Upstate To Battle No. 9 Notre Dame Sunday Night
11/15/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Nov. 15, 2008
Upstate at No 9 Notre Dame Game Notes
South Bend, Ind. - USC Upstate will play its first game ever against a Division I nationally-ranked opponent Sunday night when the Spartans travel to South Bend, Ind., and the Joyce Center to take on Notre Dame at 7:30 p.m. (ET). It marks the first meeting between Upstate and Notre Dame and just the second time the Spartans have a played a team from the Big East. While Notre Dame is playing its regular season opener, Upstate is playing its second game of the season following Friday night's 72-48 loss at Georgia.
Spartan fans not attending the game can watch the action live via the internet by going to Notre Dame's official Athletics Web site at www.und.com and clicking on All-Access. The game is free of charge. Fans can also get live statistical updates via Gametracker on the official Upstate Athletics Web site, www.upstatespartans.com.
Looking Back At Georgia
Despite getting a double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds from Bobby Davis and holding Georgia to 22.2 percent shooting from the three-point arc, Upstate allowed Georgia to capitalize on 29 Spartan turnovers to take a 72-48 victory Friday night in Athens. Upstate fought hard in the first half and trailed by only four with a little more than six minutes to play when Georgia used an 8-0 run to open a 12-point lead and went into the half with a 27-18 advantage. Freshman Carter Cook scored six straight points, four on a three-pointer and foul shot on the same play, to cut the Georgia deficit to four early in the second half, but Georgia used a 9-0 run to increase its lead to 13 and never let the lead sink into single digits the rest of the game.
Scouting Notre Dame
Notre Dame begins its quest for a third-straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament Sunday night against Upstate. The Fighting Irish enter the contest with the nation's second-longest home winning streak at 37 games in the Joyce Center.
Notre Dame also enters the game with lofty expectations as the Irish are ranked ninth in both the AP and ESPN/USA Today Preseason Top 25 polls. There is good reason for the high expectations as the Irish return four starters from last year's 25-8 team that advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Luke Harangody was an All-American and Big East Player of the Year last season after averaging 20.4 points and 10.6 rebounds per game. In addition to Harangody, Notre Dame also returns First Team All-Big East selection Kyle McAlarney.
Notre Dame averaged 79 points a game last year while hitting 45.4 percent of its shots from the field and a lofty 40.5 percent of its attempts from behind the three-point arc. The Irish held opponents to 69.6 points per outing and 41.1 percent from the floor. McAlarney averaged 15.1 points and dished out 115 assists on the year.
Earlier This Year
Notre Dame plays its regular season opener Sunday night against Upstate, but the Fighting Irish have been active playing two exhibition games. Notre Dame opened the year against Briar Cliff on Oct. 31, recording a 103-64 victory. Ryan Ayers led all scorers with 21 points to go along with five rebounds. Four other players finished in double figures. Harangody finished with 16 points and 11 rebounds, while Tory Jackson added 18 points, seven boards, seven assists and five steals. The Irish played its final tune-up for the regular season on Nov. 9 in an exhibition against Stonehill, taking a 79-47 victory. Harangody led the way with 21 points and 10 rebounds. Jackson added a strong 15 points and seven rebounds, while Luke Zeller turned in 10 points, eight boards and four assists.
About The Coach
Mike Brey enters his ninth season at the helm of the Notre Dame program. The reigning Big East Coach of the Year is the most successful Irish coach since the days when Digger Phelps manned the bench for 20 seasons. In fact, Brey's .660 winning percentage is just shy of Phelps' .666 winning percentage. Brey owns a 266-138 career record with a stop at Delaware prior to accepting the job at Notre Dame. He is 167-86 in eight seasons with the Irish. He has led Notre Dame to five NCAA Tournament and three NIT Tournament appearances in his eight seasons. He led Delaware to two NCAA Tournament appearances in five years at the helm of that program. Prior to his stint at Delaware, he was a top assistant under Mike Krzyzweski at Duke from 1987-95 and helped guide the Blue Devils to seven NCAA Tournament appearances and two National Championships.
Davis Double Dips
It took Bobby Davis three games into the season to record a double-double last year. He wasted no time in reaching that accomplishment this season as the senior forward finished Friday's game at Georgia with 11 points and 12 rebounds. The double-double against the Bulldogs was the fifth of his career at Upstate. In addition to his 11 points and 12 rebounds, he added a game-high four assists.
