Rock Hill, S.C. – Winthrop couldn't overcome a slow start as it fell 79-70 to USC Upstate, Saturday evening at the Winthrop Coliseum.
WINTHROP (11-16, 6-8 Big South)
USC UPSTATE (12-13, 7-7 Big South)
- Jordan Gainey (16 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 block, 4 steals)
- Justin Bailey (16 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal)
- Trae Broadnax (10 points, 2 rebounds, 5 assists)
FIRST HALF
- Upstate scored the first five points behind a fast break layup by Justin Bailey and a three from Trae Broadnax
- Eagles came right back with five straight to tie it up at 5-5
- Cory Hightower hit 1-of-2 free throws and then Toneari Lane scored off the drive
- Kasen Harrison then found Sin'Cere McMahon open underneath for an easy layup to tie the game
- The Eagles went scoreless for four and a half minutes and Upstate put together an 11-0 run to lead 16-5 with 12:43 left in the half
- Hightower ended the run with a tough jumper in the paint to get the deficit back to single-digits
- After another jumper by Hightower in the paint had the Eagles within nine, Upstate pushed its lead to 15 with 9:17 on the clock
- The lead grew to as much as 17 but the Eagles did manage to pull within 11 with 1:40 left after a Hightower three, but a second-chance bucket by Seny N'Diaye made it 41-28 at the break
SECOND HALF
- The Spartans opened the second half by extending its lead to 18 with 16:12 left
- The first big run by the Eagles started with two free throws by Xavier McKelvy followed by a layup from Hightower with 14:48 remaining
- Two free throws by Harrison cut it to 12 with 13:14 left and then McMahon hit a straight away three to force an Upstate timeout as the 9-0 run cut the deficit to nine
- Over the next three minutes, the Spartans built their lead back to 18 with 8:22 left as Ahmir Langlais scored six straight points to ignite the 8-0 run
- Winthrop trailed 73-57 with 4:02 to play when the Eagles put together another run to make it an eight point game just a minute later
- It started with Hightower working the offensive glass and getting fouled as he converted by free throws
- Then off the inbound Harrison stole the ball and was fouled as he converted both of his free throws
- A few possessions later Harrison hit McMahon in the corner and knocked down a triple and was fouled
- McMahon completed the four-point play to trail 73-65 with 3:04 left
- That was as close as the Eagles got as they were unable to get shots to fall despite some good looks
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- Eagles shot 35 percent from the floor while Upstate finished at 52 percent
- Winthrop was just 5-for-22 behind the arc while Upstate was 9-of-20
- At the free throw line the Eagles were 25-for-30 and the Spartans finished 12-for-28
- Upstate had a slight edge on the glass (38-37) and had a 14-6 advantage in second chance points
- Both teams combined for 22 turnovers and 29 points off turnover (Upstate with a 15-14 edge)
NOTABLES
- Hightower posted his second double-double of the season and the 11th of his career
- The 17 rebounds were a career-high and the most by an Eagle since teammate Kelton Talford had 16 earlier in the season against S.C. State
- The 17 rebounds are the third most by any player in the Big South this season and he now has 828 in his career
- McMahon finished the game 4-for-8 behind the arc and now has 99 career threes with the Eagles as he looks to become the program's 27th player with 100 or more in a career
- Harrison finished the game a perfect 9-for-9 at the foul line, his second game this season with 9 or more free throws made
UP NEXT
Eagles are back on the road for their final regular road game of the season on Wednesday, Feb. 18 as they travel to Boiling Springs, N.C. to take on Gardner-Webb at 7 p.m.
STAY CONNECTED
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