ASHEVILLE, N.C. — The High Point University men's basketball team begins Big South Conference play on the road at UNC Asheville. The Panthers and Bulldogs matchup on Wednesday, December 31 at 2:00 p.m. inside the Kimmel Arena before bringing in the New Year.

Men's Basketball - at UNC Asheville
Wednesday, December 31 | 2:00 p.m. | Asheville, N.C. | Kimmel Arena
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Records: High Point 12-3, UNC Asheville 6-8
Last Meeting: February 8, 2025 | Result: HPU won 104-100
All-Time Record: UNCA leads 30-25 since 1999

The Matchup
High Point will open its Big South Conference season on the road at UNC Asheville, who finished its non-conference schedule with a 6-8 overall record. Since becoming Division I in 1999, HPU and UNCA have an all-time record of 25-30 in favor of the Bulldogs. The Panthers have no beaten the Bulldogs on the road since the 2020 season and will have a strong road test on Wednesday. UNCA has five players averaging over 10 points per game, led by Justin Wright averaging 17.1 points per game, ranking third in scoring in the league. Toyaz Solomon, the preseason player of the year is the Bulldogs' second leading scorer and team-leader in rebounds, averaging 16.7 points and 6.8 rebounds per game. UNCA is coached by Mike Morrell who is in his 8th season with the Bulldogs.

Last time out
The Panthers defeated Division III Pfeiffer University on Sunday, December 28 123-64 for the team's third game this season scoring over 100 points. High Point had seven players register double-figures led by Cam'Ron Fletcher with 18 points after going 8-for-9 from the field. The Panthers dished out 30 total assists, making it the first game since 2008 that an HPU team has registered 30+ assists. Conrad Martinez led the way seven assists while also contributing 15 points. As a team, High Point shot 63.5% making it the eighth game this season shooting over 50%.
 

Notable Player & Team Notes

Tied Non-Con Wins
HPU's 12 wins in non-conference tied the program record set during the 2024-25 season.
 
Best Non-Con Record by 1st Year Head Coach
Most wins by a first-year head coach in program history and best win % by a first-year head coach in Big South history.
 
Miller Named Freshman of the Week
Caden Miller earned the Panthers' first Big South Freshman of the Week honor on Dec. 29. He averaged 8.0 points, 4.5 rebounds & 2.5 blocks and registered a season-high 10 points against Pfeiffer.
 
Panthers in the Rankings
High Point ranks in the Top-10 in multiple stat categories across all Division I teams, including, 1st in Turnover Margin (8.2), 2nd in Fastbreak Points (22.93 points), 2nd in Steals Per Game (11.8), 4th in Scoring Offense (95.3), 5th in Scoring Margin (26.3), 7th in Turnovers Forced Per Game (17.60), 7th in Field Goal % (52.3%), 8th in Assist/Turnover Ratio (1.91) and 8th in Bench Points (38.47).

Both Basketball Teams Ranked in CollegeInsider.com Mid Major Rankings
Both the High Point men's and women's basketball teams are currently ranked in the CollegeInsider.com Mid Major Rankings. The Panthers are 1 of 7 schools with their men's and women's teams in the rankings. The men have the second longest ranking streak in Big South history sitting at 44 consecutive weeks and rank 11th as of December 29. The No. 5 ranking early in the season matched High Point's highest ever ranking which occurred during the 2023-24 season. 
 
Career Night for Martinez
Conrad Martinez scored a career-high 26 points on 7-12 shooting from the field with a career-high five made threes in the win over La Salle. He also added seven points from the charity stripe going a perfect 7-for-7.
 
Largest Margin of Victory
The Panthers defeated the Fighting Squirrels in high scoring fashion, breaking the largest margin of victory record in program history with a 129-47 win. High Point led 66-19 at the half which is the third most points scored in a half and the second largest first-half margin in program history.
 
Most Points Scored in D1 Era
HPU defeated Mary Baldwin 129-47, registering the most points scored in Division I program history.
 
Martinez the Distributor
Conrad Martinez dished out 11 assists against App State, which was the first time a player has had 10+ assists since 2014, when Haiishen McIntyre produced 10 assists at Clemson. Martinez recorded his first career double-double with 10 points.

Fletcher on the Rise – Tournament MVP x Player of the Week
Cam'Ron Fletcher averaged 19.0 points per game, 5.7 rebounds per game and 1.3 steals per game the week before Thanksgiving. Overall, he was very efficient on the offense and shot 62.5% from the field after going 20-for-32, 38.5% from three-point range, knocking down 5-for-13 and went a perfect 12-for-12 at the free throw line. In game one at the Boardwalk Battle, he led the team with a career-high 27 points on a 75% shooting clip. In the Boardwalk Battle Championships game, he registered his third double-double of the season scoring 18 points with 10 rebounds and was named the Tournament MVP. Since the MTE, Fletcher recorded his fourth double-double of the season with 22 points and 10 rebounds against Western Carolina. Currently, Fletcher is third in the Big South in scoring, averaging 17.2 points with a 56.8 shooting percentage.

