University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics
Saturday, February 25
Farmville, VA
4:30 pm
UNC Asheville
24-7,16-2Big South
76
at
66
Longwood
20-11,12-6Big South
1
2
F
UNC Asheville
33
43
76
Longwood
38
28
66
Tajion Jones Becomes Program’s All-Time Scoring Leader; Bulldogs Rally to Down Longwood in Regular Season Finale
02.25.2023 | Men's Basketball
FARMVILLE, Va. – The UNC Asheville men's basketball team capped off the 2022-23 regular season with a 76-66 victory on the road at Longwood on Saturday. During the win, Tajion Jones became Asheville's all-time scoring leader after scoring his 1,920th point in a Bulldog uniform. With Saturday's victory, the Bulldogs improved to 24-7 overall and 16-2 in Big South play. The 24 victories are tied for the most in a single season by the Bulldogs (2011-12 team also won 24 games) and the 16 conference wins also matches the program record for the most in a season.
On top of matching the program record for overall victories (24) and conference wins (16) in a season, the Bulldogs won their 22nd game against a Division I opponent on Saturday. The 22 wins against Division I opponents are the most for any Asheville squad in team history.
As mentioned earlier, Jones became Asheville's all-time scoring leader on Saturday. Jones, who finished the day with 10 points, has now scored 1,933 points as a Bulldog. His 1,933 points rank as the 13th-most in Big South history.
Jones was one of four players to finish Saturday in double figures. Fletcher Abee led the charge scoring a season-high 20 points on a 7-for-8 shooting day from the field that included a 4-for-5 performance from beyond the arc. Drew Pember was not far behind adding 19 points of his own, while Nick McMullen notched his second straight double-double with 10 points and 12 rebounds.
Longwood came out ready to roll on Saturday. The Lancers built a 13-point lead on the Bulldogs around the midpoint of the first half. Asheville, like it has done several times this season, battled back and chipped away at the deficit.
Asheville kept the momentum rolling as the second half began. The Bulldogs started the half scoring 10 of the first 12 points to pull in front.
Asheville's offense did not slow down there, however. The Bulldogs shot an incredible 73.7 percent from the field (14-for-19) in the second half and went 9-for-10 from the free throw line. Abee scored 17 points and Pember added 12 points in the second half to lead the way for Asheville. Longwood did not have an answer for the high-scoring Bulldogs as Asheville finished off the win, 76-66.
Next up for Asheville will be the 2023 Hercules Tires Big South Basketball Championships next week in Charlotte, N.C. The Bulldogs, who will be the No. 1 seed at the Tournament, will take the court at the Bojangles' Coliseum for the first time in Friday's Quarterfinal Round. Asheville will face the winner of Wednesday's game that pits eighth-seeded High Point and ninth-seeded Charleston Southern. Friday's game time between the Bulldogs and the High Point/Charleston Southern winner is scheduled for Noon on ESPN+. To buy tickets for the Big South Tournament, click HERE.
On top of matching the program record for overall victories (24) and conference wins (16) in a season, the Bulldogs won their 22nd game against a Division I opponent on Saturday. The 22 wins against Division I opponents are the most for any Asheville squad in team history.
As mentioned earlier, Jones became Asheville's all-time scoring leader on Saturday. Jones, who finished the day with 10 points, has now scored 1,933 points as a Bulldog. His 1,933 points rank as the 13th-most in Big South history.
Jones was one of four players to finish Saturday in double figures. Fletcher Abee led the charge scoring a season-high 20 points on a 7-for-8 shooting day from the field that included a 4-for-5 performance from beyond the arc. Drew Pember was not far behind adding 19 points of his own, while Nick McMullen notched his second straight double-double with 10 points and 12 rebounds.
Longwood came out ready to roll on Saturday. The Lancers built a 13-point lead on the Bulldogs around the midpoint of the first half. Asheville, like it has done several times this season, battled back and chipped away at the deficit.
The Bulldogs were able to get the Lancer lead down to five points, 38-33, going into halftime.Pember cuts the Longwood lead to four with this 3-pointer! #ALLinAVL #IWWD pic.twitter.com/WtspnIsR4r
— Asheville Basketball (@UNCAvlMBB) February 25, 2023
Asheville kept the momentum rolling as the second half began. The Bulldogs started the half scoring 10 of the first 12 points to pull in front.
Another 3-ball for Abee punctuates a 10-0 run by the Bulldogs and they now lead 43-40! #ALLinAVL #IWWD pic.twitter.com/3xxDqGl4aB
— Asheville Basketball (@UNCAvlMBB) February 25, 2023
Asheville's offense did not slow down there, however. The Bulldogs shot an incredible 73.7 percent from the field (14-for-19) in the second half and went 9-for-10 from the free throw line. Abee scored 17 points and Pember added 12 points in the second half to lead the way for Asheville. Longwood did not have an answer for the high-scoring Bulldogs as Asheville finished off the win, 76-66.
Next up for Asheville will be the 2023 Hercules Tires Big South Basketball Championships next week in Charlotte, N.C. The Bulldogs, who will be the No. 1 seed at the Tournament, will take the court at the Bojangles' Coliseum for the first time in Friday's Quarterfinal Round. Asheville will face the winner of Wednesday's game that pits eighth-seeded High Point and ninth-seeded Charleston Southern. Friday's game time between the Bulldogs and the High Point/Charleston Southern winner is scheduled for Noon on ESPN+. To buy tickets for the Big South Tournament, click HERE.
Team Stats
AVL
LWU
FG%
.545
.426
3FG%
.579
.200
FT%
.773
.769
RB
29
30
TO
14
10
STL
6
6
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
20
FGM
7
3FGM
4
FTM
2
Pts
19
FGM
4
3FGM
3
FTM
8
Pts
10
FGM
4
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Pts
10
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
4
Players Mentioned
G
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