Feb. 8, 2010

Box Score

Macon, Ga. - After a nearly flawless first half gave USC Upstate a 12-point halftime lead, Upstate couldn't get anything going offensively in the second half and Mercer stormed back to take an 83-69 victory over the Spartans Monday night in A-Sun men's basketball action in the University Center.

Upstate fell to 4-19 overall and 4-10 in the A-Sun with the loss. The Spartans return home for its final home stand of the season, first facing Lipscomb Thursday night at 7:30 and then Belmont Saturday afternoon at 2:00 in the Hodge Center. Mercer improved to 12-12 overall and 8-6 in the league with the win.

"I think in general we played a very good first half and didn't play well at all in the second," said Upstate head coach Eddie Payne. "I don't think we were tough enough in the second half. Our mindset wasn't tough enough. If we are going to win some games, we have to be tougher. It's just disappointing considering how well we played in the first half."

Upstate turned in the best first half of its season against Mercer Monday night. The Spartans shot 55 percent from the field, including a torrid 8-of-16 from the three-point arc, and were a perfect 7-of-7 from the free throw line in the half. They built a 19-point lead late before Mercer rallied to cut the deficit to 12 at halftime.

Ryan LeGates led the way for Upstate in the first half, finishing the period with 13 points. Carter Cook added 11 for the Spartans.

However, Mercer came out hot in the second half and Upstate struggled from the field.

Mercer cut the lead to eight early in the second half, but Upstate answered to push the lead back to double digits at 12 points with 18:09 to play in the game. The Bears then made their stand to not only get back in the game, but gain control.

After falling behind by 12, Mercer used a 21-1 run over the next 7:58 to not only erase its deficit, but open an eight-point lead, 60-52, with 10:04 to play.

Despite giving up its lead, Upstate hung tough. The Spartans cut the lead to three on two occasions and trailed by just five with 5:44 remaining. However, they could not get any closer as Mercer took the win. Cook hit a jumper to cut Mercer's lead to five, but James Florence connected on a layup and Jeff Smith added a three-pointer to push the Bears' lead to 10 points with 4:50 to play.

Upstate was simply dominant in the first half. The Spartans scored the first eight points of the game and increased the lead to 10 points with 14 minutes to play before halftime. Upstate led by eight with under 10 minutes to play, then used an 8-2 run to open a 14-point advantage with 7:12 left.

Upstate increased its lead to 19 points on a 10-0 run, capped by a four-point play from LeGates. LeGates was hammered on his three-point attempt from the right corner and hit his head hard on the floor. He made the free throw to give Upstate a 19-point advantage, but the play was costly. He was only able to play nine minutes in the second half before leaving the game with concussion-like symptoms.

With Upstate leading by 19 with 1:50 to play before halftime, Mercer closed the first half on a 7-0 run to cut the Spartan lead to 12 at the intermission. The run would foreshadow what would come in the second half.

Upstate shot just 27 percent from the field in the second half, made just 1-of-7 from the three-point arc, and was just 7-of-14 from the free throw line. The Spartans finished the game shooting 42 percent from the field. Mercer shot 47 percent from the floor for the game, 59 percent in the second half.

LeGates led the Upstate cause with 14 points. Cook finished with 13, while Chalmers Rogers came off the bench with a career-high nine points.

Smith led Mercer with 22 points. He was one of five Bears to reach double figures. Brandon Moore finished with 16 points, while Florence turned in 15 points, seven rebounds and five steals. Daniel Emerson finished with 12 points and 15 boards, while Brian Mills tallied 10 points.