Upstate to Close out Four-Game Road Swing Monday Night
12/18/2011 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Game Notes
Follow the Spartans on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube
SPARTANBURG, S.C. – The USC Upstate men's basketball team's week-and-a-half excursion will come to a close Tuesday when the squad returns to Spartanburg. However, before the team travels back to the Palmetto State, the Spartans will battle Florida Gulf Coast Monday night at 7:30 p.m. inside Alico Arena in Fort Myers, Fla.
Join the Conversation on Twitter: @UpstateSpartans
Hashtag: #UpstateMBB
Spartan Specs
• Ty Greene posted a game-high and career-high 21 points Saturday at Stetson. Greene tied a career-high with seven made field goals (four were from beyond the arc).
• Ricardo Glenn picked up his first career double-double with 12 points and 14 rebounds at Stetson. Glenn, who pulled down eight offensive rebounds, finished 4-for-8 from the field and was a perfect 4-for-4 at the line.
• Torrey Craig's streak of 20 or more points in a game was halted Saturday at Stetson as the sophomore finished with 13 points on a 4-for-14 effort from the floor. During his four game stretch, Craig averaged 22.3 points per game. Against Jacksonville State (12/1/11), Craig had 20, including the game winning basket, followed by a career-best 28 points at UNC Asheville (12/4/11). He had 21 points in the Spartans' upset bid at Dayton (12/11/11) and 20 points at (2) Ohio State (12/14/11), including a stretch of seven straight points in the first half.
• 14 of Upstate's 15 steals at Stetson (12/17/11) were recorded by sophomore forwards (Maxey, 5; Glenn, 3; Olumuyiwa, 3; Craig, 2).
• At Stetson (12/17/11), the PG duo of Mario Blessing and Adrian Rodgers combined for zero turnovers. Rodgers also dished out a career-high six assists against the Hatters.
• As a team, the Spartans finished 81.0% (17-of-21) at the free throw line at Stetson. Prior to the 81.0% mark, the Spartans previous high this season was 76.5% (13-of-17) against Piedmont College (11/14/11).
• Upstate won its third straight conference opener with a 79-63 victory Saturday at Stetson. Last season, the Spartans opened conference play with a thrilling 60-59 win over ETSU (Hodge Center, 12/5/10). Chalmers Rogers lay-up with three seconds remaining gave the Spartans the one point win. Upstate opened the 2009-10 conference season with a 78-56 win over Stetson in the Hodge Center (11/30/09).
• Upstate connected on 50.9% of its field goal attempts (29-of-57) at Dayton (12/11/11). It was the first time this season the Spartans dropped a contest despite shooting 50.0% or better from the floor.
• Torrey Craig posted a career-high 28 points at UNC Asheville (12/4/11). He finished 7-of-16 from the floor and a perfect 10-for-10 at the charity stripe. Craig became the first player to hit 10 or more FTs in a single game since the 2009-10 campaign (Pat Posey, 12, vs. Jacksonville, 1/31/10).
• Chalmers Rogers had eight points at halftime and finished with a career-best 10 points against UNC Asheville (12/4/11).
Today's Opponent – Florida Gulf Coast
Florida Gulf Coast, like Stetson, had nearly a two week break between contests. Prior to Monday night's game against Upstate, the last contest for FGCU was on Dec. 7, a 51-50 loss at Nebraska.
FGCU forced 18 Nebraska turnovers and converted those miscues into 15 points. The Eagle bench also outscored the Husker bench 35-23.
In FGCU's conference opener, the Eagles led ETSU by as many as 14 in the first half and claimed a 72-63 victory over the Bucs (12/3/11). Sherwood Brown paced the Eagles in the victory over ETSU with 20 points on a 7-for-10 effort from the floor. Brown sank four of his five attempts from beyond the arc.
Brown and Bernard Thompson lead the Eagles in scoring with 12.0 and 10.3 points per game, respectively. Chase Fieler is the team's leading rebounder at 5.4 rebounds per game, while Brett Comer owns the team lead with 5.3 assists per contest.
