University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics
UNC Asheville
4-3,0-0Big South
Western Kentucky
4-3,0-0CUSA
Asheville defeats WKU 77-67 to wrap up Northern Classic
11.26.2023 | Men's Basketball
LAVAL, CANADA – Five Bulldogs made their way to double-figure scoring as the UNC Asheville men's basketball team earned a 77-67 victory over Western Kentucky University on Sunday.
Sunday's win helped the Bulldogs finish 2-1 in the Northern Classic and improved their record to 4-3 on the season. The Hilltoppers went 1-2 in the tournament and are now 4-3 on the season.
Asheville's offense was led by Nick McMullen, who scored a season and game-high 18 points. He was 6-for-9 from the field and 6-for-10 from the free throw line. Fletcher Abee had 17 points, Josh Banks and Drew Pember each registered 15 points, and Caleb Burgess finished with 10. Jamon Battle led the team with six rebounds.
After a back-and-forth start, a 6-0 run by the Bulldogs helped Asheville to an 8-point lead 3:40 into the contest (12-4). The Bulldogs would hold its lead until 7:32, when WKU would jump ahead 24-20, following a 12-0 run. Asheville did not connect for a basket for nearly five minutes until Pember sank a pair of free throws to end Asheville's scoring drought (26-22).
The Bulldogs were unable to work their way back into the lead before the end of the first half, and the Hilltoppers were able to extend their lead out to as many as 10 before a triple from Abee at the buzzer sent WKU into the break ahead 38-31.
Out of the break, the Bulldogs went right to work, cutting into WKU's lead, outscoring the Hilltoppers 11-6 in the opening 5:22 of play to tie the game at 44. Neither team was able to pull away following the initial tie, as there were seven lead changes and five ties over the next 7:10 of action.
Tied at 61, a free throw from McMullen and a jumper by Pember sparked a 7-0 run from Asheville to help the Bulldogs jump ahead 68-61 with 3:10 left in the game. Over the next 2:30 of action, Asheville limited the Hilltoppers to just two points, as the Bulldogs extended their lead out to 11 (74-63) and held the lead for the remainder of the game.
The Hilltoppers outscored Asheville in the paint 50 to 28, but the Bulldogs capitalized on perimeter shooting, as Asheville finished the day 7-for-22 from 3-point range, while the Hilltoppers were 2-for-14. The Bulldogs had 31 free throw shot attempts on the day, connecting for 24 shots, while the Hilltoppers were 11-for-12 from the charity stripe.
The Bulldogs will be back in action on Friday, Dec. 1, in Kimmel Arena, as they take on Johnson University (Tenn.) at 6:30 p.m.
