CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Qualifying for the semifinal round of the Hercules Tires Men's Basketball Championship for the second time in program history and in as many seasons, USC Upstate men's basketball saw its 2022-23 epic come to a close as the Spartans fell 66-62 to No. 1 seed UNC Asheville Saturday afternoon.
The Spartans battled all afternoon as Upstate and Asheville traded the lead 12 times with the game tied at six instances as neither team led by more than seven points. In what was an even game, both teams finished the game with nearly identical shooting percentages with the Spartans shooting 41.0 percent from the floor (29.2 percent from three) and the Bulldogs shooting 40.0 percent from the field (31.8 percent from three).
The difference in the game came on the glass and at the free throw line as Asheville won the battle of the boards 39 to 33. At the line, both teams shot between 60 and 70 percent—Upstate shooting 62.5 percent and Asheville shooting 68.2 percent—however, the Bulldogs shot 22 free throws to Upstate's eight.
With the close of the 2022-23 season, it was another historic season for the Spartans, advancing to the Big South Championship semifinals for the second straight season. Upstate also tied the program record for Big South Conference victories with 10, finishing 16-15 on the season as the team's 16 wins are the most since claiming 17 victories in 2016-17 with the season also marking the first finishing above .500 since 2016-17.
Game Information
Score: No. 1 UNC Asheville 66; No. 4 USC Upstate 62
Records: USC Upstate (16-15; 10-8 Big South); UNC Asheville (26-7; 16-2 Big South)
Location: Bojangles Coliseum | Charlotte, N.C.
How It Happened
First Half
- Despite seeing UNC Asheville score the first bucket of the game, Upstate fought back as Trae Broadnax scored the first four points of the afternoon for Upstate and helped lead a 6-5 advantage early. Into the first media stoppage, the Bulldogs used a 6-0 run to take and build its lead at the under-16 timeout.
- Out of the timeout, Broadnax stopped the run with his third field goal of the day as he teamed with Mysta Goodloe to pull Upstate within four at the under-12 media timeout. Adding to the runner from Goodloe, the Spartans scored eight straight points on the other side of the stoppage, thanks to a three apiece from Justin Bailey and Jordan Gainey, to retake the advantage.
- At the end of the Spartans' longest scoring run of the game, Asheville's Drew Pember swung momentum in the Bulldogs' favor as he outscored Upstate 10-5 to regain the lead for his team. The stretch was part of a period of the half seeing him score 15 straight points for the Bulldogs.
- Battling back and forcing another lead change, Ahmir Langlais went to work on the glass as he made back-to-back layups for the Spartans, pushing Upstate back ahead by three before Asheville fought back to tie things. Braodnax and Goodloe hit a three and a pull-up jumper, respectively, for the Spartans to take a lead into the halftime locker room.
Second Half
- Helping Upstate build upon its halftime lead, Jordyn Suratt came out of the locker room and started the half's scoring with a hook shot in traffic, starting a stretch that saw Upstate outscore Asheville 8-5 to start the half and build a five-point advantage ahead of the under-16 media. Justin Bailey added four of the other six points in the stretch for the Spartans.
- Spanning the media timeout, Asheville embarked on a 7-0 scoring run to jump back to the lead, but Upstate fought right back to retake the advantage. Langlais, Broadnax, and Bailey combined to score six straight for the Spartans to put Upstate ahead by four with 12 minutes to play.
- After seeing the lead change for both sides heading into the final eight minutes of the half, Asheville took back the lead for the final time with a 9-0 scoring run built by four makes at the free throw line and five points from Pember. Upstate whittled the lead down, pulling to within three heading into the final minute of play.
- Down by three coming out of a timeout with 20 seconds remaining, Upstate had a good look at the tie as Gainey got off a contested three-point attempt with Langlais corralling the offensive board to set up another attempt. The Bulldogs held strong and forced a turnover before drawing a foul and hitting one of two free throws to ice the game.
Notable
- Finishing the 2022-23 season at 16-15, Upstate put forth its first season finishing above .500 and its most wins since the 2016-17 season. The season also culminated with 10 Big South Conference wins and a trip to the semifinal round of the Big South Men's Basketball Championship for the second straight season.
- Scoring 16 points to lead the Spartans Saturday afternoon, Trae Broadnax recorded his 23rd double-figure scoring game of the season, one shy of the team lead this season. Jordan Gainey finished the season with 24 double-figure scoring games to lead the team.
- Justin Bailey finished just shy of Broadnax in scoring against UNC Asheville, coming away with 15 points. The game marked his 18th double-figure scoring game of the season and his eighth scoring 15 or more points.
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