By Nora Stoney and Devon Dow

Bulldogs begin the regular season with a perfect 3-0 record, their best start ever

The Men’s Basketball team begins the regular season with a perfect 3-0 record, shattering the previous 2-0 start record held by the 1989-1990 team. The Bulldogs have convincingly recorded victories against Furman, Lees- McRae, and Brevard at the Justice Center.

Record set against Brevard

The Bulldogs held Brevard to a team record low of 35 points as the team went on to win the game 75-35.

“This was a great team effort,” said Head Coach Eddie Biedenbach. “The defense for our team really stepped up to the plate tonight. There have been great efforts by the entire team in practice and players are stepping up and wanting to contribute to the team’s success. I could not be more happy for these guys.”

The team was led in scoring by red shirt freshman John Williams who went a perfect 5-5 from the field and 2-2 from the free throw line. Williams also led the team in blocks with three.

“This game we emphasized defense and it worked,” Williams said. “ When I was out there on the court, like my teammates, I was trying to do whatever I could to help us out and get win. So far this season has gone well for us and I hope that we continue to add to our success.”

While Williams led the team in blocks for the game against Brevard, Junior center Kenny George leads the Big South with 17 blocks on the season. George was named the Big South player of the week for his first two games of the season averaging 13.5 points, 8.0 rebounds and 7.5 blocked shots.

“It feels good to be able to contribute this year, George said. “I am stronger, and fast as I can be, plus as a team we are all on the same page. As the year continues we hope to continue to succeed on the court.”

Kenny George is the type of player that when you put him in the game he changes team’s offenses altogether according to Biedenbach.

The Bulldogs allowed Brevard only 16 points in the second half and scored 26 of their 75 points off of turnovers.

“We get better everyday,” said senior forward Vincent James. “We are happy to be 3-0. This year the team has been stepping up and Coach B. and the rest of the coaching staff have been preparing the team well and it has shown on the court.”

James steps us up for Bulldogs

Sunday’s game against Lees McRae proved to be another solid win for the Bulldogs as they played without their starting seniors for most of the game. Garland sat out due to a finger injury and Smithson’s hand was injured prior to halftime, taking him out for the rest of the game. But the injuries didn’t phase the Asheville team. The rest of the Bulldogs stepped up to shut down the Bobcats 74-48.

Vincent James scored 18 points and George just missed the first triple-double in school history with 15 points, 10 blocked shots and nine rebounds.

“We battled through some things today to pick up the victory,” Biedenbach said. “I was proud of our effort in the second half and we came together to beat a scrappy Lees-McRae team. There are some things we need to work on as we gave up way too many offensive rebounds (21), but overall it was a good performance and it’s always good to win.”

Season Opening win over Furman

The Bulldogs downed Furman 78-75 Friday night at the Justice Center, in front of a packed crowd of 1,123 fans.

“We played hard for 40 minutes and our crowd was just terrific as they gave us a lot of energy,” said Biedenbach. “Our guys will get better, and this game was a first step.”

The team was lead by seniors Bryan Smithson and K.J. Garland, both of whom scored in double digits, Smithson with 24 points and Garland with 19. Kenny George came off the bench to score 12 points, grab seven rebounds and block five shots.

The Bulldog team came out strong and secured a 35-29 lead at the end of the first half. But Furman was not going down without a fight. With just 3:51 left in the second half, the Paladins cut an 11-point deficit to two, coming as close as 77-75 with only 24 seconds left. A free throw by Garland at the 23 second mark secured the win for the Bulldogs, leaving the score 78-75.

“We are lucky to have two fifth-year seniors this year, both of whom are really good guards who shoot and handle the ball well,” Biedenbach said. “We were nervous going into this game, Furman came in determined with two exhibition games under their belt. Because of scheduling problems, we haven’t had that experience this year. I’m definitely pleased with the win, but we’re going to have to play better than we did tonight.”

“It was a good win against a good division one team. We played pretty well and moved the ball well,” said junior guard Reid Augst. “Our main focus was finishing out the game. We need to learn how to be comfortable with our lead, not lightening up in the end of the game and playing hard the whole time.”