GAME NOTES: The second round of the CollegeInsider.com Tournament rolls on Saturday with a matchup pitting the UT Martin Skyhawks against the USC Upstate Spartans at the Hodge Center.

The winner will advance to the third round of the tournament, and will await its next opponent.

UT Martin got the ball rolling in its first-round clash against Northwestern State. The Skyhawks countered the nation's top-scoring offense with a dazzling offensive display of their own, putting up 104 points in a 104-79 victory over the Southland Conference program.

USC Upstate's first-round matchup against James Madison was a little more heart-stopping than UT Martin's. The Spartans narrowly escaped the Dukes by a 73-72 margin, helping Upstate rebound from a single-digit loss to North Florida in the Atlantic Sun championship bout.

This will be the first-ever meeting on the hardwood between UT Martin and USC Upstate. The Spartans are a dismal 3-11 against Ohio Valley Conference opponents, all-time.

UT Martin keyed in on stopping Zeek Woodley, one of the nation's top scorers, on Thursday when the Skyhawks met the Demons of Northwestern State in the first round of the CIT. Woodley was contained to just nine points, but Jalan West went off for 34 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists. Still, the Skyhawks connected on 55.6 percent of their shots from the floor and were led by a 30-point effort from Alex Anderson in the huge win. But it was Deville Smith who stole the show for the Skyhawks after tallying a triple-double with 21 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists to provide the spark. Marshun Newell added 18 points, and Twymond Howard chipped in with 16 points and seven boards for UT Martin.

Smith's huge outing did wonders for his stat line. He now enters the second round of the CIT leading the team in scoring with 14.0 ppg, adding in 4.4 rpg, a team-best 144 assists, 52 steals and 18 blocked shots. He's followed by Newell (13.4 ppg), Howard (13.1 ppg) and Anderson (12.3 ppg) as the Skyhawks' double-digit scorers entering Saturday's clash. UT Martin as a unit is collecting 70.8 ppg on a healthy 47.2 percent shooting. Newell tops the squad on the boards, bringing down 7.0 rpg.

Jacob Schulte scored on a layup with 1:06 left to play against James Madison on Tuesday to give USC Upstate a 73-72 advantage over the Dukes, and neither team scored again as the Spartans hung on to beat the Dukes. USC Upstate was fueled by the Atlantic Sun's leading scorer Ty Greene, who netted 26 points on 9-of-18 shooting from the floor in the victory. Fred Miller tallied 18 points, Shunquez Stephens added 11 points with seven rebounds and five assists, and Josh Cuthbertson came off the bench to contribute 10 points. JMU held advantages in made field goals and 3-point field goal makes, but the Spartans outscored the Dukes from the free-throw line, 7-2, to earn the edge.

Greene comes into the clash against UT Martin netting a team-best 20.4 ppg on 45.5 percent shooting, adding in an impressive 42.9 percent touch from beyond the arc. Miller is the only other Spartans player to average a double-digit scoring total, chipping in 12.3 ppg for Upstate with a team-high 140 assists. The Spartans pride themselves on a strong offensive effort that outputs 72.3 ppg. Defensively the team is strong as well, limiting opponents to a mere 61.1 ppg on 39.6 percent shooting from the field.

If UT Martin can get anything near what it did in its last outing, the Skyhawks could be a favorite to take the tournament going forward. The Spartans won't be a pushover, though. Still, the OVC program has the advantage with a deeper lineup, even though the Spartans will be playing at home.