Liberty Flames @ UNC Asheville Bulldogs
| 1 | 2 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|
LIB | 19 | 37 | 56 |
UNCA | 35 | 38 | 73 |
Hughes, Thomas lead UNC Asheville past Liberty, 73-56
ASHEVILLE, N.C. -- Sam Hughes scored 17, and Ahmad Thomas had 15 points with 10 rebounds to help UNC Asheville beat Liberty 73-56 Thursday night.
Kevin Vannatta added 13 points for UNC Asheville, which secured a first-round bye in next week's Big South Conference tournament.
A jumper by Vannatta capped a 10-2 run that put the Bulldogs (19-10, 12-5) up 19-7 with 12 minutes left in the first half.
Two free throws by Evan Maxwell cut the Liberty (12-18, 9-8) deficit to three just more than five minutes later, but Asheville scored 16 of the final 19 points of the half to take 35-19 lead into the break.
It was the Flames' third-lowest scoring half of the season.
A.C. Reid led Liberty with 11 points. Lovell Cabbil scored 10.
UNC Asheville held a 42-31 edge on the glass and limited the Flames to 37.7 percent (20-of-53) shooting.
Game Information
Asheville, NC
Referee:Brandon Hiers
Referee:Isaac Barnett
Referee:J.B. DeRosa
2025-26 Standings
| Conference USA | CONF | GB | OVR |
|---|---|---|---|
| Liberty | 17-3 | - | 26-8 |
| Sam Houston | 13-7 | 4 | 22-12 |
| Louisiana Tech | 11-9 | 6 | 20-14 |
| Western Kentucky | 11-9 | 6 | 18-14 |
| Middle Tennessee | 11-9 | 6 | 17-15 |
| Kennesaw State | 10-10 | 7 | 21-14 |
| Jacksonville State | 10-10 | 7 | 15-17 |
| New Mexico State | 8-12 | 9 | 16-16 |
| Missouri State | 8-12 | 9 | 16-18 |
| Florida International | 8-12 | 9 | 15-17 |
| UTEP | 7-13 | 10 | 11-20 |
| Delaware | 6-14 | 11 | 10-21 |
| Big South Conference | CONF | GB | OVR |
|---|---|---|---|
| High Point | 15-1 | - | 31-5 |
| Winthrop | 13-3 | 2 | 23-11 |
| Radford | 9-7 | 6 | 16-16 |
| Longwood | 8-8 | 7 | 16-16 |
| UNC Asheville | 8-8 | 7 | 15-17 |
| Presbyterian | 7-9 | 8 | 15-18 |
| Charleston Southern | 6-10 | 9 | 15-17 |
| South Carolina Upstate | 5-11 | 10 | 13-19 |
| Gardner-Webb | 1-15 | 14 | 4-29 |
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