Upstate falls at home against Western Carolina

Trae Broadnax goes up for layup for USC Upstate against Western Carolina. (Photo by Ryan Frye/USC Upstate Athletics)

By Justin Mathis (@J_Math23)

SPARTANBURG, S.C. – After finishing a busy week with final exams, USC Upstate returned to action Saturday on its home floor against Western Carolina. When the final buzzer sounded, the Catamounts claimed a 70-53 victory over the Spartans.

 

A deflection near the top of the key led to a Justin Bailey steal shortly after the opening tip. Bailey quickly fired a pass to Trae Broadnax, who then found Ahmir Langlais in the low post for a fastbreak basket and a 2-0 Spartan lead only 55 seconds into the contest.

 

A DJ Campbell layup and back-to-back Tre Jackson three-pointers sparked a 14-3 Western Carolina run over a five-plus minute span, giving the Catamounts a nine-point advantage. Near the midway point of the half, Miguel Ayesa tipped in a missed 3-pointer for the Spartans, making it a 21-13 score.

 

“(Western Carolina) is a very good team,” said Upstate head coach Dave Dickerson. “Their toughness is unmatched and are probably the toughest team we’ve played all year. They played with a good pace, good energy, and did everything this afternoon that we didn’t do. They were flawless today in their attack.”

 

A Broadnax free throw line jumper and Floyd Rideau triple – the first of the game for the Spartans – keyed an 11-2 run and pulled Upstate within a 30-26 margin with 1:40 left until halftime. Langlais also scored four points during the flurry. 

 

Vonterius Woolbright, who entered the game ranked fourth nationally in double-doubles, caused chaos on the boards, compiling 11 rebounds by the 3:36 mark of the opening frame for Western Carolina. He also had tallied nine points by the intermission.

 

“What he really does is he competes,” Western Carolina head coach Justin Gray remarked. “He has a nose for the basketball and is able to make plays. Rebounding doesn’t have a name on it. It’s just if you want to go get it and he comes up with a lot of those defensively for us. I’m really happy that he’s on my team and that I don’t have to scout against him. I know his teammates feel the same way.”

 

After a quick 4-0 burst by Upstate, a personal 5-0 run by Woolbright extended WCU’s lead to 46-32 just four minutes into the second stanza. Later, a personal 5-0 Broadnax run cut the deficit to 54-42, which led to a Catamount timeout. 

 

However, after the respite, consecutive triples by Russell Jones, Jr. built the lead back out to 60-42 with seven minutes remaining in the contest. Defensively, WCU made things tough on Bailey throughout the game, holding Upstate’s leading scorer to five points on 2-for-11 shooting. 

 

“That was a big key for us,” Gray stated. “(Bailey) and (Ayesa) are really good when they are making threes, so we tried to make sure that was a big focal point for us. Russell Jones said he had him and did a really, really good job. When (Bailey) got lost and had an open look here and there, he missed them. Sometimes, it’s a make-or-miss league and we just try to play with the right kind of energy.”

 

For WCU, Woolbright just missed a triple-double (15 points, 16 rebounds, eight assists), while Jones and Jackson each scored 17 and 13 points, respectively. Broadnax posted a game-high 18 points for the Spartans, while Langlais nearly notched a double-double (13 points, eight rebounds).

 

Next up for USC Upstate (4-7) is a road matchup against Davidson on Thursday at 7 p.m. Western Carolina (8-2) has a quicker turnaround, as the Catamount will play at Vanderbilt on Tuesday at 7 p.m.