University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics
UNC Asheville
UNC Greensboro
GAME PREVIEW: Men’s Basketball Returns to Harrah’s Cherokee Center - Asheville for Tuesday Tilt with UNC Greensboro
12.01.2025 | Men's Basketball
GAME DETAILS
- Game Eight
- UNC Asheville (3-4) vs UNC Greensboro (1-7)
- Tuesday, December 2, 2025
- 7 p.m.
- Asheville, N.C. || Harrah's Cherokee Center
- ESPN+
- Radio
- Live Stats
- Tickets: First 500 fans receive FREE entry
- Gameday Central
ASHEVILLE'S LAST TIME OUT
- Asheville beat App State 67–55 on Sunday at the Harrah's Cherokee Center Asheville.
- Toyaz Solomon led the way for Asheville with a career-high 25 points (shooting .500 FG, 9-of-11 from free throws) and eight rebounds — his third straight 20-point game.
- Kameron Taylor posted his first-college double-double: 12 points and 10 rebounds.
- Two other Bulldogs scored in double digits: Justin Wright (13 points) and DJ Patrick (11 points). Patrick made two of Asheville's three 3-pointers; Wright went 7-of-7 from the free-throw line.
- UNC Asheville shot 42% from the field, hit a season-high 22 free throws (22-of-27), and outrebounded Appalachian State 36–25. The Bulldogs opened a 17-0 run to build a big early lead and then held on, outscoring App State in the paint and on second-chance points.
SOLOMON EARNS BSC WEEKLY HONORS
Toyaz Solomon was named Big South Player of the Week after standout performances against Tennessee State and Appalachian State. He averaged 23.0 points on 59.3% shooting, grabbed 17 rebounds, and added three assists, a block, and a steal across the week. Solomon set a new career high with 25 points against App State, shooting 50% from the field and 9-of-11 at the line. This marks the second Big South weekly honor of his career.
HOW THE BULLDOGS ARE STACKING UP ON THE NATIONAL LEVEL
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The first NET rankings of the year were released on Monday, and the Bulldogs are sitting in third in the Big South at 210. The Big South currently sits at No. 21 in the conference NET rankings with the SoCon at No. 22 and the Sun Belt at No. 20. Rankings will be updated daily for the remainder of the season.
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Asheville leads the Big South and ranks No. 39 in the league in 3-point percentage defense, holding teams to an average of 27.9% from distance.
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The Bulldogs are No. 60 in the nation and No. 2 in the league in field goal percentage, averaging 48.9% through seven games.
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Asheville is No. 2 in the league and No. 96 in the nation in effective field goal percentage.
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Justin Wright is No. 57 in the nation (No. 2 in the BSC) in field goal percentage at 58.8%.
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Kameron Taylor is No. 81 in the nation (No. 2 in the BSC) in free throw attempts with 49.
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Also cracking the top-100 in the nation is Toyaz Solomon, who is No. 83 in defensive rebounds per game, averaging 5.57.
A LOOK AT UNCG
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UNCG returns to North Carolina following three games in the Sunshine State, where the Spartans picked up their first win of the season, a 68-62 victory over Youngstown State.
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The Blue & Gold later fell to Delaware, 73-60, and Miami (Ohio), 82-71.
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Against Youngstown State, Justin Neely recorded his fourth double-double of the season with 13 points and 11 rebounds.
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The 2025-26 roster features three returners and 12 newcomers. Six of the 15 student-athletes are international, making this the largest international class under fifth-year Head Coach Mike Jones.
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UNCG was picked to finish fifth in the 2025 Southern Conference (SoCon) Preseason Coaches' Poll with 43 votes.
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Among the SoCon, Justin Neely is leading the league in rebounds (92), defensive rebounds per game (8.75), and rebounds per game (11.5). He is also nationally ranked third in defensive rebounds per game, fourth in rebounds and rebounds per game, and 11th in double-doubles (4). Neely is pacing the team with a double-double, averaging 13.5 points per game and 11.5 rebounds per game. He is also averaging 3.1 assists and 1.3 steals per game to sit atop the team.
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Two other Spartans are averaging double-figures, including Donald Whitehead Jr. with 12.8 and KJ Younger with 12.1.
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UNCG went 20-12 overall and 13-5 in the SoCon in the 2024-25 season, marking the eighth year out of nine with 20 or more wins for the Spartans.
STATISTICAL COMPARISON
|
2025-26 Season |
Asheville |
UNCG |
|
Scoring Offense |
74.6 |
71.8 |
|
Scoring Defense |
70.9 |
85.3 |
|
Scoring Margin |
3.7 |
-13.5 |
|
FG Percentage |
.489 |
.414 |
|
FG Pct. Defense |
.426 |
.468 |
|
3PT Percentage |
.349 |
.324 |
|
FT Percentage |
.704 |
.668 |
|
Rebounds Per Game |
33.9 |
34.3 |
|
Assists Per Game |
11.0 |
10.3 |
|
Turnovers Per Game |
15.0 |
13.0 |
|
Steals Per Game |
6.9 |
5.0 |
|
Blocks Per Game |
3.0 |
1.6 |
SERIES HISTORY
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The Bulldogs trail the Spartans 6-9 in the series, with the two teams first squaring off during the 1967-68 season. The teams had two contests before the start of the UNC Asheville Division I era, with the first DI game on Feb. 27, 1993.
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While in the Big South together, UNCG started the DI series 6-0 before Asheville snapped the Spartans' win streak with three wins, spanning from 1996 to 1997.
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The Spartans won the next three contests before Asheville won 67-60 in Greensboro on Dec. 19, 2017.
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This will be the first game between the two programs since 2017.
A LOOK AT ASHEVILLE'S REMAINING NONCONFERENCE SCHEDULE
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Asheville has only two remaining road contests, with the Bulldogs traveling to NC State on Dec. 6 and UAB on Dec. 21.
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Asheville has four nonconference games in Kimmel Arena in December, starting with Miami (Ohio) on Dec. 10, St. Thomas on Dec. 13, Kentucky Christian on Dec. 16, and Morris College on Dec. 18.
FREE TICKET TUESDAY
The first 500 fans to Tuesday's contest at the Harrah's Cherokee Center - Asheville will receive free entry into the game.
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