FLORENCE, S.C. – Senior forward Ivica Grgurovic scored 10 of his team-high 12 points in the second half and USC Upstate held Francis Marion University to only six baskets after halftime to rally for a 47-46 win Thursday night (Dec. 1) in the Peach Belt Conference opener for both squads.

USC Upstate, which shared the PBC regular-season crown last year, ups its overall record to 4-0, while the Patriots fall to 3-3.  In all three of its defeats this season, FMU has squandered double-figure second-half leads.

Senior swingman Vony Rivers again led the Patriots in scoring coming off the bench as he tallied 14 points, 11 of which came in the opening half.  Senior George Walker added 11 points, and Patriot senior Michael Carter hauled down a career-high 11 rebounds.

Junior forward Erikas Kaupaitis followed Grgurovic with 10 points and 10 rebounds, while guard Jay Free added 10 points.

Francis Marion closed the first half with a 9-1 run to possess a 28-20 lead at intermission.  The Patriots held the Spartans to only seven field goals in the opening 20 minutes.

However, USC Upstate turned the tables on FMU in the second stanza.  After guard Artis Lee scored the opening basket of the second half to give FMU a 30-20 advantage, Francis Marion missed 26 of its final 31 shots.

The Spartans tied the game at 37-37 on a three-pointer by freshman Daniel Quinlan with 9:49 remaining.  A layup by Free concluded a 12-0 USC Upstate run that gave the Spartans a 43-37 lead with 6:15 remaining.  A three-pointer by Rivers brought Francis Marion to within one point at 47-46 with 48 ticks left.

Rivers then forced a jumpball that gave FMU the ball with 16.6 seconds on the clock.  Rivers missed a three-pointer from the right corner with four seconds left and Grgurovic rebounded the carom and was fouled.  He missed both free throws, but a three-quarters-court heave by FMU's Michael Jenkins was no good at the final horn.

Both teams struggled from the field as Francis Marion shot 26.7 percent (16 of 60) and USC Upstate connected on 28.1 percent (16 of 57).

Francis Marion will play at Lander University, Saturday at 4 p.m., while USC Upstate will play host to UNC Pembroke, Saturday also at 4 p.m.

12-1-05 7:00 pm at Florence, SC (Smith University Center)
USC UPSTATE 47, FRANCIS MARION UNIVERSITY 46
 
USC UPSTATE (4-0 , 1-0 PBC)
Grgurovic, Ivica 4-9 4-9 12; Kaupaitis, Erikas 3-8 4-7 10; Free, Jay 4-11 0-0 10; Quinlan, Daniel 3-11 0-0 8; Byrd, Jeremy 1-4 2-3 4;  Pikunic, Ante 1-6 1-2 3; Wartenberger, Marc 0-2 0-0 0; Eppinger, Preston 0-1 0-2 0; Payne, Luke 0-5 0-1 0; Rich, Zac 0-0 0-0 0.  Totals 16-57 11-24 47.

FRANCIS MARION UNIVERSITY (3-3 , 0-1 PBC) Rivers, Vony 5-16 2-2 14; Walker, George 3-12 5-7 11; Lee, Artis 3-5 0-0 8; Jenkins, Michael 3-11 1-1 7; Hamilton, Marchello 1-2 0-0 3; Dorsey, Raymond 1-4 0-2 2; Carter, Michael 0-7 1-2 1; Burton, Rodrick 0-1 0-1 0;  Coakley, Akeene 0-2 0-0 0; Peterson, Larnelle 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 16-60 9-15 46.

Halftime--Francis Marion 28 USC Upstate 20. 3-point goals-USC Upstate 4-23 (Quinlan, Daniel 2-10; Free, Jay 2-7;  Byrd, Jeremy 0-1; Wartenberger, Marc 0-1; Payne, Luke 0-3; Grgurovic, Ivica 0-1), Francis Marion 5-26 (Lee, Artis 2-2; Rivers, Vony 2-9;  Hamilton, Marchello 1-2; Carter, Michael 0-3; Burton, Rodrick 0-1;  Jenkins, Michael 0-6; Walker, George 0-3). Fouled out--None.  Rebounds-USC Upstate 52 (Kaupaitis, Erikas 10), Francis Marion 42  (Carter, Michael 11). Assists-USC Upstate 11 (Free, Jay 3; Byrd,  Jeremy 3), Francis Marion 7 (Jenkins, Michael 3). Total fouls-USC Upstate 16, Francis Marion 20. A-275.