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Contact: Katie Parker, kparker@uscupstate.edu

Box Score (PDF) 

SPARTANBURG, S.C. – The USC Upstate women's basketball team (10-15, 6-8 A-Sun) snapped a two game skid with a 57-48 win over Atlantic Sun Conference opponent Kennesaw State (7-18, 3-10 A-Sun) Saturday evening inside the Hodge Center as the Spartans held their annual PinkZone event and celebrated Senior Night.

The Spartans jumped ahead early, using a 10-0 run to take a 14-3 lead in the opening nine minutes of the contest. KSU did get on the board first with a free throw from Sametria Gideon in the first minute of the game, but Upstate never trailed after that point. The Owls then rattled off five-straight points, cutting the Spartan lead to just six (14-8) with 10:42 until halftime.

A jumper from Upstate senior Tee'Ara Copney (Asheville, N.C.) pushed the score to 16-8 with 9:25 left in the first frame. However, KSU answered back 26 seconds later with a bucket of its own, putting the Owls down 16-10. The six-point deficit with just under nine minutes to play in first half would prove to be the closest Kennesaw State would get the remainder of the game.

The Spartans took a 25-16 lead into the locker room at the half as freshman Brittany Starling (Sumter, S.C.) led all scorers with 10 points. This marked the third-straight game the rookie has tallied double figures in the opening half of play.

The two teams exchanged buckets for the majority of the second half. Upstate took its largest lead of the night with 3:39 left to play, inching its way to a 14-point advantage (52-38) off of a 7-2 spurt. The Owls managed to trim that down to nine off of a few free throws and a three-pointer as the Spartans claimed the 57-48 victory.

Upstate was led on the night by Copney, tallying a game-high 20 points, including a 7-for-9 outing at the line. This marked her seventh 20-point scoring effort this season. The senior also handed out six assists and swiped a game-best five steals, while pulling down three rebounds.

Starling flirted with a double-double for the Spartans, posting 14 points and snagging nine boards. Senior Tyra Smith (Lawrenceville, Ga.) dished out a game-high eight assists, tying her season-high mark against North Florida Jan. 28. She also gathered five rebounds to go along with four steals.

Freshman Tweety Hawkins (Madison, Ga.), freshman Brittany Clency (Greensboro, N.C.) and redshirt-freshman Maddie Herr (Arcadia, Ind.) all added five points apiece for the Spartans. Sophomore Shelby Hicks (Greeneville, Tenn.) also had a solid night for Upstate, collecting six boards and posting four points.

Nicole Adams paced the Owls with 13 points, while Chelsea Mason recorded 11. Gideon proved why she leads the A-Sun on the boards, pulling down a game-high 11 rebounds for KSU to go along with seven points and two blocked shots. Mason handed out a team-best three assists as did Kristina Wells. Wells and Mason also each grabbed five rebounds, while Chantel Kennedy had seven boards.

On the night, Upstate shot 43.4 percent from the floor, compared to Kennesaw State's 38.3 field goal percentage. The Spartans were 42.9 percent from long range, while KSU was 30.8 percent from behind the arc. At the line, Upstate bested the Owls, connecting on 8-of-11 attempts for a 72.7 percentage. KSU was 8-for-18 from the charity stripe with a 44.4 free throw percentage.

Kennesaw State won the battle of the boards 37-28 and claimed the contest of second chances 12-8. Upstate outscored KSU in the paint 38-18, while also outscoring the Owl bench 19-6. Kennesaw State scored 10 points off of the Spartans' 17 turnovers, while Upstate scored 24 points off of KSU's 25 miscues.

Prior to the game, Upstate honored Copney, Smith, Lauren McRoberts (Carmel, Ind.) and Hannah Ohl (Danville, Ill.) in a Senior Night ceremony. Copney and McRoberts have been four-year members of the program, while Smith and Ohl became Spartans after transferring for their junior and senior seasons.

The Spartans return to action Monday, hosting Mercer for a 7 p.m. tip to close out their home slate. Follow Upstate women's basketball this season on your mobile device, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.