SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Closing out the hardwood version of the Ingles I-26 Rivalry Series, USC Upstate women's basketball dropped the back half of the season series, falling 63-57 in a tightly-contested affair. The Spartans offered a fourth-quarter comeback attempt, looking to trim a Bulldog advantage that grew as large as 12, before succumbing in the six-point decision at the G.B. Hodge Center.
 
Pacing all scorers, redshirt sophomore guard Cassie Gallagher notched her ninth 20-plus point scoring game with 22 points. She finished the day shooting 7-of-16 from the field and 3-of-5 from three, hitting multiple triples for the fourth consecutive game. Redshirt junior guard Aubrie Kierscht joined Gallagher in double-figures, offering 10 markers as she shot 4-of-7 (2-of-3 from three).
 
Game Information
Score: UNC Asheville 63; USC Upstate 57
Records: USC Upstate (8-18; 3-9 Big South); UNC Asheville (10-16; 5-8 Big South)
Location: G.B. Hodge Center | Spartanburg, S.C.
 
How It Happened
First Quarter

• Feeling each other out after Upstate captured the opening tap, UNC Asheville collected the first points with a layup at the 8:19 mark. Gwen Jenkins followed with a three from the corner, starting a trend for the quarter seeing the two sides trade field goals, leading to a 6-6 deadlock with 2:46 to play in the frame.
• The Spartans closed the stanza on a 7-0 scoring run, its longest of the first half, getting buckets from Lexi Castator, Emma Blair, and Aubrie Kierscht. The latter's trey at the buzzer lifted Upstate to its largest lead of the afternoon.

Second Quarter

• Erasing the Spartans' advantage, the Bulldogs began the second quarter on their own 7-0 scoring run, their longest scoring stretch of the day. A second triple from Kierscht snuffed the run before UNC Asheville tacked on four makers to regain the lead.
• A layup from Aijah Palmore and trey from Castator sparked a 5-0 scoring to push Upstate back in front. The Bulldogs responded with four straight points to tie things before the sides hit dueling shots in the final minutes to send the game to a 23-23 deadlock at the break.

Third Quarter

• Breaking the tie, UNC Asheville began the second half with a triple before Kierscht added a pull-up jumper to cut things back to one. After a pair of Bulldog free throws, Gallagher knocked down a three of her own, knotting things at 28.
• The Bulldogs responded with consecutive buckets, prompting Upstate to opt for a timeout. UNC Asheville extended its scoring stretch to 7-2 heading towards the quarter's media stoppage, growing the advantage it wouldn't relinquish as the teams traded buckets for the remainder of the frame.

Fourth Quarter

• Growing its largest lead of the game, UNC Asheville used a 7-1 scoring stretch during the middle portion of the final period, extending its advantage to 12 as it held Upstate without a field goal for four-plus minutes of game action.
• Snapping the Spartans' field-goal-less drought, Emma Blair hit a jumper with 3:23 remaining, hitting successive field goals for the Spartans as she hit another jumper ahead of the drought. Her final field goal kickstarted the Spartans' longest scoring run of the day, a 9-0 spurt, trimming the deficit to three with 49 seconds remaining.
• The Bulldogs hit three free throws in the final minute, building the six-point margin at the buzzer.

 
Notable

• Saturday's game marked the first during Big South play to see the Spartans lose the rebounding margin, being outrebounded 29 to 26 (-3). Upstate entered the game winning the rebounding margin in nine of 11 conference games, seeing the rebounding margin tied in the other two contests.

 
Up Next for the Spartans
Returning to the road for the penultimate time this season, USC Upstate heads to Radford next Wednesday. The Spartans and Highlanders meet for a 7:00 p.m. ET tip.
 
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