Game #8 - USC Upstate Spartans

The Catamounts will wrap up play in the Coaches versus Cancer tournament in Kent, Ohio on Saturday at 5:00 pm when they face USC Upstate of the Atlantic Sun Conference.   This is the first meeting between the Spartans and the Catamounts on the basketball court.

USC Upstate senior forward Torrey Craig (6-6, 215) was selected as the Atlantic Sun Preseason Player of the Year and teammates senior forward Ricardo Glenn  (6-8, 246), and junior guard Ty Greene 6-3, 185) earned a spots on the preseason all-conference team. The Spartans were picked to finish third in the overall league standings behind Florida Gulf Coast and future SoCon member Mercer.

Upstate enters the game with the Cats owning a 2-3 overall record, but that record is deceiving.  The Spartans tipped off the season at Virginia Tech, beating the Hokies on their home floor by a final score of 64-63. The Spartans have an 82-74 loss to Winthrop in Rock Hill, and a 74-65 loss at Tennessee in Knoxville. In the Coaches vs. Cancer tournament, the Spartans beat Niagara 83-74 on opening night, then lost on Friday to Kent State by one point, 79-78.

Upstate has two players averaging in double figures, Torrey Craig is averaging 22.3 ppg and Ty Green is putting up 17.3 ppg.  Overall, the Spartans are hitting an average of 44.5% from the floor, and 69.5% from the charity stripe.  Green is hitting 85% of his free throws, putting up 17 of 20 attempts.  The Spartans are turning the ball over only 12.8 times per game.

If the Cats are shooting like they did in the Niagara game Friday evening, they will match up well with the Spartans, however, if they are cold as they were against Kent State, the Spartans have the ability to run away with the game.   The Spartans currently have a 106 ranking in RPI (Warren Nolan), by comparison the Catamounts are at 168,    A win against the Spartans will certainly help the Cats' RPI.



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