SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Trailing by two with the final ticks coming off the game clock, it was USC Upstate men's basketball who landed the knockout punch as Upstate and High Point went blow for blow Wednesday afternoon at the G.B. Hodge Center.
 
Pulling up with 6.4 seconds remaining on the game clock, senior Dalvin White sent the raucous home crowd into a frenzy as he buried a three from the left wing to put the Spartans ahead 66-65 as he joined the Spartans quintet of double-figure scorers. On the defensive end, Upstate forced a long, errant shot attempt and withstood a Panther put-back attempt to walk away victorious.
 
Leading the Spartans offensively, freshman guard Jordan Gainey tallied a game-high 17 points to pace a group of five double-figure scorers. White finished just behind Gainey with 12 points while adding eight assists as junior guard Mysta Goodloe posted a career-high-tying 11 points, senior forward Bryson Mozone 10 points, and redshirt freshman guard Floyd Rideau Jr. a season-high 10 points.
 
Game Information
Score: USC Upstate 66; High Point 65
Records: USC Upstate (5-10; 2-1 Big South); High Point (6-9; 0-1 Big South)
Location: G.B. Hodge Center | Spartanburg, S.C.
 
How It Happened
First Half

• After seeing High Point drain a three on the game's opening possession, Upstate quickly reclaimed the lead as Bryson Mozone and Mysta Goodloe sparked a 5-0 run to give the Spartans the lead. With both baskets coming off the first two of Dalvin White's seven assists, Mozone laid one in before Goodloe hit from long range.
• Countering Upstate's quick run, the Panthers made three-pointers in three consecutive possessions ahead of the game's first media timeout to extend their lead to five, outscoring the Spartans 9-2 during the stretch.
• Trading baskets over a nearly six-minute stretch of the half to keep the High Point advantage around three to five points, Upstate pulled with one as Jordan Gainey rose up from the corner, hitting his first of three three-pointers before Mozone knocked down a free throw to pull the game to 20-19.
• Pushing its lead to six points at the halftime buzzer, High Point scored five of the final six points in the half to carry a 33-27 advantage into the locker room.

Second Half

• Driving to the rack, earning and converting a traditional three-point play, White sparked a 6-0 second half-opening run with the run punctuated by a Gainey three off a White assist. Spanning the half, the Spartans crafted a 7-0 run to tie the game at 33.
• Answering back-to-back shots that pushed High Point ahead, Goodloe scored five consecutive points for the Spartans, converting a layup before splashing a three ahead of the half's first media timeout. Out of said timeout, White hit a turn-around jumper to give Upstate a three-point advantage—its largest of the game to that point.
• With the Panthers fighting back to tie the game and begin to pull ahead once again, Floyd Rideau Jr. scored six straight points for the Spartans to tie the game at 46 with 11 minutes to play.
• Following a 5-0 High Point scoring run to take a five-point advantage, a Rideau step-back jumper kickstarted the Spartans' longest scoring run of the second half as Upstate embarked on an 8-0 run. Rideau's jumper and a Mozone three bookended three Gainey free throws to create the run, putting Upstate up 59-56 with four minutes to play.
• Trading the lead for the final four minutes of the game, White stepped up and drilled the biggest shot attempt of the game, draining a deep three with 6.4 seconds remaining in regulation to give Upstate a 66-65 advantage.

 
Notable

• In addition to hitting the game-winning shot Wednesday night, Dalvin White also dished out a team-high seven assists for the Spartans. Passing out nine assists versus Presbyterian and seven against High Point, he's passed out seven-plus assists in back-to-back games for the first time in his career.
• Scoring a game-high 17 points against the Panthers, Jordan Gainey has scored 15 or more points in three consecutive games. It marks the longest such streak of his Spartan career.
• Over the team's first three Big South Conference games, Upstate has received four or more double-figure scorers in each game. Wednesday's game versus High Point marked the second in the stretch with five double-figure scorers, also doing so against Radford.
• Knocking down eight more threes Wednesday night, the Spartans lead the Big South in made three-pointers during conference play, hitting 31 total over the team's three league games. Upstate's eight threes against High Point gives Upstate eight or more made threes in five consecutive games.

 
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