University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics
UNC Asheville
19-10,11-3Big South
Longwood
17-11,5-8Big South
Men’s Basketball Falls at Longwood
02.21.2024 | Men's Basketball
FARMVILLE, Va. – The UNC Asheville men's basketball team traveled to face Longwood Wednesday evening and fell to the Lancers 80-75.
BY THE NUMBERS
Josh Banks led Asheville with 23 points, going 8-for-15 from the field and 5-for-11 from 3-point range. Drew Pember followed with 17 points, adding six rebounds and two blocks to his stat line. Fletcher Abee recorded 14 points, going 5-for-8 from the field and 2-for-5 from 3-point range and recorded three assists. Nick McMullen recorded 10 points and seven rebounds.
Asheville shot 51.9% from the field, outshooting the Lancers, who shot 44.1%. Longwood, however, finished 46.6% from 3-point range, while the Bulldogs shot 29.6%.
ON THE COURT
Tied at 21 with 6:49 remaining in the first half, Asheville went on a 14-5 run to jump ahead 35-26. A jumper from McMullen sparked the run, and Banks followed with a triple and a 2-point jumper. Less than a minute later, Banks connected for another jumper, and Abee followed with a 3-pointer. Greg Gantt Jr. closed Asheville's run with 2:24 remaining in the half. Gantt's jumper would be the Bulldogs' final basket of the first half, as Longwood scored three points in the last minutes of the half to bring the score within six (35-29).
Longwood opened the second half on an 11-3 run, taking the lead 40-38. The Lancers would extend their lead out 55-45 with less than 13 minutes remaining. Longwood held the lead for the remainder of the contest, but the Bulldogs battled back, bringing the score within one point with 28 seconds remaining, following a free throw from Pember. This would be as close as Asheville would get as back-to-back trips to the free throw line for Longwood's Johnathan Massie would help the Lancers extend their lead back out to five to close the game.
Longwood outscored Asheville 51-40 in the second frame and connected for 10 3-pointers, compared to three triples the Lancers recorded in the first half. Longwood's field goal shooting percentage nearly doubled from the first to the second half (.310 to .567).
UP NEXT
The Bulldogs will be in Kimmel Arena one final time this season on Saturday, Feb. 24, as Asheville hosts Gardner-Webb for senior day. Tipoff is scheduled for 2 p.m.
