UNC Asheville will defend a winning record on Tuesday night as the Bulldogs (2-1) take on the Camels of Campbell at the Justice Center. Asheville recovered from a sluggish start on Saturday to come away with a decisive victory over Lees-McRae, and has now won two in a row. Campbell (2-1) has also looked sharp at times in non-conference play, but fell 66-59 to Coastal Carolina in its only contest against a Big South opponent.
The Bulldogs struggled out of the gate on Saturday, turning the ball over 15 times in the first half while Lees-McRae took advantage of an early 25-9 run to stretch the lead to as much as 13. At the break, the Bobcats were shooting 53% from the field and held a 43-34 lead. UNC Asheville stormed back in the second half behind a breakout performance from junior Dana Wagner. Wagner, a first team All-American junior college player last season, shot 6 of 8 from the field for a game-high 16 points. Five teammates joined Wagner in double figures. Linda Aughburns put up 14 points and 11 rebounds for her second consecutive double-double, Lindsey Thompson had 12 points, Kiana Rainey had 11 points, 9 rebounds, and 2 blocks, Chioma Okoli tallied 11 points and 6 boards, and Lindsey Montgomery posted 10 points and 9 rebounds. Kendall Shepard had a great deal of success running the offense, dishing out most of her eight assists in the second half. UNC Asheville outscored Lees-McRae 48-15 after the break, and only committed six turnovers.
Despite being picked to finish near the bottom of the Atlantic Sun (9th in the media poll, 11th in the coaches poll), Campbell has played well thus far. The Camels defeated Wofford in the season opener, and bounced back from the loss to Coastal to defeat North Carolina Central 79-63 on Wednesday night in their first away game of the year. Freshman guard Tonisha Baker leads the Camels in scoring with 12.0 PPG. Forwards Lauren Yesh and Geami Britt, the team’s top two scorers last season, have each averaged 11.0 PPG over the first three contests. Campbell also seems to have an emerging star at the point. Sophomore Kate Cloxton led the Camels in points (17) and assists (5) in Wednesday’s victory.
Campbell leads the all-time series against Asheville 24-6, dating back to 1980, but the two squads have been quite evenly matched in recent years. Campbell defeated the Bulldogs 65-53 last year in Buies Creek, but Asheville has won in two of the last four meetings. Tuesday should provide a close match between two competitive teams that are looking to exceed expectations this season.
Go Dogs!!!
