MACON, Ga. – The USC Upstate women's basketball team (6-17, 5-7 A-Sun) dropped an 87-71 decision at Mercer (4-20, 2-11 A-Sun), snapping a 13-game Mercer losing-streak.

The Spartans kept things close for most of the first half, but the Bears went on a 27-4 run to close out the half. Mercer took a 48-25 lead into the locker room at the break. Upstate didn't give up in the second half and ended up outscoring the Bears 46-39 in the second frame. Unfortunately, the Spartans second half surge wasn't enough to overcome 54 points from Mercer's Briana Williams, setting a single-game A-Sun record. The previous record was 51 points set by Mercer's Andrea Congreaves twice in 1992.

Upstate was led by junior Tee'Ara Copney (Asheville, N.C.) with 30 points, marking her second 30-plus point outing. She continued her strong performance at the free throw line, going 13-for-14 at the charity stripe. The 13 made foul shots was a career-high for Copney, passing her previous career-best of 12 made free throws at Marshall Nov. 17, 2010.

Freshman Paulia Zaveckaite (Telsiai, Lithuania) posted her fourth double-double of the season for the Spartans with 11 points and 12 rebounds. She swiped a team-high three steals. Her classmate Shelby Hicks (Greeneville, Tenn.) tallied 10 points and six boards on the day. This marked Zaveckaite's fifth double-digit scoring performance and Hicks' seventh.

Upstate freshman Hikeya' Davis (York, S.C.) registered a career-high eight points, passing her previous mark of three points set at Stetson Dec. 17, 2011. She also pulled down a career-best four rebounds, while Copney also had five boards. Copney handed out a game-high four assists.

For the Bears, Williams went 16-for-27 from the floor and 5-for-6 from behind the arc. She connected on 17-of-21 free throws. Tabitha Bradshaw was second on the Mercer squad with 10 points, while Precious Bridges added nine. Alex Phillips grabbed a team-high 11 rebounds, while Williams snagged a game-high four steals. Bradshaw also dished out four assists.

The Spartans outscored the Bears in the paint 40-18 and off the bench 18-7. Upstate won the battle of the boards 40-36 and the contest of second chances 10-8. However, Mercer outscored Upstate off of turnovers 25-14. The Spartans turned the ball over 23 times, compared to the Bears' 13 turnovers. Upstate shot 42.1 percent from the floor and 12.5 percent from long distance, while Mercer was 44.6 percent from the floor and 57.1 percent from three-point range.

Upstate is back in action Thursday, Feb. 9, hosting North Florida at 7 p.m. in the Hodge Center. Follow the Spartans this season on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.