Newcomers Make Presence Felt
Upstate newcomers played important roles Friday night at Georgia, and did so with solid results in their first collegiate action. Freshmen Carter Cook, De'Marion Gordon and Chalmers Rogers all played significant minutes against the Bulldogs. Cook finished the game tied for the team lead in scoring with senior Bobby Davis with 11 points on the night. His six-straight points early in the second half cut the Georgia lead to four points before the Bulldogs made a run to put the game away. Gordon added a solid eight points, five rebounds and two assists on the night. Rogers added two points and three rebounds in 18 minutes. All three players are expected to see significant action the remainder of the season.
Working On Turnovers
While head coach Eddie Payne saw some good things Friday night at Georgia, one are of concern was the Spartans' ability to take care of the ball. Upstate turned the ball over 29 times in the game, over 13 more turnovers than the team averaged a year ago. While Georgia scored just 12 points off Spartan miscues, the turnovers also served to limit the number of scoring opportunities Upstate was able to have throughout the game.
Hitting The Century Mark
Upstate head coach Eddie Payne won his 100th game at the helm of the Spartans' program at Campbell on Feb. 21, 2008. Payne is now in his seventh season at Upstate and his 24th overall as a head coach. He owns a 100-77 record at Upstate and led the Spartans to two Peach Belt Conference championships and back-to-back appearances in the NCAA Division II Tournament prior to Upstate's move to Division I and the Atlantic Sun Conference last season.
Defense A Staple At Upstate
Despite making the transition to NCAA Division I last year, Upstate's trend of playing solid defense continued. The Spartans ranked third in the A-Sun in scoring defense, allowing opponents to score 71.1 points per game. Upstate was also one of just four teams in the league to finish with a positive turnover margin. In Friday's game at Georgia, Upstate just barely allowed the Bulldogs to top last year's scoring average, finishing with 72 points on the night. The Spartans' perimeter defense showed up as well. Upstate held Georgia to 22.2 percent shooting from behind the arc as the Bulldogs made just 4-of-18 from long range.
Spartans' 2007-08 Non-Conference Schedule Ranked 20th
In Upstate's first season as a member of NCAA Division I last year, head coach Eddie Payne did not shy away from playing some of the top traditional basketball powers. According to Payne, "We felt like we shouldn't tiptoe into the water, but jump right in." The Spartans did just that, playing the 20th toughest non-conference schedule in the nation, according to Ken Pomeroy in his final analysis of the 2007-08 non-conference strength of schedule ranking. Upstate's nearest competitor in the A-Sun was Jacksonville, which played the 60th-toughest non-conference schedule, according to Pomeroy.
Another Year, Another Tough Schedule
While the 2007-08 schedule was indeed demanding, Upstate has taken another step up in playing some of the toughest competition in college basketball. Not only will the Spartans play a grueling 20-game A-Sun schedule, the Spartans play four teams - Belmont, Georgia, Gonzaga and Notre Dame - which earned bids to the NCAA Tournament a year ago. In addition, Upstate plays two teams ranked highly in the preseason polls with Notre Dame holding down the No. 9 spot in both the AP and ESPN/USA Today Top 25 polls and Gonzaga coming in at No. 10 in the AP poll and No. 11 in the ESPN/USA Today poll.
Upstate Road Warriors
By season's end, USC Upstate will have played 30 games with nearly two-thirds of the contests played away from the G.B. Hodge Center. The Spartans open the season playing at Georgia, Notre Dame and South Carolina before its home opener against Duquesne on Nov. 25. However, Upstate will hit the road for seven more games away from the Hodge Center, and for the entire month of December, before returning home for its A-Sun home opener against North Florida on Jan. 3. By season's end, Upstate will have traveled more than 17,000 miles roundtrip from Spartanburg to play its 30-game schedule, playing in 11 states and three time zones.
Upstate vs. The Big East
When Upstate plays Notre Dame Sunday night, it will mark the second game the Spartans have ever played against a Big East opponent. Upstate is 0-1 against the conference. The Spartans traveled to Cincinnati last season to battle the Bearcats on Nov. 26. After leading for most of the first half, Upstate fell to Cincinnati, 69-57.
Spartans Play Conference Variety
Upstate has strategically scheduled its non-conference opponents to play a slate of games in a variety of locations and teams from several different conferences. Outside of their 20-game A-Sun slate, the Spartans will play schools from nine different conferences in its 10-game non-conference schedule this season. Last year, Upstate played schools from 10 different conference in addition to its A-Sun schedule.
Gaining Tournament Experience
While Upstate is not allowed to compete in the A-Sun and NCAA Tournaments until 2011-12 when it completes its provisional status as a new DI member, head coach Eddie Payne has seen fit to give the Spartans a dose of tournament experience in its first two seasons in DI. Upstate competed in the BP Top of the World Classic in Fairbanks, Alaska, and the State Farm Sun Bowl Tournament in El Paso, Texas, last season. This year, the Spartans play in the four-game Findlay Toyota Las Vegas Classic.
