By Justin Mathis (@J_Math23)
SPARTANBURG, S.C. – After an emotional road win over first-place High Point earlier this week, USC Upstate returned home Saturday for a second meeting with Gardner-Webb.
A festive homecoming crowd gathered on University Way for the showdown, but a second-half blitz paved the way for the Runnin’ Bulldogs to leave town with a 73-65 victory, sweeping the season series against the Spartans.
It was a three-point barrage through the first four-plus minutes of the game, as both teams combined for five makes from long distance that added up to a 9-6 Upstate lead at the first media timeout. The trio of Jordyn Surratt, Floyd Rideau, and Trae Broadnax each buried a triple for the Spartans, while DQ Nicholas and Lucas Stieber each knocked down a shot from distance for the Bulldogs in that span.
Another Broadnax three pushed the Upstate lead to five points before Gardner-Webb answered with triples by Stieber and Shahar Lazar that made for a three-point Bulldog advantage. Justin Bailey swished a turnaround jumper, while Eduardo Placer drained a runner from close range for Upstate, only to see a Quest Aldridge jumper extend the Gardner-Webb lead to six points with 9:13 left in the half.
Four straight points by Broadnax and a Jorge Ochoa basket created a three-point Spartan lead, but an Isaiah Richards layup quickly slashed the deficit to one with under three minutes left until halftime. Three Miguel Ayesa free throws made for a four-point Upstate margin, but Richards and Nicholas combined for three free throws and pulled Gardner-Webb within a point.
“We knew that we had to clean up the turnovers and rebounding,” Nicholas said. “We had to clean up the small defensive mistakes and execute the game plan that we had. It’s always hard to win on the road, so going into these last couple of weeks, we have the momentum and we’re going to keep it going.”
Upstate picked up a 6-0 burst over the last 49 seconds of the half as an Ahmir Langlais bucket and Thomas Shieda three-pointer created a 36-30 Upstate lead at the intermission. When the latter 20 minutes arrived, things quickly shifted.
“Even though we were up at half by six points, we were never in control of the game,” Upstate head coach Dave Dickerson stated. “I thought that we were all over the place and we had so many different lineups out there. Gardner-Webb played great. I thought their second half was as good of a second half that I’ve seen in the Big South this year.”
An Ademide Badmus layup 46 seconds into the second stanza uncorked a staggering 27-9 run for the Bulldogs that covered a near-12 minute span in the frame. Layups by Bailey and Patrick Iriel helped Upstate tie the game at 40, but four straight points by Caleb Robinson keyed a quick 8-0 burst for Gardner-Webb.
A Broadnax turnaround jumper cut the deficit down to five, but a Julien Soumaoro triple, along with baskets by Aldridge and Nicholas, extended the Bulldog lead to a dozen, 57-45, with 7:53 left in the game.
“To be down six and then go up 13 in that second half was impressive,” Gardner-Webb head coach Tim Craft stated. “I thought we got them on the glass (by a 47-35 margin). That was a point of emphasis for us. I really liked how we shared the ball with 16 assists. I thought that in the second half, we looked like the more aggressive team. We were quicker to the ball and were playing without fouling. We did a lot of good things.”
With less than a minute to play, Upstate buried two corner threes – one by Broadnax and the latter by Ayesa – in a 15 second span off two Gardner-Webb turnovers, slashing the deficit to 70-65. Following a Bulldog timeout, Darryl Simmons drained two free throws with 18 seconds left to secure the win for the Bulldogs.
“We just couldn’t get the ball,” Dickerson lamented. “Ahmir had 12 rebounds for us tonight and no one else had over three or four. (Gardner-Webb) was able to get second shots. Whenever you can get second opportunities in this league, it is going to be a backbreaker. I’m disappointed with our ability to get the basketball, especially in the second half.”
NOTABLES: Upstate was without its third-leading scorer, Nick Alves (9.2 PPG, 21 assists, 18 blocks, 26 steals), against the Bulldogs. After the game, Dickerson said Alves is in concussion protocol.
“Nick wanted to play, but he just couldn’t,” Dickerson explained. “We are not the type of team where we can lose one of our top two or three scorers and still be the team that we want to be. We couldn’t do the things that we do.”
Trae Broadnax became the sixth Spartan to hit the 100 career assist mark since Upstate moved up to Division I in 2007. Dalvin White (121 career assists) was the last Upstate player to achieve that accolade, doing so in the 2021-22 season.
With Saturday’s win, Gardner-Webb secured its 12th straight season with a .500 or better record in Big South Conference play, including all of Tim Craft’s 11 seasons at the helm of the Runnin’ Bulldogs.
Broadnax posted a game-high 18 points for the Spartans with three assists, three rebounds, and two steals. Bailey finished with 11 points and three boards, while Langlais notched his fifth career double-double with 10 points and 12 rebounds. Upstate outscored Gardner-Webb, 17-12, in points off turnovers, and knocked down 23 of 60 tries from the floor. As a team, Upstate was 13-of-26 from the free throw line.
Nicholas scored a game-high 17 points with five boards and three assists for Gardner-Webb, while Aldridge and Soumaoro each tallied 10 points, with the latter adding six rebounds. The Bulldogs outdueled Upstate in points in the paint (32-24), second chance points (18-12), and bench points (21-15). Gardner-Webb was 26-for-57 from the field, which featured a 16-of-31 clip in the second half and made 12 of 18 free throw attempts.
USC Upstate (9-17, 4-9) will close out a two-game homestand on Wednesday against Charleston Southern at 7 p.m. On Thursday, Gardner-Webb (13-14, 8-4) will host Radford in a nationally-televised game at 7 p.m. on ESPNU.
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