Game Information
Presbyterian Blue Hose vs. USC Upstate Spartans
Date: Saturday, January 3, at 2:00 p.m.
Site: Clinton, S.C. (Templeton Center)
Watch: ESPN+
Live Stats: GoBlueHose.com
Tickets: BlueHoseTix.com

PRESBYTERIAN
Record: 7-8, Big South: 0-0
Last Game: December 28, 2025 – Presbyterian 91, Truett McConnell 64
Head Coach: Quinton Ferrell (Presbyterian, 2007)
Record at PC: 69-130  (7^th Season)
Career Record: Same

USC UPSTATE
Record: 8-8, Big South: 0-1
Last Game: December 31, 2025 – Radford 76, USC Upstate 69
Head Coach: Marty Richter (Simpson College, 1999)
Record at USC Upstate: 14-34 (2nd Season)
Career Record: 80-44 (4th Season)
 
LAST TIME OUT –  Presbyterian finished non-conference play with a 91-64 win over Truett McConnell in the Templeton Center last Sunday. Redshirt senior forward Jonah Pierce paced the Blue Hose with another double-double with 18 points and 11 rebounds. Sophomore guard Triston Wilson scored 18 points and dished out six assists. Junior guard Carl Parrish chipped in with 16 points. Sophomore guard Josh Pickett rounded out Presbyterian's double-figure scorers with 14 points. Redshirt junior forward Jaylen Peterson nearly recorded a double-double with nine points and ten rebounds.
 
OPENING TIP
INSIDE THE STAT SHEET – Pierce leads the Blue Hose in scoring at 14.5 points per game. Pierce leads the Big South and ranks 45th in the nation in rebounding at 8.9 boards per game. Pierce is 17^th in the nation with a Big South leading six double-doubles. Parrish is second on the team in scoring at 13.0 points per game while connecting on a team-high 36 three-point field goals this season. Ten PC players have knocked down at least one three-point field goal this season. Peterson is second on the team in rebounding at 7.2 rebounds per contest. Wilson ranks amongst the Big South leaders, averaging a team-leading 3.7 assists per game. Wilson has dished out at least five assists in six games this season. Pierce, Peterson, and redshirt freshman forward Chidi Chiakwelu average around a blocked shot per game. Pierce and Chiakwelu rank third in the Big South at 1.40 blocked shots per game. As a team, Presbyterian is shooting 45.4 percent from the field while averaging 69.3 points per game.
 
OPENING TIP
BIG SOUTH OPENER – Saturday's game in Templeton against USC Upstate marks the Blue Hose's Big South Conference opener. Presbyterian has won its Big South Conference opener in each of the last three seasons with a 68-60 home win over Longwood (1/2/25) last season, a 68-61 win at Charleston Southern two years ago (1/3/24), and an 82-72 home win over Campbell three years ago (12/29/22). 
 
BLOCKED SHOTS - Chiakwelu recorded six blocked shots against Wofford (December 3), which is tied for the highest single-game total in Presbyterian's DI era. Peterson has also posted six blocked shots in a game in his career. Peterson accomplished that feat at Winthrop last season (January 29, 2025). 
 
NCAA RANKINGS - Presbyterian ranks first in the Big South and 77th in the nation in scoring defense after limiting its opponents to 68.4 points per game. The Blue Hose are first in the Big South and 65th in the nation in rebounding margin, averaging 6.2 rebounds per game more than its opponents. 
 
DOUBLE-DIGIT BOARDS – Jonah Pierce has grabbed double-figure rebounds seven times this season. He corralled 13 rebounds against Navy (November 3) and ETSU (November 8). He recorded 14 rebounds at Sacramento State (November 16) and at Wofford (December 3).  In Presbyterian's win over Morehead State (December 6), he tallied 16 rebounds. At Manhattan (December 21), he grabbed 11 boards. In Presbyterian's last game in the win over Truett McConnell (December 28), he grabbed 11 rebounds. 
 
FIVE DOUBLE-FIGURE SCORERS - In Presbyterian's 80-72 win over Morehead State (December 6), five PC players scored in double-figures, which marked the first time since a home win over Virginia-Lynchburg on December 18, 2024, that Presbyterian had at least five players score in double-figures in a game. In the win over Morehead State, Presbyterian's five double-figure scorers were: Parrish (18 pts.), Wilson (17 pts.), Josh Pickett (12 pts.), Pierce (11 pts.), and Khalon Hudson (11 pts.).
 
PC COACH QUINTON FERRELL - Quinton Ferrell is in his seventh season as the head coach of his alma mater, Presbyterian College. Ferrell, a former Blue Hose team captain and a 2007 PC graduate, is one of 51 coaches in the NCAA Division I ranks who are coaching their alma mater.
 
PRESBYTERIAN-USC UPSTATE SERIES – Saturday's game marks the 40^th meeting between Presbyterian and USC Upstate, with the Spartans leading the series, 21-18. Presbyterian has won the last two matchups between the two teams in the Templeton Center, including a 75-64 win in their last meeting, February 5, 2025. Former Blue Hose standout Kaleb Scott paced the Blue Hose with a double-double with 22 points and 14 rebounds in the win. Sophomore guard Iverson King scored 13 points and grabbed eight rebounds in the victory.

USC UPSTATE – USC Upstate has split its last four games with wins over South Carolina State and Southern Wesleyan and losses to Youngstown State and Radford. USC Upstate averages 78.1 points per game while limiting its opponents to 70.9 points per game. Junior guard Mason Bendinger (15.9 ppg) and redshirt junior guard Karmani Gregory (15.6 ppg) rank in the top ten in the Big South in scoring.