University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics
Thursday, February 16
Radford, VA
7 pm
UNC Asheville
21-7,13-2Big South
63
at
54
Radford
17-11,11-4Big South
1
2
F
UNC Asheville
33
30
63
Radford
27
27
54
Bulldogs down Radford, 63-54, to remain at the top of the Big South standings
02.16.2023 | Men's Basketball
RADFORD, Va. – The UNC Asheville men's basketball team notched a 63-54 victory on the road at Radford on Thursday night in a game played on ESPNU as a part of the Big South's Wildcard Game series. Thursday's win boosts Asheville's record to 21-7 overall and 13-2 in Big South play.
With Thursday's win, the Bulldogs now have a two-game lead on Radford, who is in second place, with three games left in the regular season. Asheville needs to win just one of its final three games to claim its first Big South regular season championships since the 2017-18 season.
Drew Pember led the charge for Asheville in Thursday's win with 19 points to go with nine rebounds, four blocks, three assists, and two steals. Tajion Jones chimed in with 12 points with six rebounds. Six of Jones' 12 points came via a 3-pointer, which gives Jones 337 made 3-pointers in his career and that is tied for fifth in Big South history. Caleb Burgess added 11 points and a team-high five assists, and Alex Caldwell chipped in 10 points off the bench for the Bulldogs.
Radford jumped out to a quick 6-2 lead on the Bulldogs to begin Thursday's contest. Asheville, however, promptly answered with a 11-0 run to seize the momentum. A key player for the Bulldogs early on was Burgess. Burgess scored all 11 of his points in the first 20 minutes of action. With Burgess leading the way, Asheville shot 54.2 percent from the field in the first half and four different players scored five points or more. The balanced and efficient offense from the Bulldogs was enough to give them a six-point lead at the halftime break, 33-27.
Asheville would maintain the lead for the rest of the contest. Radford did chip away at the Bulldog lead and got as close as five points, 51-46, with 5:41 to go in regulation. However, the Bulldogs reeled off an 8-0 run to grow their lead to as many as 13 points with 3:45 to go.
The 13-point lead proved too large for the Highlanders to overcome as Asheville finished off the 63-54 win and clinched a season sweep of Radford for the first time since the 2011-12 season.
A major reason why Radford could not get closer than five points was the play in the second half by Pember. Pember scored 14 of his 19 points in the second half on a very efficient 4-for-7 effort from the field and a 6-for-7 outing from the free throw line to help Asheville close out the Highlanders.
The Bulldogs will be back in action on Saturday when they welcome Gardner-Webb to Kimmel Arena. The game, which will also be the team's senior day and be a part of the Homecoming festivities, is scheduled for a 3 p.m. tip-off on both ESPN+ and locally on CW62. Tickets for Saturday are still available for purchase HERE.
With Thursday's win, the Bulldogs now have a two-game lead on Radford, who is in second place, with three games left in the regular season. Asheville needs to win just one of its final three games to claim its first Big South regular season championships since the 2017-18 season.
Drew Pember led the charge for Asheville in Thursday's win with 19 points to go with nine rebounds, four blocks, three assists, and two steals. Tajion Jones chimed in with 12 points with six rebounds. Six of Jones' 12 points came via a 3-pointer, which gives Jones 337 made 3-pointers in his career and that is tied for fifth in Big South history. Caleb Burgess added 11 points and a team-high five assists, and Alex Caldwell chipped in 10 points off the bench for the Bulldogs.
Radford jumped out to a quick 6-2 lead on the Bulldogs to begin Thursday's contest. Asheville, however, promptly answered with a 11-0 run to seize the momentum. A key player for the Bulldogs early on was Burgess. Burgess scored all 11 of his points in the first 20 minutes of action. With Burgess leading the way, Asheville shot 54.2 percent from the field in the first half and four different players scored five points or more. The balanced and efficient offense from the Bulldogs was enough to give them a six-point lead at the halftime break, 33-27.
Asheville would maintain the lead for the rest of the contest. Radford did chip away at the Bulldog lead and got as close as five points, 51-46, with 5:41 to go in regulation. However, the Bulldogs reeled off an 8-0 run to grow their lead to as many as 13 points with 3:45 to go.
The 13-point lead proved too large for the Highlanders to overcome as Asheville finished off the 63-54 win and clinched a season sweep of Radford for the first time since the 2011-12 season.
A major reason why Radford could not get closer than five points was the play in the second half by Pember. Pember scored 14 of his 19 points in the second half on a very efficient 4-for-7 effort from the field and a 6-for-7 outing from the free throw line to help Asheville close out the Highlanders.
The Bulldogs will be back in action on Saturday when they welcome Gardner-Webb to Kimmel Arena. The game, which will also be the team's senior day and be a part of the Homecoming festivities, is scheduled for a 3 p.m. tip-off on both ESPN+ and locally on CW62. Tickets for Saturday are still available for purchase HERE.
Team Stats
AVL
Rad
FG%
.479
.313
3FG%
.385
.167
FT%
.800
.786
RB
38
35
TO
16
7
STL
4
9
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
19
FGM
6
3FGM
1
FTM
6
Pts
12
FGM
5
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Pts
11
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
2
Pts
10
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
4
Players Mentioned
G
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