Men’s Basketball heads to Johnson City taking on #9 Seed Gardner-Webb in the First Round of the Big South Men’s Basketball Championships
3/3/2026 2:35:00 PM | Men's Basketball
SPARTANBURG, S.C. - Wrapping up regular season play and turning their attention to the Air Force Reserve Big South Men's Basketball Championships, a new season with the mantra of surviving and advancing begins with first round play as the Spartans clinched the #8 seed and will battle #9 seed Gardner-Webb. This matchup in the first-round marks the second consecutive first round matchup and third through the past four years. The winner of the #8 and #9 game will move to Friday's showdown, taking on #1 seed High Point in the Quarterfinals.
2026 Air Force Reserve Big South Men's Basketball First Round Matchup
March 4, 2026| 7:30 P.M. EST
No. 8 USC Upstate (13-18; 5-11 Big South) vs. No. 9 Gardner-Webb (3-28; 1-15 Big South)
Freedom Hall Civic Center| Johnson City, Tenn.
TV: ESPN+ | Via WatchESPN.com or the ESPN App
Radio: Fox Sports Spartanburg 98.3 FM/1400| Also available via the FoxSports Spartanburg or TuneIn App
Wednesday's Stipulation: Winner moves to the Quarterfinal round to take on #1 High Point; loser will end their season.
How they stack up
All-Time Series: Gardner-Webb leads 14-7
Big South Men's Basketball Championships Meetings vs. Gardner-Webb: Mar. 5, 2025 (GW 83; UPST 63); Mar. 3, 2023 (UPST 77; GW 76)
How they compare
|
USC Upstate |
|
Gardner-Webb |
|
74.6 |
Scoring Offense |
68.5 |
|
73.9 |
Scoring Defense |
86.3 |
|
0.6 |
Scoring Margin |
-17.8 |
|
.440 |
Field Goal Pct. |
.431 |
|
.433 |
Field Goal Pct. Defense |
.497 |
|
.327 |
Three-Point FG Pct. |
.312 |
|
.342 |
Three-Point FG Pct. Defense |
.362 |
|
.686 |
Free Throw Pct. |
.678 |
|
37.0 |
Rebounds/Game |
30.5 |
|
37.3 |
Rebounds Against/Game |
39.4 |
|
-0.3 |
Rebounding Margin |
-8.9 |
|
12.7 |
Assists/Game |
10.3 |
|
12.4 |
Turnovers/Game |
13.7 |
|
12.1 |
Turnovers Forced/Game |
11.1 |
|
-0.2 |
Turnover Margin |
-2.6 |
|
6.6 |
Steals/Game |
6.2 |
|
4.6 |
Blocks/Game |
2.4 |
2025-26 Regular Season Meetings:
Jan. 23, 2026: Gardner-Webb 67; USC Upstate 65
Feb. 28, 2026: USC Upstate 71; Gardner-Webb 61
Players to Watch
USC Upstate: Redshirt Junior Guard, Karmani Gregory has been described as the head of the snake by his teammates and how much he impacts everyone around him with his leadership. Gregory led Upstate with 15.8 points per game and made his return to the court on February 28th against Gardner-Webb after missing the previous game at Radford with a turf toe injury. Gregory did not miss a beat as he led with 22 points, two blocks, five assists and one steal. Karmani Gregory looks to avenge the 2024-25 season where their season was ended by the Runnin' Bulldogs in Johnson City on March 5, 2025, as he mentioned in the postgame interview afterwards "now that we have a taste of what it feels like to be here, we'll be back".
Gardner-Webb: Sophomore Guard, Jacob Hudson led the Runnin' Bulldogs in the Feb. 28 matchup with 16 points and finished second on the team with 10.2 points per game. Hudson shot 46 percent from the field, added 4.1 rebounds and led with 36 steals. Hudson enters the tournament with much experience from his freshman season and looks to respond with a new season of regular season slates behind them.
Up next for the Spartans
The result of the First round will determine who moves on to the Quarterfinal round as the winner moves on to Friday, March 6 to take on #1 High Point at Noon.
Connect with the Spartans
Facebook.com/UpstateAthletics
Twitter | @UpstateMBB | @UpstateSpartans
Instagram | @Upstate_MBB | @UpstateSpartans
YouTube.com/UpstateSpartans
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