Box Score
Box Score (.pdf)
Spartanburg, S.C. – Brittany Starling and Travonda Haddock each posted a double-double as the USC Upstate women's basketball team defeated Kennesaw State 66-57 Thursday night inside the Hodge Center.
Upstate improves to 14-8 overall and 5-2 in the Atlantic Sun, while Kennesaw State drops to 8-14 and 3-4.
Starling scored 24 points and pulled down 11 rebounds for her 36th career double-double. She was 9-for-15 from the field and had a career-high five assists. Haddock posted her third career double-double with 13 points and a career-high 14 rebounds. She also tied a career-high with five blocks. Brittany Clency added 12 points.
Kelly Dulkoski led Kennesaw State with 14 points, followed by Jasmine McAllister with 11 and Aaeron Smith with 10. McAllister led the Owls with 13 rebounds.
Upstate opened the game on a 5-0 run thanks to a Haddock three-pointer and a Kristen Dickerson jumper. A Clency jumper gave the hosts a 7-2 lead before the Owls trimmed the Spartan lead to 9-8 following a Smith layup with 4:47 to play. An A'Lexxus Davis free throw gave the Spartans a 12-8 edge with 3:49 remaining before Kennesaw State went on an 8-0 run capped by a Deandrea Sawyers layup for a 16-12 lead. The Owls led 18-14 at the end of the first period.
The Spartans opened the second quarter on a 9-0 run to take a 23-18 lead following a Clency jumper at the 7:24 mark. Kennesaw State responded with three-pointers by Clara Young and Dulkoski to take a 24-23 lead at the 5:54 mark. After four lead changes, Upstate took a 31-28 lead after a Starling layup with 1:36 to play. Kennesaw State sent the game into halftime tied at 31 thanks to a Dulkoski three-pointer.
Kennesaw State led 36-33 with 5:53 to play in the third quarter before Starling completed the old-fashioned three-point play to tie the game at 36 with 4:24 remaining. The Owls took a 41-38 lead with a McAlister layup with 2:01 to play before the Spartans closed out the quarter on a 6-0 run to lead 44-41 heading into the final quarter.
Upstate opened the fourth quarter continuing its run, stretching it to 11-0, taking a 49-41 lead after a Haddock layup with 7:20 to play. The Spartans enjoyed their largest of the game, 12 points, after Starling hit a pair of free throws to make the score 55-43 with 4:41 remaining. Kennesaw State trimmed the Spartan lead to 57-48 following a Dulkoski three-pointer with 3:52 to go. A Clency jumper pushed the lead back to double-digits, 60-49, with three minutes remaining. Smith brought the Owls to within eight, 60-52, with 1:25 to play before Upstate sank six straight free throws to secure the win.
The Spartans finished 25-for-68 (36.8%) from the field while Kennesaw State finished 21-for-61 (34.4%). Upstate held a 46-43 edge on the glass and a 30-20 advantage in points in the paint.
Upstate hosts Lipscomb on Homecoming Saturday at 4:30 p.m. The Spartans claimed an 81-54 road win over the Lady Bisons last Saturday.
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