Presbyterian College at UNC Asheville
Saturday, January 31 - 2 p.m.
Kimmel Arena - Asheville, N.C.
Live Stats | Live Video (ESPN3)
PC Game Notes
CLINTON, S.C. - Presbyterian College (11-9, 6-5 Big South) makes the trip up Interstate 26 to Asheville on Saturday to square off against the UNC Asheville Bulldogs (5-15, 4-7 Big South) in an ESPN3 matchup at 2 p.m. PC will look to keep up its strong play, earning its fourth win in five games on Tuesday with a 51-42 home victory over Campbell. UNC Asheville enters playing well too, grabbing two wins in its last four games and falling to Liberty by only four points (62-58) at Liberty on Tuesday. A Blue Hose win on Saturday would equal PC's win total from last season (12) with at least nine more games to play.
PC leads the all-time series record with a 9-7 record and has lost only once since 2011, amassing an 8-1 record in the last nine meetings. That lone loss on December 30, 2013, came in PC's last visit to Kimmel Arena for a 54-47 loss. In the first meeting between the two teams this season, the Blue Hose shot over 50 percent to earn a 69-57 win. Cortney Storey, Aianna Kelly and Rebecca Walker all scored in double figures and Keyonna Allen (nine points, eight rebounds) nearly notched a double-double. UNC Asheville shot 3-for-16 from long range in the loss.
UNC Asheville enters Saturday tied for seventh place in the Big South following a four-point loss to Liberty on Tuesday. The Bulldogs bested Coastal Carolina and Gardner-Webb for wins since they played PC and look to star Shonese Jones to carry the load with 11.1 points per game. Brittany Gwyn averages 2.7 assists per game and KJ Weaver controls the boards (5.8). Through all 20 games, Asheville ranks second in three-point field goal percentage (29.5), behind only PC's 24.9 percent.
Over the last five games (over which PC is 4-1), Keyonna Allen leads the team with 13.8 points and 1.4 steals to pace PC in those categories. Aianna Kelly's 5.4 rebounds stand as a team-best and she leads the team with 3.0 assists over the team's last five.
PC never trailed and held on to win a key Big South Conference game over the Campbell Camels on Tuesday night, 51-42. The Blue Hose won a disjointed contest that saw 37 combined fouls and 45 combined turnovers. PC's victory came in part to the team's impressive play on the boards, collecting 42 rebounds to Campbell's 30. Keyonna Allen led the team with 15 points while Rebecca Walker hauled in a team-best six rebounds as PC earned their fourth win in five games.
Keyonna Allen has hit double figures in her last three games, scoring 17 points against Charleston Southern, 12 against Winthrop and 15 against Campbell on Tuesday. She has scored in double figures 10 times this season and leads the team with 9.8 points and ranks second with 6.1 rebounds per game. Out of 20 games, she has led the team in points seven times, rebounds nine times, blocks seven times and steals seven times. The redshirt junior enters the week with a career shooting percentage of 49.1 percent.
The Blue Hose enter Saturday 10-2 when leading at the break, 3-1 when shooting 40 percent and 11-6 when they hold their foe to less than 40 percent shooting after limiting Campbell to 30.9 percent. PC holds a record of 2-3 record this season in North Carolina and a 6-2 marker when playing on Saturday.
Head coach Ronny Fisher, in his seventh season at the helm, moved into sole possession of second place in PC history on Tuesday with his 74th career victory. He passed Randy Randall (1977-84) and Byron Rucker (1984-89) with 73 wins. Beth Couture holds the record, with 238 wins amassed from 1989 to 2002.
The Blue Hose went 16-for-20 from the free-throw line in Tuesday's win over Campbell, shooting a season-high 80.0 percent. Rebecca Walker went a career-high 5-for-5 and made two in the final minute to seal the win. Aianna Kelly also shot a perfect 4-for-4.
The Blue Hose boast the nation's second-ranked scoring defense, holding opponents to an average of 49.8 points per game. PC held Campbell to 42 points on Tuesday and NC Central to 33 on December 20.
PC also ranks seventh in the country in field goal percentage defense, holding opponents to 33.5 percent. PC has held 17 of its 20 opponents to under 40 percent from the field this season after limiting Campbell to 30.9 percent (17-for-55) on Tuesday. The team accomplished that feat 22 times last season with a 9-13 record, allowing over 40 percent only eight times. The Blue Hose also rank sixth in the country in three-point field goal defense, allowing only 24.9 percent of shots from distance.
Sophomore guard Aianna Kelly (1.75) and freshman point guard Cortney Storey (1.27) rank second and seventh in assist/turnover ratio in Big South games. Only two teams boast multiple players in the top 10, with Longwood checking in at seventh and 10th.
PC continues road play with a short trip to Gardner-Webb on Monday at 7 p.m. The Blue Hose won the first meeting at home, 55-50 in the League opener for both teams.
