Courtesy of USC Upstate Athletics
SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Coming off a second straight postseason appearance at the 2023 Discount Tires College Basketball Invitational, USC Upstate men’s basketball begins its follow-up campaign with a 13-game non-conference schedule, featuring three games against Power-Five programs and three games against teams who qualified for the postseason a year ago.
The Spartans season begins Oct. 5 as Morgan Square Madness—the only outdoor basketball tip-off event in the state of South Carolina—returns to downtown Spartanburg. The event, planned to be even larger than last season’s inaugural event, is the first opportunity for the Spartan Army to see the 2023 men’s and women’s basketball programs.
Upstate’s 2023-24 season officially begins at the G.B. Hodge Center on Nov. 1, hosting Erskine in an exhibition for the second straight season. The regular season opens the following week as the Spartans open the year at South Carolina for the second time in three seasons before wrapping the first week of the new season with a trip to another Southeastern Conference foe, heading to Vanderbilt—a 2023 National Invitational Tournament participant—on Nov. 10.
Following a two-game SEC road swing, the Spartans return to the G.B. Hodge Center for the first time in the regular season, hosting Carolina University (N.C.) on Nov. 12. Upstate then embarks on a three-game road swing leading up to the Thanksgiving holiday, beginning with a trip to East Carolina on Nov. 15 before treks to Minnesota (Nov. 18) and Ball State (Nov. 21) as part of a soon-to-be-named MTE.
Out of the holiday break, Upstate hosts Voorhees (S.C.) on Nov. 25 before embarking on a two-game road trip, travelling to Coastal Carolina and North Carolina Central on Nov. 29 and Dec. 2, respectively. The Spartans follow the road trip with its longest homestand of the non-conference slate, hosting a pair of postseason qualifiers in Kennesaw State and Western Carolina on Dec. 9 and Dec. 16, respectively.
The non-conference schedule concludes with a pair of games on either side of the Christmas holiday with Upstate heading to Davidson on Dec. 21 before closing 2023 at home on Dec. 30 vs. Coker.
The 2023-24 Big South Conference schedule will be released at a later date with game times and broadcast information released at a later date.