Terry Being Scary
Graduate student Terry Anderson has been on the rise so far in non-conference action. He is averaging 13.1 points per game and has grabbed another 5.4 rebounds a contest. Anderson has eight double-digit scoring games this season with two of his last five being over 20 points. In the Boardwalk Battle Championship, Anderson finished with a season-high 23 points and shot a stellar 10-12 from the floor. He recorded a double-double with 21 points and 10 rebounds against Southern Illinois.

Boardwalk Battle CHAMPS
High Point won the Boardwalk Battle MTE in Daytona Beach, Florida, winning the program's first MTE since the 2022 season after defeating the University of Incarnate Word 91-80 in the Championship game. Cam'Ron Fletcher was named the Tournament MVP and Terry Anderson was named to the All-Tournament Team.

Largest Margin of Victory Over D1 Opponent
With the 93-50 win over Canisius, HPU recorded the largest margin of victory over a D1 opponent in program history. The record was set in 2023-24 with the 93-51 win over Coppin State.

1st Player of the Week Honors
Cam'Ron Fletcher was named the Big South Player of the Week for the first week of college hoops. He averaged 18.0 points per game and 9.5 rebounds per game after posting a double-double on opening night at the Field of 68 Opening Day Marathon with 11 points and 10 rebounds, before recording a new career-high with 25 points against Averett and one rebound shy from another double-double performance. Across both games, he shot 65.2% from the field and 67% from the line.

Field of 68 MM Coach of the Week
Coach Clayman was named the Field of 68 Mid-Major Coach of the Week after picking up two wins against Furman and Averett.

1st Win for Clayman Era
High Point defeated Furman in the season-opener at the Field of 68 Opening Day Marathon, 97-71 for first-year head coach Flynn Clayman's first win.

Continuing Success After Change
Coming off the most successful season ever for the Panthers after making it to March Madness the team's energy has never been higher. The energy for this season all stems with the new first-year Head Coach Flynn Clayman who was appointed in April of 2025 after serving as the Associate Head Coach under Alan Huss last season.

Preseason Awards
High Point was picked again as the number one-ranked team in the Big South Preseason Poll for the second consecutive season and the fifth time in program history (2007-08, 2013-14, 2015-16, 2024-25, 2025-26). Rob Martin and Scotty Washington were picked to be on the First Team All-Conference as well. In the Blue-Ribbon Forecast HPU was picked preseason No. 1 and Martin was selected as the Preseason Newcomer of the Year. In two other preseason polls, High Point was picked fourth in the Field of 68 Mid-Major poll and eighth in the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25® poll. Since cracking the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25® on December 26, 2023, High Point has remained in the top 25 for 36 consecutive weeks. The highest ranking that HPU received in program history was No. 5 on February 5, 2024.

Notable Transfers, Returning Players, and New Freshman
This season, the Panthers have a totally new squad and lineup looking to continue the standard of success they have created after making a tournament appearance. There are eight transfers that have made High Point their new home. Cam'Ron Fletcher, a graduate student who has played at Kentucky, Florida State and Xavier, is bringing experienced veteran leadership to the team. He has already won a transfer award back in 2021-2022 as the ACC Impact Transfer per CBS Sports. Rob Martin who started at Indiana State and then Southeastern Missouri State University, is a senior who also brings some veteran leadership and was named to the Big South Preseason First-Team All-Conference selection. Another leader for the Panthers is Owen Aquino, who is coming to HPU after playing at Eastern Florida State and Liberty, a team that also won its league title and made the 2024-25 NCAA Tournament. Aquino a native of Spain, shares the court alongside Spain native Conrad Martinez, who spent his first two seasons at the University of Arizona. Scotty Washingtonis a senior transfer that played for CBU and CSUN, where he grabbed a 2024-2025 All-Big West Honorable Mention and was named to the Big South First-Team All-Conference selection. Vincent Brady II and Youssouf Singare are the last two transfers for the Panthers that also help strengthen the new identity and game plan that the Panthers have for this season. Singare transferred from the University of Connecticut and Brady II joins the Panthers from Missouri State University.

2024-25 Historic Season
High Point made history during the 2024-25 season by winning its first-ever Big South Tournament title and earning an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. HPU finished with an overall record of 29-6, which tied for the most wins in Big South program history (Winthrop, 2006-07) and the most wins in HPU program history. The Panthers finished the regular season with a 26-5 record and a 14-2 league record. The 26 regular-season wins is the most in program history and tied the Big South regular-season wins record with Coastal Carolina's 2010-11 season (26-4). High Point's offense finished 3rd in the NCAA in KenPom rankings for raw offensive efficiency, trailing only Duke and Gonzaga, and were ahead of 2025 NCAA National Champion Florida.