Rock Hill, S.C. – Winthrop men's basketball opens up Big South Conference play Thursday night when it travels to USC Upstate for a 5 p.m. matchup.
WINTHROP (5-8, 0-0 Big South)
| WINTHROP PROBABLE STARTERS |
| Pos. |
No. |
Name |
Ht. |
Yr. |
PPG |
RPG |
APG |
SPG |
Noteworthy |
| G |
0 |
Sin'Cere McMahon |
6-1 |
Jr. |
14.1 |
2.2 |
2.7 |
0.7 |
Career-high 24 points at Mercer and has four 20-point games this season / Career-high 6 assists at LSU / 9th in the Big South in scoring / 88 career threes |
| G |
11 |
Kasen Harrison |
6-2 |
Jr.. |
9.1 |
2.8 |
3.1 |
1.5 |
In double-figures the last 4 games / Scored season-high 17 points at Furman / 6th in Big South in assists per game (3.1) |
| G/F |
12 |
Cory Hightower |
6-7 |
R-Sr. |
13.8 |
5.0 |
3.0 |
0.6 |
Scored season-high 25 points at LSU / Knocked down career-high 7 triples at LSU / In double-figures 7 straight games / Preseason All-Big South 1st Team / 1,511 career points, 746 career rebounds |
| F |
33 |
Chase Claxton |
6-7 |
Sr. |
5.2 |
4.6 |
1.1 |
1.5 |
Missed the game at LSU / Played in 97 career games / Leads team with 15 steals and 17 blocks / Tied for 3rd in Big South with 1.7 bocks per game / 9.3 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 2.8 bpg over last 4 games |
| F |
4 |
Kelton Talford |
6-7 |
Jr. |
17.8 |
8.0 |
0.6 |
0.7* |
Scored 23 points in the loss at LSU / Career-high 28 points vs. S.C. State / Named to Cancun Challenge Mayan Division All-Tournament Team / Big South Player of the Week (Dec. 12) / career-high 14 rebounds at Auburn |
* (blocks per game)
SERIES HISTORY
Series Record: 17-8
Series Streak: W12
Record at G.B. Hodge Center: 8-4
Streak at G.B. Hodge Center: W7
Prosser vs. USC Upstate: 2-0
THE MATCHUP
- Eagles and Spartans meet for the 26th time
- Winthrop has won 12 straight meetings and leads the all-time series 17-8
- Eagles have made 11 or more threes in each of the last four meetings
- In 25 meetings all-time, the Eagles have averaged 75.96 ppg while Upstate has averaged 70.72 ppg
- Eagles have won nine straight Big South openers and are 20-17 all-time
- When opening conference play on the road, the Eagles are 11-7 having won the last seven
WINTHROP
- This is the final game of a four-game road trip as the Eagles look to end a three-game losing streak
- Lead the Big South and rank 52nd nationally in free throw percentage (.748)
- Sitting 2nd in the conference in threes per game (8.6) and third in three-point field goal percentage (.362)
- Kelton Talford leads the team in scoring (17.9) and rebounding (8.0)
- Talford is 1-of-4 Eagles scoring in double-figures as Sin'Cere McMahon is second with 14.1 ppg, Cory Hightower is third at 13.8 ppg and Toneari Lane is the 4th at 10.5 ppg
- Talford is 3rd in the league in scoring, McMahon is 9th, Hightower 10th and Lane is 23rd
- Talford leads the Big South in field goal percentage and 3rd in the nation (.741)
- He also ranks among the top rebounders in the league, ranking 2nd with 8.0 per game
- McMahon is 2nd in the Big South in free throw percentage (.872) and 5th in threes per game (2.5)
- Lane ranks second in the conference for three-point field goal percentage at .438 and 4th in three-point field goals with 2.7 per game
- Coming off a 23-9 campaign that saw the team reach the Big South Title game for a third straight season before falling to Longwood
- Have won 23 or more games in three straight seasons
- Return five players that saw action in 2021-22, two that sat out and welcome eight newcomers
- Voted to finish second in the Big South Conference preseason poll
- Finished the 2021-22 season ranked 14th in bench scoring (28.6 ppg)
- Cory Hightower was voted to the preseason All-Big South First Team
- Hightower is the top returning scorer at 11.8 ppg and led the team with 5.5 rpg last season
- Kelton Talford is the second-leading scorer returning at 8.5 ppg and was second on the team in rebounding at 4.8
- In the last four seasons the Eagles are a combined 75-26 (.742)
- Winthrop has more wins than any other Big South school (208) since the 2012-13 season
- Mark Prosser starts his second season as head coach of the Eagles, the 7th head coach in program history
- Led the team to 23 wins, the most by a first-year head coach in program history
- Prosser tied Towson State's Terry Traux (1992-93) for the most conference wins by a first-year coach with 14
BIG SOUTH WEEKLY HONORS
- Kelton Talford – Big South Player of the Week (Dec. 12)
- Averaged 23.5 ppg, 8.0 rpg, 1.0 apg and 1.0 spg in two games
- He posted a career-high 28 points in the win over S.C. State and then scored a team-high 19 points at Furman
- For the two games he shot 77 percent from the floor
TUNE IN TO THE EAGLES
Fans can listen to the games all season long on OTS Media of Rock Hill (94.3 FM), which is the flagship station for Winthrop Athletics. In addition, most games will simulcast on 730 ESPN Charlotte and AM 1450 WGNC Gastonia.
All home games as well as all Big South games home or away are available to watch through the Big South Network on ESPN+. To watch live Big South games on ESPN+, you need a subscriber. For more information how to subscribe,
click here.
UP NEXT
Winthrop will turn around quickly for its home opener as it will take on UNC Asheville on Saturday, Dec. 31 at 2 p.m.
To keep up with the latest news on the Winthrop men's basketball program, follow the Eagles on Twitter (@Winthrop_MBB), Instagram (@Winthrop_MBB) and Facebook (/WinthropEagles)
