Pember breaks school scoring record, Bulldogs extend win-streak to seven

Drew Pember broke UNC Asheville’s scoring record with 48 points on Wednesday night as the Bulldogs defeated the Presbyterian College Blue Hose 88-80 in overtime. 

“Drew had a spectacular game Wednesday night. He was able to make a few shots from three early, which really put the defense in a bind on how to guard him. Having guys like Tajion and Fletcher out on the court helped provide the space he needed to operate because they are both such elite shooters. Anytime you can break a record is an incredible feeling, the best part about him is that without the win, all of those points would have meant nothing to him,” said assistant men’s basketball coach Woody Taylor. 

The Bulldogs came into the game riding a six game winning streak, their longest since the 2017-2018 season. Meanwhile, Presbyterian had only won one out of their last seven games. 

“They probably have not had the greatest of luck but you know I respect the mess out of those guys and I thought they outplayed us for a majority of that game. We just had the best player in the game and that really helped us especially down the stretch,” said men’s basketball head coach Mike Morrell. 

Pember started off the game hot, scoring 15 points in just five minutes. He later added 12 more points to finish with 27 in the first half. 

“It’s nice to, you know, have a couple shots, get going early and then from there they trust me to just do what I do,” said senior forward Drew Pember. 

After trailing by eight at the half, the Blue Hose rallied behind freshman guard Jalen Forrest to tie the game at 73 at the end of regulation. This marks the fourth overtime played between the two teams in the last two meetings. 

Pember added 10 more points in overtime to help elevate the Bulldogs to a victory and stamp his name in the UNC Asheville record books. Pember’s 48 points breaks the record for most points scored in a game in school history, surpassing the previous record of 44. He shot 14 of 24 from the field and 80% from three, while adding 12 rebounds. 

“You know, we won, that’s all that matters. I’m sure it’ll hit me later, you know, 20 years from now maybe unless someone else breaks it but this isn’t about me, it’s never been about me, it’s about us and we got a good win tonight,” Pember said. 

UNCA looks to add to their impressive win streak on Saturday as they play the Campbell Fighting Camels in Buies Creek. 

“We got a tough one on Saturday. We’ll watch film on this one, you know, fix all of our growth opportunities and then we’ll just keep it pushing,” Pember said.