SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Closing out its two-game homestand, USC Upstate men's basketball secured the game's leading scorer and saw two Spartans score in double-figures but were unable to overcome Western Carolina—a team ranked 13^th in the latest Mid-Major Top 25—in a 70-53 setback Saturday at the G.B. Hodge Center.
 
Posting his eighth double-figure scoring game of the season, redshirt junior guard Trae Broadnax poured in a game-high 18 points as he shot 58.3 percent from the field, going 7-of-12 on the evening. Shooting greater than 50 percent from the field, Saturday's game marked his seventh game of the year shooting better than 50 percent from the floor.
 
Joining Broadnax in double-figures, redshirt senior forward Ahmir Langlais added 13 points, finishing 4-of-8 from the floor for his seventh game of the year shooting 50 percent or greater. Complementing his scoring total, he pulled in eight rebounds, posting his fifth game with eight or more boards.
 
Game Information
Score: Western Carolina 70; USC Upstate 53
Records: USC Upstate (4-7; 0-0 Big South); Western Carolina (8-2; 0-0 SoCon)
Location: G.B. Hodge Center | Spartanburg, S.C.
 
How It Happened
First Half

• Taking a feed from Trae Broadnax following a theft from Justin Bailey, Ahmir Langlais opened the scoring as he hit a layup to give Upstate an early lead. Western Carolina countered the Spartans' opening score with its longest scoring run of the first half, scoring 12 consecutive points, benefitting from a pair of threes during the stretch.
• Snapping the scoring run, Bailey hit a tough layup against contact as he drew the foul to complete the three-point play. The basket set off a six-and-a-half-minute stretch where the two teams traded scores before the Catamounts scored successive field goals heading into the final six minutes of the half.
• After trading field goals and seeing Western Carolina build its largest lead of the first half—13 points—Upstate fashioned its longest scoring run of the game with a 9-0 stretch to trim the deficit to four. Floyd Rideau Jr. led off the run with a three while Ahmir Langlais closed the stretch with four consecutive markers.
• Western Carolina held Upstate without a field goal over the final two minutes of the opening period, maintaining their advantage into the locker room. The Catamounts finished the half with a 5-2 scoring stretch following the Spartans' longest run, holding a seven-point advantage at the break.

Second Half

• Opening the second half with a three-point play, Western Carolina pushed its lead back to double-digits. The Spartans answered with four points from Ahmir Langlais before the Catamounts fabricated their longest scoring run of the game with 14 consecutive points.
• Hitting the Spartans' first field goal in over five minutes, Broadnax set up a 10-2 scoring stretch for Upstate. After a Western Carolina bucket, Upstate scored eight consecutive points to close the 10-2 run with Broadnax and Rideau Jr. bookending the 8-0 run with threes.
• Countering Upstate's 8-0 scoring run, the Catamounts strung together an 8-0 scoring stretch of their own, taking advantage of a pair of threes to open the run. Jordyn Surratt ended the Western Carolina run with a pair of free throws before a Catamount layup pushed the lead back to 20.
• Over the game's final four minutes, the Spartans and Catamounts traded scores with one another as the Western Carolina advantage hung between 15 and 20 points. Nick Alves knocked down a three-pointer with seven seconds remaining to trim the final margin to 17.

Postgame Interview
Head Coach Dave Dickerson...  
Notable

• Despite dropping the turnover margin against Western Carolina, Upstate managed to force 11 Catamount miscues. Saturday's game continued the Spartans' streak of games forcing 10 or more turnovers to start the season, pushing the streak to 11 games, Upstate's longest streak to begin a season since doing so in 19 games to start the 2021-22 season.
• Hitting four three-pointers Saturday, the Spartans extended their streak of consecutive games making at least one three-pointer to 883 games, a streak dating back to the 1994-95 season. The streak includes each of the program's 516 games at the NCAA Division I level (2007-pres.).

 
Up Next for the Spartans
For the penultimate game of the team's non-conference slate, USC Upstate hits the road one final time ahead of the holiday break, returning to action on Dec. 21. The Spartans head to Davidson for the program's first meeting with the Wildcats. Tip-off is slated for 7:00 p.m. ET.
 
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