Something had to give: Winthrop falls to UNC Asheville for first conference loss of the season

Thursday’s game between Winthrop and UNC Ashville was as tense as you might expect, complete with momentum swings, grinding offense and pressure-packed defensive stands.

The Eagles, coming off a triple-overtime win over Radford, couldn’t find the same magic this time. After running out to a seven-point halftime advantage, Winthrop (13-7, 4-1 Big South) found trouble in the second half falling to UNC Asheville, 82-77, at home.

Winthrop came out on fire offensively, going 16-for-25 from the field and 8-for-14 from beyond the arc as it carried a 43-36 lead into halftime. However, the second half was much tougher on the offensive end as the Eagles shot 30% from the field and 67% from the free-throw line as Winthrop saw its lead slip away.

In each of the Eagles’ five conference games this season, the final margin has been fewer than 10 points.

“You walk in that locker room, and there’s a lot of disappointment,” Winthrop head coach Mark Prosser said Thursday. “We led for over 30 minutes in that game, and we have an expectation level around here to win, especially at home. And we weren’t able to do that.”

Winthrop led 64-59 with eight minutes left, but Asheville closed the game on a 23-13 run thanks to some timely 3-point shooting and key offensive rebounds.

Winthrop shot 4-for-12 from the field in that span and 4-for-9 from the line.

Prosser wasn’t happy with how his team played late in the game.

“First and foremost, you have to give (Asheville) a lot of credit, they made winning plays down the stretch,” he said. “They were good in the second half. They were hard to guard, and they made us a little easier to guard.

“When you lose, there’s things that you can’t do: You can’t give up offensive rebounds on free throws, you can’t give up offensive rebounds, you have to secure the basketball, you have to make free throws down the stretch. A lot of those things sort of build up and add up to a loss, but we got to learn from it.”

Senior forward Kelton Talford dropped a double-double with 21 points and 10 rebounds in the loss, while guard Nick Johnson scored 20 points and pick up four assists.

The loss snaps a five-game win streak for Winthrop, and the Eagles will next play on the road against Gardner-Webb on Jan. 20. Tip-off is scheduled for 1 p.m.

This story was originally published January 19, 2024 at 10:08 AM.