Basketball Game Preview: Asheville Cougars vs. North Buncombe Black Hawks

The Asheville Cougars will take on the North Buncombe Black Hawks at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Expect the scorekeeper to be kept busy: if their previous games are any indication, both will really light up the scoreboard.

Asheville is headed into Friday's contest looking for a big change in momentum after dropping their fifth straight game on Tuesday. They lost 90-66 to McDowell. While losing is never fun, the Cougars can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' North Carolina basketball rankings (they are ranked 511th, while the Titans are ranked 59th).

Meanwhile, North Buncombe suffered their closest loss since December 13, 2024 on Wednesday. They fell just short of T.C. Roberson by a score of 57-55. The match marked the Black Hawks' lowest-scoring game so far this season.

North Buncombe's defeat dropped their record down to 8-7. As for Asheville, their loss dropped their record down to 2-13.

Asheville didn't have too much breathing room in their contest against North Buncombe when the teams last played back in February of 2024, but they still walked away with a 67-63 victory. One of the biggest obstacles the team faced in that game was North Buncombe's Trent Clark, who posted 26 points and five boards. Now that he's got a second chance to win this matchup, will Asheville still be able to contain Clark? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.