Davis Set To Lead Spartans
Senior forward and Aiken, S.C., native Bobby Davis is set to take the reigns as the leader in the program. Davis had a solid season last year after transferring to Upstate from Hutchinson CC in Kansas. Davis, typically a role player, was asked early on in the season to become a focal point of the offense, a role he was unaccustomed to playing. Midway through the season, though, Davis settled into his role and finished the A-Sun slate of games averaging 10.9 points and 8.0 rebounds per game. For the season, he averaged 9.8 points and 7.5 rebounds in 30 games for the Spartans.
Schneiders The Tallest Tree In The Forest
Nick Schneiders, Upstate's only center on the roster, is the tallest player to ever wear a uniform at Upstate. At 7-3, he holds the distinction by five inches over Michael Gibson, who tipped the height chart at 6-10. He is also the tallest player playing in the A-Sun. The Rietberg, Germany, native has played organized basketball for just four and a half years. He is a redshirt junior after sitting out his first season on the Upstate campus in 2005-06. Despite his youth in the game of basketball, he has developed at a rapid rate. In his first year playing with Upstate in 2006-07, he averaged 2.1 points and 2.4 rebounds per game while blocking 13 shots. A year later, he more doubled his averages to 4.9 points and 4.8 rebounds per outing while blocking 25 shots. In his third season on the court for Upstate, his development is expected to steadily continue.
Striking It Rich
Senior guard Zac Rich is an important role player for the Spartans. His forte is knocking down the trifecta. He ranks sixth all-time at Upstate with a .405 shooting percentage from behind the arc, hitting 51-of-126 attempts from downtown.
Uzochukwu A Calm Customer
Some freshmen, no matter how talented, shy away from taking the ball in key situations. That was not the case last year when Mezie Uzochukwu, now a sophomore on Upstate's team, put himself in position to deliver Upstate's monumental win at SMU (Dec. 18). He was fouled with 0.6 seconds to play in the game and with the score tied at 56-56. He calmly stepped up to the free throw line and sank both tosses to give Upstate the 58-56 win over the Mustangs, securing the Spartans' first-ever win over a Division I opponent.
Uzochukwu played in all 30 games for Upstate and started 15 contests. He ranked fourth on the team in scoring at 7.5 points per game and grabbed the third-most rebounds per outing at 4.7.
Chavis Set To Be Promoted To Floor General
Sophomore guard Josh Chavis received a tremendous amount of experience playing in 30 games as a freshman last year for Upstate. He cracked the starting lineup 13 times while playing behind three-year starter Jeremy Byrd at the point. He also spent time at shooting guard throughout the year. With the departure of Byrd and Luke Payne, Chavis is in position to assume the starting spot at point guard as the Spartans' floor general. His versatility and ability to knock down the three will also allow him to see time at shooting guard. He averaged 5.1 points, 1.2 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game for Upstate in his first season in the program. He was also one of the top outside shooters on the team, hitting 31 three-pointers and 32.3 percent of his shots from behind the arc.
Big Shoes To Fill
When Upstate takes the floor this season, it will do so without the services of guard Luke Payne for the first time in four years. Payne graduated in May and has been on tour with Athletes In Action while waiting for an opportunity to play professionally overseas. Payne was simply the do-all leader for the Spartans last season. He led Upstate in scoring with 14.9 points per game. He also led Upstate in making 63 three-pointers, making 87 free throws and dishing out 84 assists. He also led the Spartans in scoring in 18 of 30 games and finished in double figures on 25 occasions.
Payne finished his career ranked ninth all-time in scoring at Upstate with a 1,381 points. He garnered all-tournament honors at the BP Top of the World Classic and State Farm Sun Bowl tournaments, while also earning A-Sun Player of the Week honors.
Home Sweet Home
Despite playing just 11 games at home this season, the Spartans will be happy to do so. Upstate has a solid home record, going 58-22 (.725) in seven years under head coach Eddie Payne. Overall, the Spartans are 317-133 (.704) in 450 games played at the Hodge Center since it opened in 1973. Prior to 1973, Upstate played its games at a local junior high school. The Spartans won a school-record 50 straight regular season home games from March 4, 1989 to Feb. 17, 1993.
Hold `Em At 59
Last season, Upstate was 6-1 when holding opponents under 60 points and 1-20 when allowing opponents to score 60 or more. The only time Upstate lost while holding opponents under 60 points came on Feb. 14 against Lipscomb as the Spartans fell, 57-53.
