament."
How they Finish
UNC Asheville ends the season with a record of 17-15, but has plenty to build upon after claiming the program's first postseason win in over a decade and first postseason appearance since 2018.
"It's something that we can build off of and something guys got to learn from," Morrell said.
The Game at a Glance
Asheville raced out to a 20-7 lead as Thorpe was cooking from the start. Northern Colorado would slowly climb back and tie the game at 29-29, with the teams trading buckets until the break.
The Bulldogs opened the second strongly, jumping in front by seven. The Bears worked their way back and took a one-point lead with 14 minutes to play. Neither team could establish separation until Asheville went ahead by four at the five-minute mark. The tides shifted, as Northern Colorado went on an 11-2 run before Pember cut the deficit to three. The Bears would miss the front end of a 1-and-1 twice, giving Jude and Pember opportunities to tie that would not fall.
Season Stats
The game was back and forth for nearly 40 minutes, as the Bears took a three-point lead with 56 seconds to play, but failed to extend the advantage, leading to 3-point attempts from Coty Jude and Drew Pember that would not fall for the Bulldogs.
"Guys really battled, hopefully we learned a lot from being down here," UNC Asheville head coach Mike Morrell said. "We had a great look at it at the end. Unfortunately, it didn't go in. Guys had great effort all week…I hate it for the guys but this was a great experience for us. A great experience to advance, especially after the way we lost in the conference tournament."
How they Finish
UNC Asheville ends the season with a record of 17-15, but has plenty to build upon after claiming the program's first postseason win in over a decade and first postseason appearance since 2018.
"It's something that we can build off of and something guys got to learn from," Morrell said.
The Game at a Glance
- LJ Thorpe has 24 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 steals
- Pember records 4th double-double of the season with 24 points, 10 rebounds, 2 blocks
- Jones knocks down three 3-pointers, totals 13 points, Jude finishes with 8
- Northern Colorado shoots 54.8% from the field, 45.2% from 3-point range (14-of-31)
- Asheville shoots 47.9% from the field, 38.9% from 3-point range (7-of-18)
- Daylen Kountz scores 29 points to lead Bears
- Bulldogs win turnover battle 12-4, score 19 points off turnovers
Asheville raced out to a 20-7 lead as Thorpe was cooking from the start. Northern Colorado would slowly climb back and tie the game at 29-29, with the teams trading buckets until the break.
The Bulldogs opened the second strongly, jumping in front by seven. The Bears worked their way back and took a one-point lead with 14 minutes to play. Neither team could establish separation until Asheville went ahead by four at the five-minute mark. The tides shifted, as Northern Colorado went on an 11-2 run before Pember cut the deficit to three. The Bears would miss the front end of a 1-and-1 twice, giving Jude and Pember opportunities to tie that would not fall.
Season Stats
- Asheville wins first postseason game since 2011, first postseason appearance since 2018
- Bulldogs win 8 nonconference games for the 2nd time in 14 seasons, ties 2016-17 squad with best nonconference winning percentage (.615) since 2007-08
- Pember's 93 blocks are tied for 2nd most in a season at Asheville, already ranks 10th all-time at UNC Asheville in blocks
- Jones' 83 three-pointers are 6th most in a single season by a Bulldog, is 7th in scoring in the DI era at UNC Asheville
- Jones (261), Jude (230) rank 2nd and 3rd in made 3-pointers at Asheville
- Thorpe caps off career with 1,254 points, 458 rebounds, 292 assists is 19th in all-time scoring at Asheville and 12th in the Division I era
Team Stats
NORTHERN
UNC ASHE
FG%
.548
.479
3FG%
.452
.389
FT%
.500
.692
RB
37
33
TO
12
4
STL
0
6
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
24
FGM
9
3FGM
1
FTM
5
Pts
13
FGM
5
3FGM
3
FTM
0
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