MOBILE, Ala. – After advancing to the second round of a national postseason tournament for the third time in the program's Division I era (2007-pres.), USC Upstate men's basketball left it all on the court Monday evening as it offered a furious second-half comeback attempt against South Alabama as play continued in The Basketball Classic presented by Eracism.
 
Facing a double-digit halftime deficit and a deficit that grew to as many as 17 in the second half, the Spartans didn't quit as they fought back to pull within one heading into the final four minutes of regulation. The hosts, however, stayed just ahead of Upstate to pull out an 83-79 victory.
 
Closing out his collegiate career, senior forward Bryson Mozone left it all on the court as he poured in a game and career-high 29 points, including 17 in the first half, to lead the Spartans. He finished the game shooting 6-of-16 from the floor and 4-of-9 from three while making a staggering 13-of-14 attempts from the free throw line.
 
Freshman guard Jordan Gainey and fellow senior forward Josh Aldrich joined Mozone in double-figures, posting 16 and 15 points, respectively. The trio of Aldrich, Gainey, and Mozone also paced Upstate on the boards as each pulled in a team-high six rebounds.
 
Game Information
Score: South Alabama 83; USC Upstate 79
Records: USC Upstate (15-17; 10-6 Big South); South Alabama (21-11; 9-7 Sun Belt)
Mitchell Center | Mobile, Ala.
 
How It Happened
First Half

• After blocking the first Upstate shot attempt of the night, South Alabama erupted on a 10-0 scoring run over the game's first three minutes of the game. The Spartans, however, answered with a 6-0 run of their own to trim the lead, getting three-pointers from Bryson Mozone and Dalvin White.
• The Jaguars countered the Upstate 6-0 run with a 6-0 scoring stretch of their own to push the lead back to double-digits. The Spartans worked the lead back down to single digits, trimming it to as few as five points heading into the final eight minutes of the first half.
• Pushing the lead back to double-digits, South Alabama embarked on another 6-0 run, but Mozone answered with a 6-0 run of his own, hitting a three and knocking down three free throws after being fouled behind the arc to keep the Jaguar lead at five.
• Mozone finished scoring the final 11 points of the half for Upstate, heading into the locker room with a team-best 17 points. However, South Alabama closed the final four minutes of the half by outscoring Upstate 13-5 to build a 13-point halftime advantage while closing the half on a 7-0 run.

Second Half

• Snapping a 7-0 South Alabama scoring stretch to end the first half, Mysta Goodloe took over for the Spartans to open the final 20 minutes. He scored the first four points of the half for the Spartans, going back-and-forth with the Jaguars before he added another layup to a Josh Aldrich layup to create the half's first scoring stretch.
• Building the lead to its largest of the game, South Alabama outscored Upstate 10-2 following Goodloe's layup with 17:14 to play in the half. The Spartans began trimming into the 17-point advantage with a 7-0 scoring spurt headed by a Floyd Rideau Jr. dunk and five points from Jordan Gainey.
• The Jaguars countered with a 6-0 scoring run to push their lead back to 16 before Upstate went on a tear to pull the game back to single digits. The Spartans outscored their hosts 24-9 over a near seven-minute stretch heading into the game's final four minutes, cutting the lead to one with 4:49 to play in the half.
• Seeing their lead trimmed to one, South Alabama stayed just a step ahead of the Spartans over the game's final four minutes, outscoring Upstate 12-9 to end the half. The Jaguars pushed the lead to as many as seven during the stretch before Josh Aldrich and Mozone trimmed it to four at the final buzzer.

 
Notable

• Closing out his collegiate career, Bryson Mozone tallied a career-high 29 points to lead Upstate against South Alabama. His career-high eclipsed his 26-point effort against Hampton on Feb. 2 as he also hit a career-high 13 free throws Monday night.
• Adding 16 points for the Spartans, Jordan Gainey ends his first season in a Spartan uniform with 25 double-figure scoring games, including scoring in double-figures in each of the team's final five games of the season.
• Scoring 15 points Monday, Josh Aldrich concluded Upstate's postseason (four games), scoring in double-figures in three of the Spartans' four games, including both during The Basketball Classic. His 15 points followed his career-best 24 points against Appalachian State, the first time he's posted back-to-back 15-plus point games.

 
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