Hard Luck Spartans In `07-'08
Newcomers to the Division I level are supposed to take their lumps, but Upstate proved to be a solid program in its new surroundings. While Upstate's 7-23 record was less than sterling, the record was also misleading. The Spartans lost 10 games by eight points or less and four games by four points or less last season. Had a few plays broken differently, Upstate could easily have looked at a double-digit win total and, possibly, a record approaching .500. One thing head coach Eddie Payne hopes the Spartans have learned from last year's experience is how to win close games on the DI level.
Shaking Up The Lineup
Last year, Upstate head coach Eddie Payne used 12 different starting lineups in 30 games on the season. With five players returning to the team who had extensive playing time, Payne was forced to mix up his lineups. With a solid core of returning players this season, Payne is hopeful of staying away from having to use the large number of different starting lineups.
Upstate Picked 10th In A-Sun Preseason Polls
Upstate has been picked to finish 10th in the A-Sun this season in both the preseason coaches' and media polls released by the A-Sun in October. The Spartans finished tied for 10th last season with a 5-11 league record, having picked up wins over Campbell, Gardner-Webb (now playing in the Big South), Kennesaw State, Mercer and North Florida. The Spartans were picked to finish ahead of North Florida in 2008-09 and right behind Florida Gulf Coast. Belmont, which nearly pulled off the upset against Duke in the NCAA Tournament, is picked to win the regular season and tournament championships in the A-Sun this season.
Carolina On Our Mind
Of the 14 players listed on the Upstate roster, nine hail from either South Carolina or North Carolina. Bobby Davis (Aiken), Pat Posey (Greenville), Zac Rich (Lexington), Chalmers Rogers (Fort Mill) and Cameron Rousey (Greenville) all call the Palmetto State home, while Josh Chavis (Greensboro), Carter Cook (Clemmons), Matt Preston (Nags Head) and Mezie Uzochukwu (Greensboro) call the Tar Heel State home.
Even the Upstate coaching staff is rooted in either South Carolina or North Carolina. Head Coach Eddie Payne was born in Winston-Salem, N.C., and grew up in Charlotte. Assistant Coach Steve Smith was born and raised in the Lowcountry of South Carolina in Varnville. Assistant Coach Ryan Walker was born in Charlotte and lived in the Queen City until the start of his junior year in high school before the family moved to Galesburg, Ill. Assistant Coach Bill Burrows was born in Baltimore, Md., but spent most of his late childhood and nearly all of his adult life in North Carolina.
Monumental Win
USC Upstate's 58-56 win at SMU on Dec. 18, 2007, was a milestone victory for the Spartans last year. Upstate claimed its first win in the Division I era against Brevard on Dec. 6, 2007. However, Brevard is a Division II member, making the SMU win the first against a Division I program last year as well as the first win over a Division I opponents in the history of the program.
Upstate has several wins over programs currently competing on the Division I level, but the wins came in the 1970s and 80s when the institutions played in the NAIA before moving to NCAA Division I membership.
A-Sun Looks To Duplicate Success From A Year Ago
While Belmont was introduced to the nation by nearly upsetting Duke in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, folks in the basketball world already knew that A-Sun hoops is strong. In 2007-08, A-Sun teams pulled off six wins over marquee programs, starting with Gardner-Webb's (now playing in the Big South Conference) 84-68 victory at Kentucky on Nov. 7. Below is a listing of the notable wins last season by A-Sun schools.
Nov. 7--Gardner-Webb def. No. 22 Kentucky, 84-68
(Gardner-Webb now plays in the Big South Conference)
Nov. 9--Belmont def. Cincinnati, 86-75
Nov. 10--Mercer def. No. 18 Southern Cal, 96-81
Nov. 19--Belmont def. Alabama, 85-83
Dec. 18--USC Upstate def. SMU, 58-56
Dec. 21--East Tennessee State def. Georgia, 76-58
Burrows Brings Experience To Sidelines
Second-year assistant coach Bill Burrows is anything but new to the game. The veteran of the sideline has been a head coach on the high school level in North Carolina for nearly 30 years and was an assistant coach at Georgia Tech and Towson. He can tell stories of coaching greats such as Brad Daugherty and Brad Johnson, but his best quality may be his ability to tell stories that both entertain and educate.
Paul Makes Good
Former Spartan starting point guard C.J. Paul is now living the life around the NBA. No, he is not playing in the world's top league, he is serving as the personal assistant/manager for his younger brother, Chris, the former NBA Rookie of Year now in his fourth season with the New Orleans Hornets. Paul was on-hand in Beijing, China, to watch his younger brother win a gold medal for the United States in last summer's Olympic Games.
