JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. – UNC Asheville Women’s Basketball fell to top seed High Point in the Big South Conference Championship on Thursday (Mar. 6) by a score of 85-57.

 
High Point controlled the first quarter from start to finish, jumping out to a 24-9 lead in the first 10 minutes.
 
Asheville would respond by battling back into the game winning the second quarter 21-15 and going to the half only down nine. High Point stretched their lead to as many as 17 in the frame, before Asheville chipped away in the first few minutes bucket by bucket. Asheville went on a 13-4 run to get the game back within single digits, before the lead would fluctuate over the next few minutes. Asheville got as close as five in the period, turning up the pressure defensively late in the quarter.
 
Asheville was held to nine points in the third quarter as High Point pulled away in the game. Asheville scored 18 points in the fourth quarter to High Point’s 20 as the game came to its final score.
 
Asheville shot 34.0 percent (18-54) from the field, 28.6 percent (4-14) from long range and 70.8 percent (17-24) from the foul line in the game. The Bulldogs outscored High Point 16-10 on second chances in the game, while also scoring 17 points off turnovers, 26 points in the paint, six points off fast breaks and 28 points off the bench. Sydney Burris paced the Bulldogs with 11 points and 10 rebounds for her third double-double of the season, while Dakota McCaughan added 11 points and Abigail Wilson also had 10. Trinity Barnes matched her Asheville career-high with eight points in the game, while Alana Swift added seven points and Skylar Bailey had six points. Taylor Wilkins and LaImani Simmons also each had two points in the game. Asheville out-rebounded High Point 33-32 in the game paced by 10 boards from Burris, while Deborah Orianegbena had six rebounds and McCaughan had four. Wilson, Bailey and Swift each had three rebounds in the game, while Barnes also had one. Burris dished out two assists in the game, while McCaughan, Wilson, Bailey and Barnes each had one. McCaughan finished with a team-high three steals in the game, while Bailey had two and Wilkins, Wilson Barnes and Simmons each had one. Orianegbena also had one block in the game for Asheville.
 
This concludes the 2024-25 UNC Asheville Women’s Basketball season.

About Women’s Athletics Presenting Partner First Bank

First Bank is the banking subsidiary of First Bancorp and is headquartered in Southern Pines, North Carolina, with total assets of approximately $12.1 billion. As a state-chartered community bank, First Bank operates 113 bank branches in North Carolina and South Carolina and a nationwide SBA platform. Since 1935, First Bank has taken a tailored approach to banking, combining best-in-class financial solutions, helpful local expertise, and technology to manage a home or business. First Bancorp’s common stock is traded on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the symbol “FBNC.” Visit our website at www.LocalFirstBank.com. Member FDIC, Equal Housing Lender.