UNC Asheville (20-10) vs Charleston Southern (10-21)
March 7, 2025 at 06:00 PM EST
The Line: Betting Odds: UNC Asheville -5.5 — Over/Under: 151.5
The Charleston Southern Buccaneers and the UNC Asheville Bulldogs meet Friday in Big South Tournament college basketball action from Freedom Hall Civic Center. Here’s a Charleston Southern vs UNC Asheville prediction. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best Charleston Southern vs UNC Asheville pick. We will examine:
The Charleston Southern Buccaneers’ recent form and player performance
The UNC Asheville Bulldogs’ recent form and player performance
Recent betting trends and streaks involving the Charleston Southern Buccaneers
Recent betting trends and streaks involving the UNC Asheville Bulldogs
Recent betting trends in games played between Charleston Southern and UNC Asheville
A summary that ties it all together and produces a favorable betting outcome for the Charleston Southern vs UNC Asheville game
Charleston Southern Buccaneers Betting Preview
The Bucs have been a spotty team in the win column so far this year, but they’ve got a couple of pretty good runs. Charleston Southern managed to win just three of their first 10 games though, then took losses to Davidson, South Carolina State, North Alabama, and Georgia. After wins over Columbia International and Gardner-Webb, the Buccaneers fell to Longwood, High Point, Winthrop, Presbyterian, and UNC Asheville in the next six. A 4-1 run came next with wins over USC Upstate, Longwood, Gardner-Webb, and Presbyterian, then four straight losses to UNC Asheville, High Point, USC Upstate, and Radford. In total that gives Charleston Southern a 10-21 record through 31 games this year.
In the Radford matchup last weekend, the Buccaneers came out of the locker room with a 40-29 deficit. Charleston Southern was outscored 36-31 the rest of the way during a 76-60 loss. Taje’ Kelly led the team in the losing effort with his 22 points, eight rebounds, and three assists. Keenan Wilkins added 14 points with two steals and two boards, and Reis Jones had 12 points with six rebounds in 21 minutes on the floor.
UNC Asheville Bulldogs Betting Preview
Over on the Bulldogs’ side, they’ve been pretty good overall this year but they’ve struggled lately. UNC Asheville limped to a 3-4 record to open the year, then beat St. Andrews, Bluefield, Western Carolina, North Florida, Virginia Lynchburg, Columbia International, and High Point in the next eight outings. After a loss to Longwood, the Bulldogs beat Presbyterian, USC Upstate, Winthrop, Gardner-Webb, Charleston Southern, Radford, and Gardner-Webb again. Since then it’s been a 3-4 run though, featuring losses to High Point, Radford, Presbyterian, and Winthrop. That gives the Bulldogs a 20-10 overall record through 30 games so far this year.
In the road rematch with Winthrop on Saturday, the Bulldogs entered the second half with a seven-point deficit. UNC Asheville didn’t get any closer on a 52-46 second half and took the loss 103-90 in the end. Jordan Marsh led the team with 27 points, five rebounds, seven assists, and three steals. Toyaz Solomon added 20 points with three boards, and Kameron Taylor had 17 bench points with a pair of rebounds in 28 minutes.
Why the North Carolina-Asheville Bulldogs will win
- North Carolina-Asheville has won 14 of its last 15 games against Charleston Southern.
- Charleston Southern has lost 18 of its last 19 Friday games.
- Charleston Southern has lost the first half in each of its last seven games played at neutral venues.
Why the Charleston Southern Buccaneers will win
- North Carolina-Asheville has lost three of its last four games against the Big South Conference.
Matchup/League Facts
- North Carolina-Asheville ranks 17th among Division 1 teams for points per game this season (82.8).
- North Carolina-Asheville ranks 24th among Division 1 teams for field goal attempts per game this season (62.7).
- Charleston Southern ranks 14th among Division 1 teams for opponent three-point field goals made per game this season (5.9).
- Charleston Southern ranks 20th among Division 1 teams for free throws made per game this season (17.0).
Charleston Southern vs UNC Asheville Prediction
I’ll lean toward the Bulldogs, but they haven’t been playing great lately. UNC Asheville shot very well from the floor (57.1 percent) in their latest loss to a good Winthrop team, but also gave up 54.8 percent on the other side and got outmuscled on the boards 37-25. It was a sloppy game overall with the Bulldogs contributing 16 of the 30 total turnovers for 22 Eagles points.
The good news is that UNCA has wins in both matchups between these teams this year: 69-61 on the road on January 25 and 75-72 at home on February 15. The Bulldogs have been really choppy on the scoreboard lately with fewer than 60 points in two of the last four. I’d like to see a good offensive result here, but UNCA should still have the advantage.