Box Score (.pdf)

Spartanburg, S.C. – Phillip Whittington finished with a career-high 16 points Saturday afternoon as the USC Upstate men's basketball team fell to the Lipscomb Bisons 78-65 on Homecoming inside the Hodge Center.

Upstate drops to 8-18 overall and 2-7 in the A-Sun, while Lipscomb improves to 8-18 on the season and 4-5 in conference play.

Whittington was one of three Spartans to finish in double-figures after shooting a career-best 7-of-11 from the field. Josh Cuthbertson came off the bench to score 14 points and Jure Span tied his career-high of 11 points.  

The Bisons were led offensively by J.C. Hampton with 14 points. Eli Peppers contributed a double-double of 11 points and 11 rebounds.

Span put Upstate on the board with a long three-pointer to open the game before Lipscomb tied the score at 6-6 on a Cam Miller layup. Hampton gave the Bisons an 8-6 lead with a pair of free throws until Deion Holmes put the hosts back on top with a three-pointer the following possession.

Lipscomb claimed a 20-9 lead thanks to a 14-0 run capped by a Brett Wishon three-pointer with 10:56 to play in the half. The Spartans responded with baskets by Cuthbertson and Whittington to pull within seven, 20-13. Following a George Brammeirer jumper that gave Lipscomb a 25-15 edge with 7:38 to play, both teams went cold until Brammeirer hit a jumper at the 4:45 mark. A Garrison Matthews layup at the 1:49 mark gave the Bisons a 36-19 lead before Jacob Schulte sank a free throw with four seconds remaining to send Lipscomb into halftime with a 36-20 lead.

The Bisons opened the second half on a 10-2 run to go in front 46-22. Whittington completed a three-point play to make the score 46-27 with 16:36 remaining. After Lipscomb pushed its lead back to 50-28, Marvin Smith hit a pair of free throws to bring Upstate within 16, 52-36, with just over 11 minutes remaining. The Spartans cut their deficit to 58-47 after a Cuthbertson three-pointer with 8:11 to go.  The Bisons responded with a 9-4 run, pushing their lead out to 67-51, with 5:55 remaining. Cuthbertson brought the Spartans to within nine, 74-65, after he completed a three-point play with 1:08 to go. Upstate would get no closer as the Bisons connected on four straight free throws to close out the victory.

The Spartans finished the game shooting 39.3% (22-of-56) from the field while Lipscomb was 49.2% (29-of-59) as a team. Upstate outscored the Bisons 9-6 in second chance points and 32-21 from the bench.

The Spartans remain at home Thursday, Feb. 11 as they host Florida Gulf Coast at 7 p.m.

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