Saturday, January 16
Lynchburg, Va.
7:00 PM
Liberty University
9-10, 4-3BSC
70
vs
74
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UNC Asheville
5-12, 3-4BSC
| Team | 1 | 2 | F |
|---|---|---|---|
| UNC Asheville | 39 | 35 | 74 |
| Liberty | 33 | 37 | 70 |
Bulldogs Escape Flames in Vines Center, 74-70
1/16/2010 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
With a chance to finish the night tied for second following its win against Gardner-Webb on Thursday, the Liberty men's basketball team (9-10, 4-3 BSC) hosted UNC Asheville Saturday night.
In a game themed by back-and-forth bursts, the Flames rallied on numerous occasions to keep the contest closed, but were unable to claim the lead in the second half, falling by the narrow 74-70 margin to the Bulldogs.
The Flames struck first in the matchup, when Evan Gordon forced a UNC Asheville turnover and received the fast break pass from Patrick Konan for a quick layup to take the early 2-0 advantage.
After two made free throws by the Bulldogs, Antwan Burrus nailed a jumper to put the Flames up, 4-2 at 18:55. Forty seconds later, the Bulldogs knotted the contest at four, thanks to a jump shot by Chris Stephenson.
The Flames reclaimed the lead at 17:57, when Konan tipped a missed shot in for a 6-4 edge. UNC Asheville responded quickly, as Stephenson hit a trey five seconds later, moving the Bulldogs back in front, 7-6.
Liberty proceeded to net four unanswered points off baskets from Sanders and Konan to go up, 10-7, at 17:05. UNC Asheville's John Williams tied the contest moments later, capitalizing on an old-fashion three-point play to knot the contest at 10. UNC Asheville capped a 7-0 run with buckets from Quinard Jackson and Matt Dickey at 14:43 for a 14-10 lead at 14:43.
Konan scored on another tip-in to cut the lead to a pair of points, 14-12, but the Bulldogs reeled off eight unanswered points to pull out to a 22-14 advantage with 9:34 remaining in the half.
Liberty began chipping away at their deficit over the next 1:56, thanks to a dunk by Burrus and an Anderson three-pointer, making it 22-19 at 7:38.
UNC Asheville pulled away again, netting five-straight points to expand its margin to eight, 27-19, at 6:57.
Liberty trimmed the Bulldogs' lead to three points. Jeremy Anderson hit a trey at 4:13 remaining in the opening period, making it 29-26, UNC Asheville.
The Bulldogs added to its cushion once again. Stephenson hit a jumper to put UNC Asheville up by nine at 2:27, finishing a 6-0 burst to give the visitor a 35-26 lead. Liberty cut the lead to six with 1:35 remaining, courtesy of another Anderson trey to trim the advantage to 35-29. Each team posted one more basket down the stretch, resulting in a 39-33 UNC Asheville lead at intermission.
Dickey led all scorers at the half with 11 tallies, followed by Anderson who finished with nine off three-for-six shooting from behind the three-point arc. Konan hit four-of-six shots from the field for eight points, while grabbing six boards in just 12 minutes of play.
UNC Asheville shot 15-of-28 (53.6 percent) from the field in the opening 20 minutes, holding the Flames to 40.5 percent (15-of-37 shooting). Free throws seem to be the difference, as UNC Asheville hit all six of its shots from the line, while Liberty never approached the charity stripe in the half.
Like the first period, Liberty lit up the scoreboard first. Konan made a free throw and Gordon completed a fast break with a layup, slicing its deficit to three, 39-36, at 18:56. Williams put the Bulldogs up by six again 15 seconds later, hitting a free throw after being fouled on a layup to take a 42-36 lead.
The Flames followed by running off five unanswered points. Konan capped off the burst with a tip-in to shrink the UNC Asheville advantage to one, 42-41 at 17:26.
Play went back-and-forth, as the Bulldogs' Jaron Lane tipped in a missed shot to give the visitors a six-point edge once again at 14:50, 49-43.
Liberty closed to within two points at 11:45, when Anderson hit his fourth three-pointer of the contest to trim the Bulldog advantage to 51-49.
UNC Asheville continued to deny Liberty the lead, extending its advantage back to seven, 56-49, at 10:21, when Smith sunk a three-point basket. The Bulldogs created a double-digit margin with 8:05 remaining, when Williams hit a layup to give the visitors a 62-52 lead.
