SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Entering the game ranked second in the Big South in scoring, averaging 19.4 points per game, freshman guard Mister Dean upped his scoring average as he paced a quintet of double-figure scorers for USC Upstate men's basketball in its 95-63 victory Tuesday evening over Southern Wesleyan at the G.B. Hodge Center.
 
As is becoming a hallmark of his 20-point scoring efforts—he collected his league-high fourth effort against Southern Wesleyan—Dean proved efficient from the field, finishing the night 8-of-10 with his field goal percentage mark of 80.0 percent standing as the second-best single-game mark of his young career. Seeking his first career double-double, he corralled a career-high nine rebounds, leading the Spartans on the glass.
 
Redshirt sophomore guard Karmani Gregory marked the other scorer for Upstate to hit the 15-point barrier, dropping 15 markers behind a 4-of-6 and 6-of-8 shooting performance, respectively, from the field and free throw line. Contributing 12 points each to round out the trio were freshman guard Carmelo Adkins, junior guard Brit Harris, and redshirt freshman guard Chico Johnson.
 
Game Information
Score: USC Upstate 95; Southern Wesleyan 63
Records: USC Upstate (2-4; 0-0 Big South); Southern Wesleyan (1-3; 0-0 Conference Carolinas)
Location: G.B. Hodge Center | Spartanburg, S.C.
 
How It Happened
First Half

• Answering a Southern Wesleyan field goal, Breylin Garcia kickstarted the scoring for Upstate with a driving layup as Brit Harris followed with a three to deliver the Spartans an early advantage. With the Spartans' lead built to four—its largest of the opening period—the Warriors embarked on their longest scoring stretch of the afternoon to gain the advantage for the first time, stringing together 10 consecutive markers.
• Carmelo Adkins snapped the Southern Wesleyan scoring run with a made free throw before Isaiah Skinner knocked down a triple to pull Upstate within two. Following Skinner's trey, the two sides went back and forth with one another as just once did a side string together successive scoring possessions. Upstate's successive scoring possessions came from the free throw line with the Warriors outscoring the Spartans 16-13 in the over eight-minute stretch to maintain the advantage into the half's final minutes.
• Regaining the lead, Upstate fashioned its longest scoring run of the first half, notching an 8-0 scoring run. Garcia started the stretch with a jumper ahead of threes from Karmani Gregory and Mister Dean put Upstate back in front with 3:15 remaining to the break.
• Southern Wesleyan regained the advantage twice off the heels of the Upstate scoring run, but Upstate wrangled the lead back for good with a five-point scoring run by Gregory into the final minute. At the buzzer, Harris knocked down a three, delivering a four-point margin into the locker room.

 
Second Half

• Out of the halftime locker room, Upstate recorded the first six points of the half as it extended its advantage to double-digits for the first time. Dean began the half with a dunk before starting a four-point possession, drawing a flagrant foul, hitting two free throws, and earning the Spartans the ball back. On the ensuing in-bounds play Gregory found Harris for an alley-oop layup to close the run.
• Building its advantage to 15 points for the first time, Upstate exited the under-16 media timeout with six consecutive markers. Adkins notched the first four points of the run with Skinner adding the final two, pushing the advantage to 17. Into the under-12 stoppage, Southern Wesleyan cut the lead to 13—the lowest it sat for the remainder of the game—with back-to-back field goals.
• Holding the Warriors without a made field goal (0-6; 0-4 from three) or made free throw (0-2) for six-and-a-half minutes, Upstate tallied the game's longest scoring run. Scoring 19 consecutive points, the Spartans shot 6-of-10 from the field and 5-of-6 from the charity stripe. Chico Johnson led the run with eight markers with Dean following just behind with seven points.
• Pushing Upstate across the 90-point threshold, Nic Book collected four straight points for the Spartan, getting Upstate to 92 points on the evening. Ending the scoring and creating the final margin, Andrew McConnell knocked down a three, off an assist from Book.

 
Notable

• Leading Upstate in scoring Tuesday, the fifth time through six games, Mister Dean secured his fourth career 20-plus point scoring output, scoring 14 or more points in each game of his career to date. His four 20-point scoring efforts in 2024-25 give Upstate at least one Spartan with four or more 20-plus point scoring games for the fourth straight season.

 
Up Next for the Spartans
Following the team's two-game homestand, USC Upstate embarks on its longest road swing of the 2024-25 season, opening its four-game stretch with a pair of games in the ETSU MTE. The Spartans face host East Tennessee State Friday at 7 p.m. ET before facing Queens Saturday at 6 p.m.
 
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