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Spartan Women’s Basketball Set for Bison Battle
SPARTANBURG, S.C. – The USC Upstate women's basketball team (3-15, 2-5 A-Sun) returns to the Hodge Center tomorrow night, battling Atlantic Sun Conference foe Lipscomb (3-15, 1-6 A-Sun) at 7 p.m.
Bison Bullets:
Lipscomb enters Thursday's contest with a 3-15 record this season, including a 1-6 mark in A-Sun play. The Lady Bisons are 1-8 on the road this season.
The Lady Bisons are battling a five-game losing-streak. In the team's last outing, LU lost to FGCU 76-59 at home. Anna Bowers led the Lady Bisons against the Eagles with 15 points and nine rebounds, while O'Neisha Smith recorded 10 points and seven boards. Lipscomb also fell to Stetson 74-63 Jan. 12. Against the Hatters, Hannah Phillips posted a team-high 15 points, while Bowers registered 13 points.
On the season, LU is led by Phillips, averaging 12.4 points per game, while Bowers is second on the squad with 12.1 points a game. Phillips also leads the Lady Bisons in rebounds, snagging 5.4 boards a game. Sasha Robinson is second on the team with 4.7 rebounds per game.
Upstate owns a 6-2 overall advantage against the Lady Bisons, including a 4-0 mark in Spartanburg, S.C. The Spartans have won the last four meetings against Lipscomb. Last season, Upstate beat Lipscomb 77-70 in the Hodge Center Jan. 24, 2011 and then again 81-76 in Nashville, Tenn., Feb. 21, 2011. The Spartans haven't lost to the Lady Bisons since dropping a 94-77 decision Feb. 15, 2009 in Music City.
Spartan Snip-Its:
The Spartans are fresh off of an exciting win at North Florida Jan. 14. Freshman Briana Robinson (Columbia, S.C.) registered a career-high 20 points, including her buzzer-beater jumper, lifting Upstate to a 58-57 win against the Ospreys. She also hit a three-pointer with 27 seconds left in the contest to pull the Spartans within one-point. Robinson scored Upstate's last seven points of the contest, all within the last 1:15 to play.
Upstate is led by Tee'Ara Copney (Asheville, N.C.) with 15.3 points per game and 4.1 rebounds per contest. Robinson and junior Tyra Smith (Lawrenceville, Ga.) are averaging 8.2 and 6.2 points per contest, respectively. Paulina Zaveckaite (Telsiai, Lithuania) leads the squad with 7.1 boards per contest, while Lauren McRoberts (Carmel, Ind.) is second on the team in rebounding, averaging 5.1 per game.
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