WILMINGTON, N.C. - Making a trip to Wilmington, North Carolina, Upstate Men's Basketball took the court against UNCW for a non-conference Saturday night matchup where the Spartans pushed a second half comeback, but big shots and late free throws secured the game for the Seahawks with a final score of 73-60. 

The Spartans were led by Karmani Gregory adding 15 points on the night followed by Carmelo Adkins with 13 points and four rebounds. Learic Davis added 12 points while leading Upstate with eight rebounds (four offensive and four defensive). Mason Bendinger followed with nine points and two blocks.  

UNCW won the battle on the boards grabbing 42 rebounds (18 offensive and 24 defensive) compared to Upstate's 31 (13 offensive and 18 defensive). The Seahawks leaned on their paint presence with 34 points opposed to the Spartans' 20. Upstate added the slight edge over the Seahawks with nine fastbreak points to UNCW's six. The Spartans were edged out in the turnover battle with the Seahawks having 10 compared to Upstate's 11. The Spartans shot 38 percent from the field, 26 percent from beyond the arc and 72 percent from the charity stripe. 

Game Information 

USC Upstate 60; UNCW 73 

Records: USC Upstate (3-2; 0-0 Big South) vs. UNCW (2-1; 0-0 CAA) 

Location: Trask Coliseum| Wilimington, North Carolina 

How it Happened 

First Half 

• Mason Bendinger opened the scoring column scoring the first two baskets for the Spartans with a layup and a jumper. Both teams continued to trade baskets in the early going with Jafeth Martinez adding a layup in the paint followed by Upstate taking the lead with a 13-11 score after a Karmani Gregory triple. 

• UNCW tied the game at 15 but a triple from Mason Bendinger helped the Spartans regain the lead at the 8:25 mark. 

• A 14-2 run for the Seahawks helped UNCW take the lead with their largest lead of the night with a 31-20 score as the Seahawks crashed the boards and leaned on their ability to draw fouls. UNCW closed out the half with a buzzer-beating three-pointer to lead 39-26 at the break. 

Second Half 

• The scoring column opened for the Spartans with the first three baskets being converted by Mason Bendinger and Carmelo Adkins. UNCW responded mixing it up with points in the paint and spreading the floor keeping their lead at 51-34. 

• Upstate went on a 11-2 run due to a crucial steal from Isaiah Skinner followed by three triples and a layup from Carmelo Adkins cutting the Spartans' deficit to seven. 

• Upstate continued to battle as Jafeth Martinez used his strength in the paint to power through contact for a layup bring the score 58-49. 

• UNCW continued to respond with three consecutive layups and a triple bringing their lead 69-52. 

• The Spartans continued battling as Learic Davis crashed the boards for a putback layup followed by Tyler Smith scoring on a mid-range jumper. UNCW converted late game free throws holding on to win 73-60. 

Notable 

• Learic Davis grabbed his season and new career high in rebounds with eight leading the Spartans in that column. 

• Carmelo Adkins led Upstate from beyond the arc making three triples shooting 43 percent from beyond the arc. 

Up next for the Spartans 

Following the Saturday road matchup, Upstate returns to the G.B. Hodge Center for a homecourt battle facing Tennessee Tech on Wednesday, November 19 at 7:00 P.M. as part of the MTE Tournament.  

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