Liberty rallied, scoring five unanswered points to slice into their deficit at 6:22, 62-57. The spurt concluded with a Gordon lay-in. UNC Asheville responded with a three-pointer from Dickey nearly a minute later, upping the Bulldogs advantage to 65-57.
The Flames climbed within three at 2:59. Anderson nailed another three-point shot to make it 67-64. However, Dickey answered with a jumper for the visitors 35 seconds later, giving the visiting team a five-point advantage, 69-64.
The exchange continued with Liberty's Sanders responding with a layup with 1:12 left to trim the game back to a one possession contest at 69-66.
UNC Asheville maintained its three-point edge with 19 ticks left, when a foul by Dickey at the three-point arc sent Gordon to the line for three shots. The freshman made the first two, but missed the third to make it a single-digit contest, 68-67.
Following a free throw shot by the Bulldogs, making it 70-68, Ohman found himself at the charity stripe with 13 seconds remaining, but was only able to convert one-of-two shots, allowing UNC Asheville hold onto its advantage in the game.
Despite rally in the closing minutes, the Flames were unable to tie or take the lead in the final seconds, as the Bulldogs ultimately held off their host for a 74-70 decision.
With the win, UNC Asheville improves to 5-11 overall and 3-4 in Big South play, while Liberty falls to 4-3 in the conference and 9-10 on the season.
Dickey finished as the game's high scorer, posting 22 points, followed by the Flames' Konan, who had a career-high 18 on 7-of-10 shooting from the field. The freshman hit four-of-six shots from the line. Konan also led the way in rebounds, grabbing nine boards. Anderson ended the night with 15 tallies, knocking down 5-of-11 from behind the arc. Burrus and Gordon rounded out Liberty's double-digit scorers, posting 11 each.
UNC Asheville shot 44.1 percent (26-of-59 shooting) from the field for the game, holding Liberty to 42.6 percent (26-of-61).
Liberty continues conference play on Thursday, travelling to High Point, N.C., to face off with High Point. The Panthers are currently 9-8 on the season and 4-3 in the Big South after falling to Coastal Carolina, 75-58, on Saturday. Tipoff inside the Mills Athletics and Convocation Center is slated for 7 p.m.
UNC Asheville returns the Justice Center on Monday for a 2 p.m. tipoff with Bluefield.
In a game themed by back-and-forth bursts, the Flames rallied on numerous occasions to keep the contest closed, but were unable to claim the lead in the second half, falling by the narrow 74-70 margin to the Bulldogs.
The Flames struck first in the matchup, when Evan Gordon forced a UNC Asheville turnover and received the fast break pass from Patrick Konan for a quick layup to take the early 2-0 advantage.
After two made free throws by the Bulldogs, Antwan Burrus nailed a jumper to put the Flames up, 4-2 at 18:55. Forty seconds later, the Bulldogs knotted the contest at four, thanks to a jump shot by Chris Stephenson.
The Flames reclaimed the lead at 17:57, when Konan tipped a missed shot in for a 6-4 edge. UNC Asheville responded quickly, as Stephenson hit a trey five seconds later, moving the Bulldogs back in front, 7-6.
Liberty proceeded to net four unanswered points off baskets from Sanders and Konan to go up, 10-7, at 17:05. UNC Asheville's John Williams tied the contest moments later, capitalizing on an old-fashion three-point play to knot the contest at 10. UNC Asheville capped a 7-0 run with buckets from Quinard Jackson and Matt Dickey at 14:43 for a 14-10 lead at 14:43.
Konan scored on another tip-in to cut the lead to a pair of points, 14-12, but the Bulldogs reeled off eight unanswered points to pull out to a 22-14 advantage with 9:34 remaining in the half.
Liberty began chipping away at their deficit over the next 1:56, thanks to a dunk by Burrus and an Anderson three-pointer, making it 22-19 at 7:38.
UNC Asheville pulled away again, netting five-straight points to expand its margin to eight, 27-19, at 6:57.
Liberty trimmed the Bulldogs' lead to three points. Jeremy Anderson hit a trey at 4:13 remaining in the opening period, making it 29-26, UNC Asheville.
The Bulldogs added to its cushion once again. Stephenson hit a jumper to put UNC Asheville up by nine at 2:27, finishing a 6-0 burst to give the visitor a 35-26 lead. Liberty cut the lead to six with 1:35 remaining, courtesy of another Anderson trey to trim the advantage to 35-29. Each team posted one more basket down the stretch, resulting in a 39-33 UNC Asheville lead at intermission.
