GAME NOTES: The Spartans of USC Upstate try to bounce back from their first loss of the season, as they host the FIU Panthers in the first round of games in the Spartanburg Marriott Upstate Classic on Thursday afternoon.

The Spartans kicked off the 2014-15 campaign with three straight wins against Florida A&M, North Carolina A&T and Bob Jones before being downed by UCF on the road last Sunday in a 76-69 final.

As for the Panthers, they have an identical record to USC Upstate, winning the first three games on the schedule (Florida College, Stetson, Florida Memorial) before losing to Georgia Southern on Monday, 78-72, on the road.

According to USC Upstate sources, this is the first game ever played between the two schools on the hardwood. In fact, the Spartans are getting their first look at all three schools that are involved in this event.

Both teams will be back in action over the next two days in the round-robin tournament, facing off with Cal State Fullerton and Wright State.

Of the 72 points scored by FIU in the latest outing versus Georgia Southern, 33 were tallied by Adrian Diaz who converted an impressive 12-of-16 shots form the floor and 9-of-13 at the free-throw line. Unfortunately, the rest of his teammates combined to make only 14 field goals, not one of them coming up with more than three makes, although Daviyon Draper did make a solid effort in the paint with his nine points and eight rebounds in the losing cause.

Somewhat surprisingly, even after his massive effort in the last game, Diaz is scoring just 15.8 ppg as he paces the Panthers in that category. Part of the problem is that he has made only 51.5 percent of his attempts at the free- throw line, bringing the entire team down to only 58.9 percent in the process. Dennis Mavin pitches in with another 14.0 ppg for a squad generating 65.6 ppg, while limiting the competition to 55.0 ppg.

USC Upstate led by as many as nine points in the first half against UCF in the latest outing, but the team failed to make strides at the free-throw line where it finished a mere 3-of-6, making seven fewer shots than the Knights in what turned out to be a seven-point decision. Mario Blessing and Ty Greene led the way with 14 points apiece, the former shooting a perfect 4-of-4 behind the 3-point line, followed by Michael Buchanan off the bench with 12 points. Starters ShunQuez Stephens and Fred Miller tacked on 10 points apiece in the losing cause.

Through four games, Greene is the leading scorer with 17.0 ppg, doing considerable damage out on the perimeter where he has knocked down 13-of-24 (.542) tries. Another starter in all four games, Miller checks in with 11.5 ppg and has also shown a penchant for hitting shots on the outside (8-of-16) in the early going. As a group, the Spartans are generating 79.2 ppg, mostly due to the fact that the competition has not been all the tough through the first three games on the schedule.

As long as the Spartans can again be a threat behind the 3-point line, there's no reason to think they can't come alive and bring at least one win home in this tournament.