Saturday's MatchUP
Hercules Tires Big South Women's Basketball Championship First Round
Saturday, March 6 | 2:00 p.m. EST
USC Upstate (7-14, 5-11 Big South) vs Charleston Southern (6-16, 4-14 BSC)
G.B. Hodge Center | Spartanburg, S.C.

TV: ESPN3 | Via WatchESPN.com or the ESPN App
PxP: Richmond Weaver
Color: Amanda Keane

Series History
USC Upstate holds a 10-5 lead in the all-time series against CSU dating back to 1979-80. Upstate took the first five meetings in the overall series, and the Buccaneers took all three meetings between the two teams in the 2018-19 season, including a Big South Championship first round matchup. The Spartans spoiled CSU's win streak against Upstate as they swept the season series last year with a 70-53 win at home followed by a 71-64 road win later in the year. The two teams did not meet in the regular season this year as the series was canceled due to COVID-19 concerns in the CSU program.

Spartans in the Big South Tournament
Upstate holds a 1-1 record in the Big South Tournament. In their first tournament appearance after joining the Big South prior to the 2018-19 season, the Spartans fell in the first round game at Charleston Southern 67-52 on March 12, 2019. Last year, Upstate became the first-ever 10-seed to advance to the tournament quarterfinals after downing Winthrop 60-57 on the road in the first round. The Spartans were set to face Radford on March 12, 2019 in the quarterfinals when the pandemic struck.

Tournament Schedule
First Round – Saturday, March 6 – ESPN3
#9 Charleston Southern at #8 USC Upstate, 2:00pm

Quarterfinals – Monday, March 8 – ESPN3
#8/9 winner at #1 High Point, 6:00pm
#5 Presbyterian at #4 Gardner-Webb, 7:00pm
#7 Winthrop at #2 Campbell, 6:00pm
#6 UNC Asheville at #3 Longwood, 7:00pm

Semifinals - Thursday, March 11 – ESPN+
Semifinal Game 1 – 6:00pm
Semifinal Game 2 – 7:00pm

Championship - Sunday, March 14 – ESPN+
at highest remaining seed, 2:00pm

Game times subject to change.

Last Time Out
Upstate: The Spartans are coming off an extended break in play as both of their last two series were canceled due to COVID concerns with the Campbell and CSU programs. Before that, Upstate swept the series at UNC Asheville on Feb. 5-6. Game One Recap | Game Two Recap

CSU: The Bucs are coming off a pair of losses to Radford on Feb. 20-21. Game One Recap | Game Two Recap

Ones to Watch
Upstate – Molly Coleman ended the regular season as Upstate's second leading scorer with 211 points. She ranked third in scoring average with 10.0 points per game and recorded a .571 field goal percentage for the year. Coleman led the Spartans in six statistical categories in the regular season including rebounds (130), rebounding average (6.2rpg), and blocked shots (26). She recorded five double-doubles and 11 double-figure scoring games with a career day at UNCA where she posted 24 points and 14 boards.

Denijsha Wilson appeared in all 21 games for the Spartans this season with 20 starts. She led the team in nine statistical categories including points (258) and scoring average (12.3ppg), had a team-high 52 assists and 25 steals, and posted 13 double-figure scoring games with a career-high 27 points on 10-of-15 shooting at Hampton. Wilson also notched 22 points at UNC Asheville, swiped four passes at Gardner-Webb, had six assists at Alabama, and averaged a team-high 31.5 minutes per game.

Charleston Southern – Junior forward Alyssia Faye is pacing the Bucs over the last three games averaging 21.0 points and 9.3 rebounds per contest, while senior guard Carmella Walker posted her first collegiate double-double against Radford.

UP Next for the Spartans
The winner of this matchup will go on to face No. 1 High Point on the road Monday, March 8 in the quarterfinals of the Hercules Tires Big South

Home Game Attendance Information
Single game tickets are not available for sale to the general public. Due to limited seating capacity in accordance with social distancing guidelines, tickets for this season are reserved for season ticket holders, player families and USC Upstate students. For more information, click here.

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