SPARTANBURG, S.C. – For the first time since 2015 the USC Upstate men's basketball team is moving on in a conference tournament, after a 69-59 victory over High Point in the First Round of the Hercules Tires Big South Tournament on Tuesday night in front of a sold out crowd inside the G.B. Hodge Center.
USC Upstate (13-19) won the opening tip and sophomore guard
Everette Hammond (Silver Springs, Md.) connected on a three-pointer and the Spartans were off and running in front of an electric crowd. The Spartans opened the game on a 12-2 run and never looked back. With 14:30 to play in the half Cliff Thomas Jr. made a layup to end the scoring run for USC Upstate.
At the 11:18 mark of the first half
Nevin Zink (Newtown, Conn.) made a put back-layup to extend the Spartans lead to 17-7. The basket ignited a 7-0 run, Hammond's pull up transition jump shot with 8:47 to go in the period put the Spartans up 24-7.
Over the next several minutes of game time the Panthers chipped away at the Spartans lead and with 4:54 to play High Point was back to within seven of USC Upstate. Right on time,
Bryson Mozone (North Augusta, S.C.) drained a pull up three-pointer and the Spartans lead was back to double-digits.
USC Upstate went into the halftime intermission up 35-18. Hammond led all-scorers with 12-points in the opening half. John-Michael Wright led High Point with 7 first half points.
High Point made two quick baskets to begin the second half and prompted USC Upstate head coach
Dave Dickerson to call a timeout up 35-23. Out of the timeout break,
Tommy Bruner (Columbia, S.C.) hit a three-pointer to put the Spartans back up by 15.
Over the next several minutes each team traded points and offensive runs with one another. With 8:31 to play in the game Wright made a fast break layup off a High Point block to pull the Panthers within single digits of the Spartans. Following a USC Upstate timeout
Dalvin White hit a three-pointer to send the game into a media timeout.
USC Upstate connected on their free throws down the stretch and came away with a 10-point victory over High Point. The victory ends a five-year losing skid for the Spartans in conference tournament games. The win was also the Spartans first ever Big South Tournament win.
Notes
Upstate – Everette Hammond led the Spartans with 23-points,
Dalvin White and
Tommy Bruner each added 12-points, while
Nevin Zink hauled in 10-rebounds in the winning effort.
High Point – Jamal Wright ended the contest with 19-points, while Cliff Thomas Jr recorded a double-double with 12-points and 17-rebounds.
UP next for the Spartans
USC Upstate will move on in the Hercules Tires Big South Tournament as they face-off against No. 2 Winthrop on Thursday afternoon. The Spartans quarterfinals matchup will tip at 12:00 p.m. in Radford, Va.
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