GREENSBORO, N.C. – Looking to bounce back following Wednesday night's heavyweight bout, USC Upstate men's basketball did just that with its largest conference victory during the Big South era (2018-pres.) of Spartan basketball, defeating North Carolina A&T 84-64 Saturday afternoon.
 
Leading the Spartans, senior forward Bryson Mozone and freshman guard Jordan Gainey tallied 19 points apiece, draining four three-pointers each while pacing Upstate with seven and six rebounds, respectively. Mozone finished shooting 60 percent (6-of-10) from the field and 50 percent (4-of-8) from three as Gainey shot 50 percent (5-of-10) from the floor and 66.7 percent (4-of-6) from beyond the arc.
 
Three others joined Mozone and Gainey in double-figures, giving Upstate five double-figure scorers for the third time during Big South play. Senior guard Dalvin White added 16 points and six assists for the Spartans with senior forward Josh Aldrich and junior forward Khydarius Smith adding 11 and 10 points, respectively.
 
Game Information
Score: USC Upstate 84; North Carolina A&T 64
Records: USC Upstate (9-11; 6-2 Big South); North Carolina A&T (9-13; 4-4 Big South)
Location: Corbett Sports Center | Greensboro, N.C.
 
How It Happened
First Half

• Over the game's first 10-plus minutes of the game, Upstate was hot from beyond the arc, seeing each of its first six field-goal makes from deep. The six threes helped the Spartans keep pace with the Aggies on their home floor with the final three putting the Spartans ahead while ending an 8-0 North Carolina A&T run.
• Seeing the game tied at 18 with 9:09 to play, the Spartans and Aggies went shot-for-shot with one another over the next two-and-a-half minutes before Khydarius Smith made consecutive field goals. His second field goal came off a nice feed from Mysta Goodloe, seeing Smith throw down a one-handed slam.
• Coming with the game tied at 24, Smith's consecutive field goals started a 10-1 scoring run as Upstate began building its halftime advantage. Following a made free-throw after Smith's consecutive buckets, Mozone and Goodloe hit back-to-back three for the Spartans to build a nine-point lead.
• After the 24-24 tie, the Spartans outscored North Carolina A&T 18-8 to close the half, shooting 7-of-10 from the field and 3-of-5 from the field over the final five-and-a-half minutes of the half.

Second Half

• Pushing its lead to 11 ahead of the half's first media timeout, the Spartans outpaced the Aggies 5-4 over the half's first three minutes. Upstate's first three points came from the free throw line before Smith added a layup to push the lead to 47-36.
• Cutting the Upstate advantage to four, North Carolina A&T put together a 7-0 run with Marcus Watson scoring six of the seven points in the run for the Aggies. Jordan Gainey provided the answer to the Aggies' run, scoring seven straight points for the Spartans, converting a four-point play before hitting another three-pointer.
• Building up its lead towards 20 points, Upstate used a 10-2 run to increase the lead to 18 at 72-54 with 4:15 remaining in the game. The Spartans scored six points from the charity stripe in the run with Dalvin White and Smith adding field goals, including a second dunk from Smith.
• Following an Aggie free throw, Upstate increased its scoring stretch to 20-6 heading into the final minute-and-a-half of the game. The stretch increased the Spartans' lead to 24, the largest of the game before North Carolina A&T trimmed the lead to 20 at the final buzzer.

 
Notable

• Posting an 84-64 victory over North Carolina A&T, Upstate secured its largest conference victory (+20) since joining the Big South during the 2018-19 season. The victory was the largest for the Spartans against a conference opponent since March 3, 2015, when Upstate downed Kennesaw State 90-54 in the ASUN Tournament.
• Seeing five double-figure scorers Saturday afternoon, the Spartans secured their third game with five double-figure scores during Big South Conference play. The game also marks the fourth this season with five double-figure scorers as the Spartans are 3-1 in such games this season.
• Tying for the team lead with 19 points against North Carolina A&T, Jordan Gainey tallied 16 or more points for the eighth time in eight games in Big South play. He's scored in double-figures in nine straight games, the longest streak of his career.
• Adding 11 points Saturday following his career-high 18 points against Winthrop Wednesday, Josh Aldrich posted his fifth double-figure scoring game of the season, notching back-to-back double-figure scoring games for the first time this season.

 
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