GAME PREVIEW: Men’s Basketball Closes Home Non-Conference Schedule With Two Games

GAME DETAILS

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LAST TIME OUT

Asheville fell to St. Thomas 80-59 on Saturday inside Kimmel Arena.
Asheville matched the Tommies' scoring efforts in the second frame, but St. Thomas' 21-point lead going into halftime proved to be too much for the Bulldogs.
Kameron Taylor led the Bulldogs with 22 points, plus seven rebounds and four assists. Justin Wright added 11 points, while Toyaz Solomon chipped in eight points in the paint. Myles Mayfield contributed a team-high eight rebounds and added seven points to his stat line.

MAYFIELD EARNS BSC HONORS

For his performances last week, Myles Mayfield earned Big South Freshman of the Week honors. Over two games, Mayfield shot an impressive 7-of-8 from the field (.875), scoring 10 points on Wednesday and seven on Saturday to average 8.5 points per game for the week.
He also totaled 15 rebounds, averaging 7.5 per contest. Mayfield pulled down a season-high eight rebounds against St. Thomas and dished out a season-best three assists against Miami this past Wednesday.

BULLDOGS PUTTING IN THE MINUTES

Asheville has four of the top five players averaging the most minutes per game in the league, with DJ Patrick leading the way (34:308), followed by Kameron Taylor (33:01), Justin Wright is fourth (31:36), and Toyaz Solomon is fifth, averaging 31:13.
Solomon played all 40 minutes against NC State, joining Patrick, who has seen every minute in two contests so far this season. Patrick played all 20 minutes in Saturday's game against UST.
The last Bulldog to play an entire contest before Solomon and Patrick was Tajion Jones against Campbell in the Big South Conference Championship in 2023.

ASHEVILLE THROUGH ELEVEN

Wright, Solomon, and Taylor have started all 11 games this season, with Myles Mayfield and Julian Clarke appearing in all 11. Mayfield has started eight contests, while Clarke has been the first sub off the bench five times.
Wright leads the Bulldogs in scoring (17.6 ppg) and steals (18). Solomon follows with 16.9 points and a team-high 11 blocks. Solomon is No. 2 on the team, averaging 5.8 rebounds per game. Taylor is averaging 16.7 points, a team-high 6.0 rebounds per game, and a team-high 36 assists. Patrick adds 10.0 points per game and leads Asheville with 21 made threes.
Taylor stands No. 1 in the league and Top 100 nationally in both free throw attempts (73) and free throws made (53). Taylor is No. 43 in the nation in attempts and No. 59 in made free throws.
In points per game, Wright, Solomon, and Taylor check in at 3-4-5 in the league. Solomon is No. 41 in the nation in field goals with 71, while Wright is No. 59 with 69.
As a team, Asheville is No. 1 in the Big South and No. 45 nationally in three-point percentage (.377).

A LOOK AT ASHEVILLE'S COMPETITION THIS WEEK

Kentucky Christian and Morris College are both out of the NAIA, with KCU competing in the River States Conference and Morris competing in the Continental Athletic Conference.
This will be Asheville's first time facing either opponent.
The KCU Knights are 3-7 on the year and have faced three other Division I programs this season (Liberty, Tennessee Martin, and Morehead State).
The Knights enter Tuesday's game following a 103-95 conference-opening loss to Indiana East.
Markell Hood is leading KCU with 19.3 points per game. Jayden Loydd is leading the team with 4.9 assists per game, and D'Angelo Stoxstill is leading the team in rebounds, averaging 7.4.
Morris is 4-5 and picked up an 86-79 victory over Truett McConnell this past Saturday, who Asheville faced in its exhibition preseason contest.
Gary Bair is leading the Hornets with 12.9 points per game. Julian Miller is leading the team, averaging 7.0 rebounds per game.
As a team, Morris is averaging 71.1 points per game and shooting 45% from the field. The Hornets are averaging 3.8 3-pointers a game.

THE BULLDOGS IN DECEMBER

Kids (K-12 and younger) will receive free entry for Tuesday and Thursday's games.
The men's basketball team opens Big South Conference play on New Year's Eve (Dec. 31) against High Point. Kids (K-12 and younger) can receive free entry into this game ONLY if they attended a previous non-conference game in December. This week's games will have a coupon provided when a youth ticket is claimed to get a free ticket for the Dec. 31 conference opener. Free tickets will not be distributed at the box office on Dec. 31 without the coupon. Tickets to that game can be purchased here.

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