Men's Basketball Set for Texas Trio
11/16/2011 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Game Notes
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SPARTANBURG, S.C. – The USC Upstate men's basketball team will travel to the state of Texas for this weekend's Texas-Pan American tournament. The Spartans open the event Friday night against host UTPA, followed by contests against Toledo (Saturday) and Texas State (Sunday).
For those fans that cannot attend this weekend's games, there are several ways you can follow the action from the opening tip to the final horn. Fans can follow the action by clicking the live audio, live stats and live video links above.
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Spartan Specs
• After scoring just four points at Arkansas (11/11/11), Torrey Craig quadrupled that total with 16 points behind a 6-for-11 effort from the field against Piedmont College (11/14/11). He was also just one rebound shy of a double-double.
• Rob Elam grabbed a career-high four rebounds against Piedmont College Monday night.
• Ty Greene scored a career-best 13 points in Upstate's victory over Piedmont College (11/14/11). He connected on four field goal attempts and four free throw attempts.
• Against Piedmont College (11/14/11), Adrian Rodgers posted a career-best 22 points behind a 9-for-13 effort from the field. He is the first player to score 20 or more points in a game since Torrey Craig posted 20 points at Stetson (2/4/11).
• Jodd Maxey finished just two points shy of his first career double-digit scoring game with eight points vs. Piedmont College.
• Maxey made his first start in a Spartan uniform against Arkansas (11/11/11). Friday's contest marked the first time Maxey had played in a collegiate game since the 2009-10 season. He spent his freshman season at South Carolina State and sat out the 2010-11 season due to NCAA transfer rules.
• Newcomers led the way in the season-opener at Arkansas. Fred Miller tallied a team-high 10 points, with Mario Blessing tallying three assists and Greene recording four steals. Maxey rejected a pair of Razorback shots.
• The Spartans return nine players from last season's squad and welcome six newcomers. Upstate welcomes four freshmen to the team [Blessing, Greene, Miller and Rodgers] and a pair of junior college transfers [Jeremy Ford and Aru Kok].
• Last season, Babatunde Olumuyiwa led the A-Sun in blocks (71) and blocks per game (2.37).
• As a freshman, Torrey Craig ranked in the top-10 in the conference in five different statistical categories [Rebounding (3rd, 7.2 rpg), Defensive Rebounding (3rd, 4.93 drpg), 3-Point Field Goals Made Per Game (4th, 2.27 pg), Scoring (7th, 14.4 ppg) and Offensive Rebounding (T-8th, 2.27 orpg)].
• At South Carolina (11/23/10), Babatunde Olumuyiwa set an Upstate single-game record with nine blocked shots. His nine rejections tied an A-Sun single game record and was the third-highest total against the Gamecocks [Derek Holcomb (Illinois, 12/8/78, Champaign, Ill.) and Shaquille O'Neal (LSU, 2/19/92, Columbia, S.C.)]
• Carter Cook sank two free throws with 6.9 seconds remaining in double overtime against UNC Asheville (11/29/10) to lift Upstate to a thrilling 93-91 victory over the Bulldogs in the first game inside the newly renovated Hodge Center.
• Chalmers Rogers scored what proved to be the game-winning basket in a 60-59 victory over ETSU (12/5/10, Hodge Center).
• At Virginia Tech (12/30/10), Shane Porchea scored a career-best seven points in the Spartans' upset-bid against the Hokies.
• Ricardo Glenn scored a career-high 16 points behind a career-best five field goals against Jacksonville (2/13/11).
Looking Back at Piedmont College
Four different Spartans scored in double figures to help lead the USC Upstate men's basketball squad to a 91-66 victory over the visiting Piedmont College Lions Monday night inside the Hodge Center.
Rookie Adrian Rodgers (Alpharetta, Ga.) led the Upstate (1-1) attack with 22 points behind a 9-for-13 effort from the floor. Torrey Craig (Great Falls, S.C.) scored 16 in the home opener while Ty Greene (Knoxville, Tenn.) and Ricardo Glenn (Augusta, Ga.) pitched in 13 and 10 points respectively.
Piedmont College opened the game on a 6-2 run to take an early four-point advantage. Upstate responded with a 19-2 run over the next 5:20 to take a 13-point advantage at 21-8 with 12:40 to play in the first half.
Piedmont College narrowed the gap to just seven points, 29-22, when Michael Ross connected on a three-point attempt with 8:36 to play in the half. After Ross' three-ball, the Spartans used another big run to increase their lead.
Upstate, thanks to a 16-5 run, owned a 45-27 lead with just 2:33 remaining before intermission. Upstate took a 16-point lead (49-31) into the locker room at halftime.
The Spartans opened the final 20 minutes of play with a 23-9 run as they took a 32-point lead (72-40) with 10:14 to play. After Glenn's successful jumper in the paint with 8:17 to go, the Spartans owned a 76-42 advantage, which turned out to be their largest lead of the contest (34 points).
Over the final eight minutes, Upstate's lead never dipped below 22 points as the homestanding Spartans claimed the 25 point win.
Welcome to the 90s
Not only have the Spartans won back-to-back home openers, Upstate has surpassed the 90-point plateau in each of the victories. The Spartans defeated eventual Big South Conference champion UNC Asheville, 93-91 (2OT), Nov. 29, 2010. In the 2011-12 home opener, the Spartans used pressure defense to claim a 91-66 victory over Piedmont College (11/14/11).
Under Pressure
Utilizing a pressure and trapping game the Spartans have forced a total of 52 turnovers through the first two games of 2011-12. The Spartans forced 23 turnovers in the season-opener at Arkansas (11/11/11). In the home opener, Upstate forced Piedmont College to commit 29 turnovers. The Spartans recorded 20 points off of Razorback miscues, while scoring 36 points off of Lion errors.
Mister Rodgers' Neighborhood
Upstate rookie Adrian Rodgers had quite the debut in his first game inside the Hodge Center. Against Piedmont College (11/14/11), Rodgers scored 22 points behind a 9-for-13 effort from the floor. Rodgers' nine field goals are tied for the A-Sun lead in a single game this year and his 69.2 field goal percentage is the highest mark thus far. His 22 total points are tied for second most in a single game this season; Tommy Hubbard (ETSU) owns the lead with 23 points (vs. Appalachian State, 11/15/11).