Dickey led all scorers at the half with 11 tallies, followed by Anderson who finished with nine off three-for-six shooting from behind the three-point arc. Konan hit four-of-six shots from the field for eight points, while grabbing six boards in just 12 minutes of play.
UNC Asheville shot 15-of-28 (53.6 percent) from the field in the opening 20 minutes, holding the Flames to 40.5 percent (15-of-37 shooting). Free throws seem to be the difference, as UNC Asheville hit all six of its shots from the line, while Liberty never approached the charity stripe in the half.
Like the first period, Liberty lit up the scoreboard first. Konan made a free throw and Gordon completed a fast break with a layup, slicing its deficit to three, 39-36, at 18:56. Williams put the Bulldogs up by six again 15 seconds later, hitting a free throw after being fouled on a layup to take a 42-36 lead.
The Flames followed by running off five unanswered points. Konan capped off the burst with a tip-in to shrink the UNC Asheville advantage to one, 42-41 at 17:26.
Play went back-and-forth, as the Bulldogs' Jaron Lane tipped in a missed shot to give the visitors a six-point edge once again at 14:50, 49-43.
Liberty closed to within two points at 11:45, when Anderson hit his fourth three-pointer of the contest to trim the Bulldog advantage to 51-49.
UNC Asheville continued to deny Liberty the lead, extending its advantage back to seven, 56-49, at 10:21, when Smith sunk a three-point basket. The Bulldogs created a double-digit margin with 8:05 remaining, when Williams hit a layup to give the visitors a 62-52 lead.
Liberty rallied, scoring five unanswered points to slice into their deficit at 6:22, 62-57. The spurt concluded with a Gordon lay-in. UNC Asheville responded with a three-pointer from Dickey nearly a minute later, upping the Bulldogs advantage to 65-57.
The Flames climbed within three at 2:59. Anderson nailed another three-point shot to make it 67-64. However, Dickey answered with a jumper for the visitors 35 seconds later, giving the visiting team a five-point advantage, 69-64.
The exchange continued with Liberty's Sanders responding with a layup with 1:12 left to trim the game back to a one possession contest at 69-66.
UNC Asheville maintained its three-point edge with 19 ticks left, when a foul by Dickey at the three-point arc sent Gordon to the line for three shots. The freshman made the first two, but missed the third to make it a single-digit contest, 68-67.
Following a free throw shot by the Bulldogs, making it 70-68, Ohman found himself at the charity stripe with 13 seconds remaining, but was only able to convert one-of-two shots, allowing UNC Asheville hold onto its advantage in the game.
Despite rally in the closing minutes, the Flames were unable to tie or take the lead in the final seconds, as the Bulldogs ultimately held off their host for a 74-70 decision.
With the win, UNC Asheville improves to 5-11 overall and 3-4 in Big South play, while Liberty falls to 4-3 in the conference and 9-10 on the season.
Dickey finished as the game's high scorer, posting 22 points, followed by the Flames' Konan, who had a career-high 18 on 7-of-10 shooting from the field. The freshman hit four-of-six shots from the line. Konan also led the way in rebounds, grabbing nine boards. Anderson ended the night with 15 tallies, knocking down 5-of-11 from behind the arc. Burrus and Gordon rounded out Liberty's double-digit scorers, posting 11 each.
UNC Asheville shot 44.1 percent (26-of-59 shooting) from the field for the game, holding Liberty to 42.6 percent (26-of-61).
Liberty continues conference play on Thursday, travelling to High Point, N.C., to face off with High Point. The Panthers are currently 9-8 on the season and 4-3 in the Big South after falling to Coastal Carolina, 75-58, on Saturday. Tipoff inside the Mills Athletics and Convocation Center is slated for 7 p.m.
UNC Asheville returns the Justice Center on Monday for a 2 p.m. tipoff with Bluefield.
Team Stats
UNCA
LIBERTY
FG%
.441
.426
3FG%
.250
.263
FT%
.762
.650
RB
32
42
TO
12
16
STL
6
4
Game Leaders
Pts
18
FGM
7
3FGM
0
FTM
4
Pts
15
FGM
5
3FGM
5
FTM
0
Pts
11
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
3
Pts
11
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
1
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