University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics
Saturday, December 21
Asheville, NC
4 pm
UNC Asheville
1-11,0-0Big South
64
vs
77
Western Carolina
8-5,0-0SoCon
1
2
3
4
F
Western Caro.
21
27
15
14
77
UNC Asheville
15
12
15
22
64
Women's Basketball Drops Mountain Rivalry to Western Carolina on Saturday
12.21.2024 | Women's Basketball
ASHEVILLE, N.C. - UNC Asheville Women's Basketball dropped the latest installment of the Mountain Rivalry to visiting Western Carolina on Saturday (Dec. 21) at Kimmel Arena by a score of 77-64.
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Western Carolina jumped out to an 8-2 lead through the first three minutes and change, before a string of Dakota McCaughan scores got the Bulldogs back within two with under four minutes to play in the period. McCaughan tied the game at 11 with a three-pointer with just over three minutes to play, before Western out-scored Asheville 10-4 to take a 21-15 lead to the second.
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Western Carolina opened the second quarter on a 10-0 run through three minutes, taking control of the game in the period outscoring Asheville 27-12 for a 48-27 halftime lead.
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 Each team scored 15 points in the third quarter as Western Carolina took a 63-42 lead to the fourth.
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Asheville outscored Western Carolina 22-14 in the fourth quarter powered by eight points each from Abigail Wilson and Taylor Wilkins along with six from LaImani Simmons. The teams battled until the final whistle.
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Asheville shot 41.0 percent (25-61) from the floor, just 20.8 percent from three-point range (5-24) and 69.2 percent (9-13) from the foul line in the game. Asheville also outscored Western Carolina 13-9 off turnovers, 10-9 on second chances and 9-4 on fast breaks. Asheville also scored 34 points in the paint and 17 points off the bench in the game. Four Bulldogs scored in double figures led by a game-high 18 points from Simmons, while Wilkins added 14 points along with 12 from Wilson and 11 from McCaughan. Skylar Bailey added six points on a pair of three-pointers, while Alana Swift had two points and Jazlyn Ware had one. Wilson led the effort on the glass with a game-high seven rebounds, while Simmons had five rebounds and Sydney Burris also had four. Wilkins pulled down three rebounds, while Swift had two and McCaughan and Bailey had one. McCaughan led the offense with five assists in the game, while Swift had three and Simmons and Wilson each posted two. Wilkins also had one assist in the game. Swift led the team with a game-high three steals in the game, while Wilson had two and McCaughan also had one. Simmons and Wilson each had one block in the game for Asheville. Â
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The Bulldogs return to the floor from the Christmas holiday on Monday, Dec. 30 to take on Brevard for their final non-conference game. Tip-off is set for 4:30 p.m. from Kimmel Arena with video, live stats, audio and tickets available at www.uncabulldogs.com.
About Women's Athletics Presenting Partner First Bank
First Bank is the banking subsidiary of First Bancorp and is headquartered in Southern Pines, North Carolina, with total assets of approximately $12.1 billion. As a state-chartered community bank, First Bank operates 113 bank branches in North Carolina and South Carolina and a nationwide SBA platform. Since 1935, First Bank has taken a tailored approach to banking, combining best-in-class financial solutions, helpful local expertise, and technology to manage a home or business. First Bancorp's common stock is traded on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the symbol "FBNC." Visit our website at www.LocalFirstBank.com. Member FDIC, Equal Housing Lender.
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Western Carolina jumped out to an 8-2 lead through the first three minutes and change, before a string of Dakota McCaughan scores got the Bulldogs back within two with under four minutes to play in the period. McCaughan tied the game at 11 with a three-pointer with just over three minutes to play, before Western out-scored Asheville 10-4 to take a 21-15 lead to the second.
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Western Carolina opened the second quarter on a 10-0 run through three minutes, taking control of the game in the period outscoring Asheville 27-12 for a 48-27 halftime lead.
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 Each team scored 15 points in the third quarter as Western Carolina took a 63-42 lead to the fourth.
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Asheville outscored Western Carolina 22-14 in the fourth quarter powered by eight points each from Abigail Wilson and Taylor Wilkins along with six from LaImani Simmons. The teams battled until the final whistle.
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Asheville shot 41.0 percent (25-61) from the floor, just 20.8 percent from three-point range (5-24) and 69.2 percent (9-13) from the foul line in the game. Asheville also outscored Western Carolina 13-9 off turnovers, 10-9 on second chances and 9-4 on fast breaks. Asheville also scored 34 points in the paint and 17 points off the bench in the game. Four Bulldogs scored in double figures led by a game-high 18 points from Simmons, while Wilkins added 14 points along with 12 from Wilson and 11 from McCaughan. Skylar Bailey added six points on a pair of three-pointers, while Alana Swift had two points and Jazlyn Ware had one. Wilson led the effort on the glass with a game-high seven rebounds, while Simmons had five rebounds and Sydney Burris also had four. Wilkins pulled down three rebounds, while Swift had two and McCaughan and Bailey had one. McCaughan led the offense with five assists in the game, while Swift had three and Simmons and Wilson each posted two. Wilkins also had one assist in the game. Swift led the team with a game-high three steals in the game, while Wilson had two and McCaughan also had one. Simmons and Wilson each had one block in the game for Asheville. Â
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The Bulldogs return to the floor from the Christmas holiday on Monday, Dec. 30 to take on Brevard for their final non-conference game. Tip-off is set for 4:30 p.m. from Kimmel Arena with video, live stats, audio and tickets available at www.uncabulldogs.com.
About Women's Athletics Presenting Partner First Bank
First Bank is the banking subsidiary of First Bancorp and is headquartered in Southern Pines, North Carolina, with total assets of approximately $12.1 billion. As a state-chartered community bank, First Bank operates 113 bank branches in North Carolina and South Carolina and a nationwide SBA platform. Since 1935, First Bank has taken a tailored approach to banking, combining best-in-class financial solutions, helpful local expertise, and technology to manage a home or business. First Bancorp's common stock is traded on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the symbol "FBNC." Visit our website at www.LocalFirstBank.com. Member FDIC, Equal Housing Lender.
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Team Stats
WCU
AVL
FG%
.545
.410
3FG%
.462
.208
FT%
.688
.692
RB
37
24
TO
17
13
STL
4
6
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
18
FGM
8
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Pts
14
FGM
5
3FGM
2
FTM
2
Pts
12
FGM
6
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Pts
11
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
2
Players Mentioned
G
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's Basketball
G/F
/ Women's Basketball
F
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