ROCK HILL, S.C. – On the road for the final time in the regular season, USC Upstate men's basketball fought as it attempted to erase an early deficit and complete a second-half comeback attempt before falling short at Winthrop in an 83-74 decision Saturday at the Winthrop Coliseum.
 
For the second straight road contest, four Spartans finished the night in double-figures as redshirt junior guard Trae Broadnax led all scorers with 22 points—his fifth 20-plus point scoring game of the season—while adding six rebounds, another team-leading total. The three other Spartans joining him in double-figures were sophomore guard Justin Bailey, redshirt sophomore guard Jalen Breazeale, and graduate student guard Nick Alve who dropped 15, 15, and 11 markers, respectively.
 
For Breazeale, his 15 points stand as a season-high, going 4-for-5 on the night with all four of his coming beyond the arc. His perfect shooting night from three marked a new career-high in three-point makes while he also passed out a career-high eight assists—tied for the most assists by an Upstate player this season.
 
Game Information
Score: Winthrop 83; USC Upstate 74
Records: USC Upstate (9-19; 4-11 Big South); Winthrop (17-12; 8-6 Big South)
Location: Winthrop Coliseum | Rock Hill, S.C.
 
How It Happened
First Half

• Taking the opening tip, Winthrop lifted the lid on the game's scoring with the first five tallies before Justin Bailey drew his 19^th foul when attempting a three-pointer, completing the four-point play to pull Upstate within one. He'd add another three to add to his game-opening scoring total, scoring the first seven points of the game for the Spartans with the game knotted at seven at the first media.
• Out of the game's first stoppage, the Eagles crafted a 5-0 scoring run before Nick Alves snapped the stretch with his first bucket of the night. Following the Alves' basket, the two teams traded made field goals with Trae Broadnax scoring the next nine markers—three three-pointers—to Winthrop's six, tying the game with 11:50 to play in the half.
• Despite seeing Winthrop string together multiple field goals to create mini-scoring runs of five and four points to extend their lead, Upstate continued to chip away with threes from Jalen Breazeale and Alves. Over the final four minutes of the half, the Spartans withstood a lead that grew as large as six with Broadnax scoring the final four Spartan points of the half to cut the deficit to three at the break.

 
Second Half

• Winthrop opened the second half with two consecutive field goals to extend their lead before a three from Miguel Ayesa snapped the scoring run. The hosts followed the three with the next three points to reextend their scoring run, twice pushing it back to seven before Upstate countered with a 5-0 run to pull back within two.
• Answering the second half's smallest advantage, Winthrop embarked on a 9-1 scoring stretch to grow the lead to double-figures for the first time. The stretch grew to as much as 13-1 to balloon the lead to 12 with 9:06 to play.
• Upstate began to chip away at the deficit with Winthrop remaining just a step ahead to keep the lead hovering around the eight to 10-point marks. The Eagles countered the Alves' field goal to cut the advantage to nine with a 7-0 scoring run, growing the lead to its largest margin (+16) of the night.
• Fighting back from the game's largest deficit, Upstate didn't wilt as it fashioned a 20-9 scoring stretch to trim the lead to five with 20 seconds to play with Breazeale and Broadnax scoring seven and six points, respectively, in the stretch. The Eagles, however, iced the game away from the free throw line with four makes in the game's final 20 seconds to earn the victory.

 
Notable

• Recording 22 points Saturday, Trae Broadnax secured his fifth game of the 2023-24 season scoring 20 or more points. The game makes the 2023-24 season the third straight campaign to see at least one Spartan secure five or more 20-plus point scoring efforts.
• Passing out eight assists against the Eagles, Jalen Brezeale set a career-high in the category with his sixth game of the year with five or more helpers. His eight assists Saturday tie the eight helpers Trae Broadnax passed out against Longwood on Jan. 17, for the most in a game by a Spartan this season.
• Hitting 14 threes Saturday versus Winthrop, Upstate improved its streak of consecutive games with at least one made-three pointer to 900 games, a streak dating back to the 1994-95 season. The stretch also includes each of the Spartans' 531 games at the NCAA Division I level (2007-pres.).
• The Spartans' 14 made three-pointers against the Eagles were the most made threes in a game by the Spartans since canning 14 against North Carolina A&T on Jan. 29, 2022.

 
Up Next for the Spartans
For the final time in the regular season, Upstate returns to the G.B. Hodge Center to host Presbyterian in the team's regular-season finale. The Spartans and Blue Hose tip-off Wednesday at 7 p.m. ET.
 
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