Upstate Opens A-Sun With Games At KSU, Mercer
11/30/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Nov. 30, 2008
Game Notes | Live Video - ASun.TV | Gametracker - KSU | Live Stats - Mercer
Spartanburg, S.C. - USC Upstate opens A-Sun play with an unusual set of back-to-back games Monday and Tuesday at Kennesaw State and Mercer. The Spartans tip-off with Kennesaw State Monday night at 7:30 in Kennesaw, Ga., and with Mercer Tuesday night at 7:00 in Macon, Ga. Upstate stands 0-4 heading into Monday after falling to Duquesne, 79-69, Tuesday night in the Spartans' home opener. Kennesaw State is 4-2 on the year, while Mercer is 5-2.
Both games can be seen live over the internet by accessing the ASun.TV Web site at www.asun.tv. Fans can also get live statistical updates of the Kennessaw State game using Gametracker via the official Upstate Athletics Web site, www.upstatspartans.com, and for the Mercer game via the official Mercer Athletics Web site, www.mercerbears.com.
Looking Back At Duquesne
Upstate fell behind by 15 points only to cut the lead to two on a couple of occasions before falling to the A-10's Duquesne Dukes last Tuesday in the Hodge Center. Upstate had five possessions when it had a chance to either tie the game or take the lead, but could not capitalize on its opportunities as it dropped its home opener. Bobby Davis took over in the second half leading the Spartans' resurgence by scoring 20 of his game-high 24 points in the half to give Upstate a chance to win the game. De'Marion Gordon recorded his second-straight career-high for points, finishing with 11 on the night and scoring most of his points in the first half to keep Upstate in the game. The game was the first home game against a non-conference Division I opponent since the Spartans moved to DI starting last year.
Scouting Kennesaw State
Kennesaw State enters Monday's game with Upstate with a 4-2 record after taking back-to-back wins over Colgate and Marlyand-Eastern Shore. The Owls defeated Colgate, 54-50, last Wednesday and ran past Maryland-Eastern Shore, 64-49, Saturday night. Against MES, Kelvin McConnell has 19 points and four rebounds, while Jon-Michael Nickerson added 11 points and nine boards.
Kennesaw shoots 41.2 percent from the floor, but is solid from the three-point arc, hitting 37.0 percent of its shots. The Owls hold opponents to 42.9 percent shooting from the field. Kennesaw averages 64.8 points per outing and is stingy defensively, allowing just 60.7 points per contest. Nickerson leads the team in scoring and rebounding at 13.7 points and 7.5 rebounds per game. McConnell is second on the Owls in scoring at 13.2 ppg.
About The Coach
Tony Ingle is in his ninth season at the helm of the Kennesaw State program and has manned the sidelines as a head coach for 14 years overall. He has tallied a 153-101 record at Kennesaw with a DII national championship in 2004. He is 223-171 overall. A native of Dalton, Ga., Ingle began his coaching head coaching career at Gordon College in 1985 before moving to Alabama-Huntsville in 1988, coaching the Chargers for one season before moving on as an assistant coach at BYU. He also spent time as a scout in the NBA and as a color commentator for Mountain West Conference basketball.
Scouting Mercer
Mercer is off to a fast start under first-year head coach Bob Hoffman. The Bears have claimed marquee wins over Alabama and Auburn this season and enter Tuesday's game against Upstate with a 5-2 record. Mercer opened the season with three-straight wins before dropping two in a row to Georgia Tech and Dayton. The Bears defeated Texas Southern and Chicago State in the Chicago Invitational. James Florence has been a force this season. He has won the first two A-Sun Player of the Week honors and averages 16.7 points per game for the Bears. Daniel Emerson averages a double-double with 14.3 points and 10.3 rebounds per outing.
Mercer shoots 44.4 percent from the field and holds opponents to a 41.4% shooting percentage. The Bears are better than 70 percent from the free throw line on the year and out-rebound opponents by eight a game.
About The Coach
Bob Hoffman is in his first year as head coach of the Mercer program. He is in his 18th season overall as a head coach and has won over 400 games with a 404-171 record. A native of Oklahoma City, Okla., he took the job at Mercer after spending the two seasons as head coach of the ABA's Arkansas Aeros. He began his head coaching journey as the head women's coach at Southern Nazarene from 1988-90. He then served as a head coach in the NAIA at Oklahoma Baptist from 1990-99. He joined the ranks of DI when he became the head coach at Texas-Pan American from 1999-2004 before serving as an assistant coach at Oklahoma from 2004-06.
Davis Becomes Go-To Player For Upstate
A little apprehensive about becoming a focal point in the offense a year ago, senior forward Bobby Davis looks supremely confident in his ability to produce on the offensive end of the floor this season. He set the tone in the season opener at Georgia when he finished with 11 points and 12 rebounds to lead the Spartans. He followed that performance with 14 points and five boards at No. 8 Notre Dame. He turned in a 12-point, nine-rebound effort at South Carolina. Recently, though, he put the Spartans on his back against Duquesne, finishing with 24 points, six rebounds, four assists and two steals against Duquesne last Tuesday night. He has increased his scoring average to 15.3 points per game and is shooting 56.3 percent from the floor.
