GAME PREVIEW: Asheville Travels to High Point for ESPNU Contest

GAME DETAILS

Game 27
UNC Asheville (12-14, 6-6) vs High Point (24-4, 12-1)
Thursday, February 19, 2026
7 p.m.
High Point, N.C. || Qubein Center
ESPNU
Live Stats
Radio
Tickets

ESPNU MATCHUP

Thursday's game marks the third all-time Wildcard meeting between the squads on ESPNU, as Asheville won the most recent national TV match-up on Feb. 2, 2023 (89-63), with High Point the victor in the first meeting on Feb. 26, 2015 (75-71). The Feb. 19 broadcast will conclude the two-game season series, as the Panthers won the first meeting in the conference opener on Dec. 31, 87-69. In that contest, Scotty Washington led HPU with a game-high 26 points, while Kameron Taylor paced the Bulldogs with 21.

Asheville's game against High Point will be the 21st all-time appearance for the Bulldogs in the Big South ESPNU Wildcard series (9-11 record).

LAST TIME OUT

In their most recent outing, the Bulldogs came up just short at home, dropping a tight 58–57 decision to Presbyterian on Feb. 14 in Kimmel Arena. A pair of free throws with just four seconds left gave the Blue Hose the one-point edge, and Asheville's final shot at the buzzer didn't fall.

Kameron Taylor paced Asheville with 19 points, adding five assists and two steals, while DJ Patrick played all 40 minutes and scored 14. Justin Wright added 10 points, and Toyaz Solomon contributed eight points, nine rebounds and a season-high four blocks.

STANDINGS UPDATE

With four games remaining in the regular season, Asheville is currently tied for fourth in the Big South with Presbyterian, as both teams sit at 6-6 in conference play. Radford is in third at 7-5, while Longwood is sixth at 6-7. High Point leads the league at 12-1 with Winthrop following at 11-1.

2025-26 Men's Basketball Standings

TEAM TAP-IN

Asheville leads the Big South with 10 games featuring multiple 20-point scorers, including three contests in which Toyaz Solomon, Kameron Taylor and Justin Wright each reached the 20-point mark. The Bulldogs are 6-0 in conference play when making at least seven three-pointers.

Nov. 8: Wright (33), Taylor (29)
Nov. 25: Taylor (23), Solomon (21), Wright (20)
Dec. 10: Solomon (31), Wright (26)
Jan. 3: Solomon (34), Wright (22), Taylor (21)
Jan. 10: Taylor (27), Patrick (24)
Jan. 14: Wright (26), Taylor (22)
Jan. 17: Taylor (26), Solomon (20)
Jan. 21: Taylor (27), Wright (20)
Jan. 31: Taylor (25), Wright (21)
Feb. 12: Wright (24), Solomon (24), Taylor (22)

TAY'S MILESTONES

Toyaz Solomon became just the 14th player in Big South history—and the third Bulldog—to record 1,000 career points, 500 rebounds, 100 blocked shots and 100 assists, reaching the rebounding milestone on Feb. 12 at Longwood. He joined the conference's 1,000-point club on Jan. 14 and currently has 1,114 career points, tied for No. 145 in Big South history and tied for 34th in program history with DeVon Baker. Solomon notched his 100th career block on Jan. 17, becoming the 53rd player in league history to reach that mark, and now sits tied for 41st all-time with 112 blocks, which ranks 10th in Asheville's record book. He is also a member of the Big South's 500-rebound club, entering the week with 518 boards, and has totaled 122 career assists.

WRIGHT ON TARGET

Justin Wright has started and appeared in all 26 games this season, scoring in double figures in 24 contests. He is currently on a 22-game streak of double-digit scoring performances and is averaging 17.6 points per game in conference play. He leads the team with 41 assists and an .809 free throw percentage in league play.

KT'S CONSISTENCY

Kameron Taylor leads the Big South with 14 games of 20 or more points (10 in conference play). He ranks second in the league in conference scoring at 22.3 points per game and sits No. 50 nationally in total points (484) this season.

MORRELL ON THE CLIMB

Head Coach Mike Morrell ranks 14th all-time in Big South history with 128 career victories. His next victory will move him into a tie for 13th-place.

PUTTING IN THE MINUTES

Asheville accounts for four of the conference's top six players in minutes played per game, led by Patrick with 35:02, followed by Taylor in second with 33:57, Wright in fifth with 32:15, and Solomon in sixth with 32:10.

A LOOK AT HIGH POINT

High Point enters this week on an eight-game winning streak and holds a half-game lead in the Big South standings. The Panthers have been ranked in the CollegeInsider.com Top 25 throughout the season and currently rate as the conference's highest-ranked team in both NET (75) and KenPom (90). Through 13 league games, High Point leads the Big South in scoring (87.7 ppg), scoring margin (+15.4), free throw percentage (75.8), assists (15.5) and steals (11.2). Terry Anderson ranks sixth in the conference in scoring against league opponents at 18.8 points per game.

The Panthers enter Thursday's contest after defeating Gardner-Webb 112-87 on Saturday. Seven Panthers reached double-digit scoring, with Rob Martin recording a game-high 21 points.

OVERALL STATISTICAL COMPARISON

2025-26 Season	Asheville	High Point
Scoring Offense	73.8	91.8
Scoring Defense	71.8	70.5
Scoring Margin	2.0	21.3
FG Percentage	.459	.501
FG Pct. Defense	.442	.437
3PT Percentage	.358	.360
FT Percentage	.702	.745
Rebounds Per Game	34.7	36.0
Assists Per Game	11.3	16.8
Turnovers Per Game	12.2	9.3
Steals Per Game	5.8	11.5
Blocks Per Game	3.4	3.7

WATCH PARTY

Rally with Bulldog Nation at Bear's Smokehouse BBQ for Thursday's ESPNU contest! Catch all the action, enjoy great BBQ, and cheer on Asheville alongside fellow fans in a fun, game-day atmosphere.

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