Upstate’s late rally comes up short in loss to Kennesaw State

Miguel Ayesa keyed late rally for USC Upstate, but Spartans fell short against Kennesaw State. (Photo by Ryan Frye/USC Upstate Athletics)

By Justin Mathis (@J_Math23)

SPARTANBURG, S.C. – After a two-game road trip along the eastern part of the Carolinas, Saturday night’s game between USC Upstate and defending ASUN champion Kennesaw State had a postseason vibe to it.

Down the stretch, the host Spartans attempted a late comeback, but the visiting Owls held off the charge and left the Hodge Center with an 84-77 victory.

 

Early on, the two sides traded proverbial jabs as Justin Bailey drained a 3-pointer from the right wing to beat the shot clock, staking Upstate to a 10-6 lead less than five minutes into the game. The Owls countered with a quick 7-0 burst, capped by an RJ Johnson turnaround jumper for a one-point cushion.

 

Later in the half, Miguel Ayesa knocked down a triple near the top of the arc that put Upstate ahead by a 26-21 margin. However, the Spartans struggled at times during the opening 20 minutes as the likes of Bailey, Trae Broadnax, Ahmir Langlais, and Jordyn Surratt had to sit on the bench with foul trouble.

 

“Hats off to Kennesaw State,” said Upstate head coach Dave Dickerson. “They played like a championship-level team. I told our guys to admire their locker room because that’s what we want to be here at Upstate, being able to go on the road and win a big game, then come home and win another.”

 

“We knew this game was going to be played outside of the lines a little bit. We talked about playing in the mud a little bit and making those plays. (Kennesaw State) made two more plays than we made in this 40-minute game.”

 

Kennesaw State capitalized by outscoring Upstate, 19-10, over the last 6:50 of the opening stanza to take a 40-36 advantage into the locker room. 

 

Upstate started quickly out of the break with a 7-0 burst over the first 1:16, buoyed by a Bailey three, Broadnax turnaround jumper, and a Bailey fastbreak layup that made for a 43-40 Spartan lead. A few minutes later, Nick Alves notched a steal and fastbreak dunk, pushing the Spartans ahead, 63-62, with just over nine minutes left.

 

In the latter stages, the Owls created a 77-73 cushion, but another Ayesa triple from the left side cut the deficit down to one point with 1:55 to go. A couple of possessions later, Simeon Cottle drained a deep three-pointer from the right side that proved key in helping Kennesaw State secure the win.

 

“I thought our guys played hard,” Dickerson stated. “We had some guys who didn’t show up on the offensive end, but I thought our defense and rebounding was good enough for 40 minutes to win. (Bailey) and Trae getting in early foul trouble really took us out of rhythm from scoring. This was the type of game where Justin could’ve scored 40 points by himself.”

 

Bailey led all scorers on the night, finishing with a career high 21 points for the Spartans. Langlais posted his third career double-double (10 points, 13 rebounds), marking a new career high for rebounds in a single game. Saturday was also the first time that Upstate failed to tally at least 10 steals in a single game this season. 

 

Ayesa also finished in double figures with 15 points, followed by Langlais and Jalen Breazeale with 10 points each for the Spartans. As a team, Upstate was 23-for-33 at the free throw line and 23-for-67 from the field. Kennesaw State made 29 of 56 tries from the floor.

 

After finals week, USC Upstate (4-6) will play host to the Western Carolina Catamounts on Saturday, December 16 at 4:30 p.m.