Gordon Starting To Get Comfortable In System
Freshman guard De'Marion Gordon has shown in the last two games that he is gaining confidence in head coach Eddie Payne's system. He has shown the ability to score and defend. In the last two games, he finished with 10 points at South Carolina and 11 against Duquesne. As he matures physically and mentally throughout the year, he could become a major factor to the team's success.
Uzochukwu A Quiet, Steady Player
With much of the attention going to Bobby Davis and Nick Schneiders, and the emergence of De'Marion Gordon on the perimeter, Mezie Uzochukwu is putting together a solid, albeit quiet, season for Upstate. He ranks fourth on the team in scoring at 6.3 points per outing and ranks third with 3.5 rebounds per game. He has added a new facet to his game this season, the three-point shot. He is currently 4-of-6 from the three-point arc to lead the A-Sun.
Schneiders Tops The A-Sun In Blocks
Nick Schneiders is 7-3 and is supposed to block shots. He is doing so at an A-Sun-leading 2.8 blocks per outing average. While he has stepped to the top of the league in blocks, he is also one of the most improved players in the league. He averages 7.8 points and 9.3 rebounds per game, up from his 4.9 ppg and 4.8 rpg averages a year ago.
Upstate Cutting Down On Turnovers
Upstate opened the season by committing 29 turnovers at Georgia on Nov. 14. The Spartans have worked to cut down on that number and have done so with efficiency. Upstate has shaved off nearly nine turnovers per game and averages 20.8 per game. The Spartans turned it over a season-low 15 times against Duquesne last Tuesday. Upstate averaged 15.8 turnovers a game last year.
Spartans Hang Tough In First Half At #8 Notre Dame
Upstate certainly gave No. 8 Notre Dame all it could handle in the first half of the game on Nov. 16. Behind the solid play of Bobby Davis and Nick Schneiders, who combined to score the Spartans' first 14 points, Upstate held two leads during the half, the first at 17-16 with 12:17 to play and the second at 19-18 with 11:05 to play. Despite Notre Dame's effort to increase the lead midway through the half, the Spartans trailed by just three, 34-31, with 3:38 to play. However, the Fighting Irish had a late surge and Luke Zeller's three-pointer at the buzzer took an eight-point lead to an 11-point advantage at the intermission.
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.
Upstate's Schedule Ranked 9th-Toughest In Nation
In the daily strength of schedule ranking released by Jeff Sagarin on Nov. 30, Upstate's schedule was ranked the ninth-toughest in the nation. The Spartans play two teams ranked in the Top 10 in the latest AP Top 25 poll, five teams ranked in the Top 100 in the Sagarin overall rankings, and nine teams ranked in the Top 150 in the ranking report. Like last season, Upstate owns the toughest strength of schedule among all A-Sun schools. Jacksonville is second in the A-Sun at No. 12, while Stetson, Belmont, Mercer and East Tennessee State University also check-in the Top 100 with Stetson at No. 22, Belmont at No. 80, Mercer at No. 82 and ETSU at 98. Last season, the Spartans' strength of schedule peaked at No. 12 following their game at Duquesne and prior to the game at Iowa State.
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 Top 25 polls with Notre Dame holding down the No. 8 spot in the AP poll and the No. 9 spot in the ESPN/USA Today Top 25 polls and Gonzaga coming in at No. 9 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 opened 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 A-Sun
Upstate is in its second season playing as a member of the A-Sun. The Spartans finished the 2007-08 season with a 5-11 mark in the conference, tying for 10th place. However, Upstate has a longer history with several schools in the league and is a combined 19-20 against league foes. Upstate has played Kennesaw State 18 times prior to Monday's meeting and owns an 11-7 lead in the series, including a 71-65 Spartan victory last year in Spartanburg. Mercer and Upstate have played just once, a 75-49 win by the Spartans last season in Spartanburg.
Starting Lineup Consistency
Last year, Upstate head coach Eddie Payne used 12 different starting lineups in 30 games on the season. Though it is early in the 2008-09 season, Upstate's starting lineup has been the same through the first four games. Josh Chavis has assumed the starting spot at point guard, while Gabor Boros is his backcourt mate at shooting guard. Mezie Uzochukwu starts at the wing, while Bobby Davis mans the power forward position. At 7-3, Nick Schneiders is the man in the middle at the center position.
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.
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.
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.
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 58-23 (.716) in seven years under head coach Eddie Payne. Overall, the Spartans are 317-134 (.703) in 451 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.
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.
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.
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.
Mercer First A-Sun School To Knock Off One Of The Big Boys
Last season, Belmont nearly stunned Duke in the first round of the NCAA Tournament and introduced the nation to A-Sun basketball. However, the college basketball world already knew how strong the conference was last year and how tough league teams are year-in and year-out. A-Sun schools picked up wins over Kentucky, Southern Cal, Alabama, Georgia, Cincinnati and SMU last year. Mercer has gotten the A-Sun off to a good start this year with two wins against SEC teams as the Bears claimed a 72-69 victory over Alabama on Nov. 16 and a 78-74 win over Auburn on Nov. 19. Mercer's win over Alabama marks the second-straight year the Crimson Tide has fallen to an A-Sun school.
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.
