Fantastic Finish Spoils Thomas' Big Game

King hit the go-ahead layup with seven seconds to go, then stole the inbound pass to set up a Chris Carrawell free throw.

"This was a very big win for our team," said Altitude head coach Joey Meyer. "We really picked up our defense in the fourth quarter and I felt that was the difference in the game."

With the win, Asheville extended its current winning streak to three games, while improving its record to 6-6 on the season. Greenville dropped its second game in a row.

The Greenville loss also spoiled a great individual performance by Groove shooting guard Billy Thomas, who led all scorers in the game with 32 points, including 8-of-13 shooting from the three-point line.

"We played hard but we didn't make the plays we needed to make down the stretch," said Greenville head coach Milton Barnes. "Both teams played hard, but we made too many mistakes at the end."

Asheville led by five points with 4:19 remaining in the fourth quarter, until the Groove went on a 11-6 run to close the gap to three points. During the Greenville run, Thomas nailed his eighth three-pointer to knot the score at 74-74 with 19 seconds remaining.

"Greenville is the type of team that really gives us trouble," Meyer said. "They have guys that can really score the basketball and tonight we were able to outlast a great performance by Thomas."

King finished the night with a season-high 27 points on 8-of-12 shooting from the field, including 3-of-3 from the three-point line, and an 8-of-8 effort from the charity stripe. King also recorded two rebounds, two steals, one assist and one blocked shot.

"Jimmy had a heck of a game," said Meyer. "When you have a player who gets into a rhythm like Jimmy did tonight, it seems to make everyone around them better."

In addition to King, Asheville had a balanced scoring night as Rusty LaRue chipped in with 14 points, followed by Lee Scruggs with nine points. Jermaine Tate and Jason Hart each had seven points, while Carrawell scored five points to go along with his five rebounds and four assists.

Postgame quotes

Greenville coach Milton Barnes
On the play of Billy Thomas: "Bill had a great performance and that's why we got him. ... He knows how to shoot the basketball and he did a great job of it tonight.

"Billy made a big time play down there to tie the game up (74-74), but it wasn't enough to overcome the overall team mistakes at the end."

Greenville guard Billy Thomas
"My teammates kept finding me on the perimeter tonight and I was able to knock down some shots."

"I would gladly have given up the eight threes for a win, but you have to give them (Asheville) credit, they made the plays at the end."

Asheville guard Jimmy King
"I've been waiting for a breakout game like this."

"My teammates have been encouraging me to shoot the ball and tonight and I had no hesitation and I just let it fly."

"It feels good to play well and even better to play well and have your team win."