Spartans Victorious in Home Opener

The 2025-2026 college basketball season got underway last week for the USC Upstate Spartans, bringing with it a renewed sense of optimism about the program.

A year ago, the Spartans struggled their way to a 6-26 record under then first-year head coach Marty Richter’s leadership. The team showed flashes of what they can be when Richter gets his vision fully executed and featured a human highlight reel in Mister Dean, who is now at the College of Charleston.

This year, the Spartans return several key players from last season including redshirt senior Guard Kanye Jones, who missed almost all of last year with an injury. In addition to Jones, Forward Breylin Garcia returns for his senior season, as well as redshirt sophomore Guard Chico Johnson, redshirt senior Guard Isaiah Skinner, and redshirt junior Guard Karmani Gregory.

Joining all those returnees are 4 transfers that feature Guard Tyler Smith (junior), Center Coen Collier (junior), Guard Mason Bendinger (junior), Wing Learic Davis (RS junior), and Forward Jafeth Martinez (junior).

All that depth and experience gives reason for believing that the Spartans will take a huge step forward in year 2 under Richter’s guidance. But, if that is not enough to convince you, let the numbers speak. Last season, after winning their home opener against division III Piedmont, defeating DII Southern Wesleyan 2 weeks later, and soon after taking down another D3 squad (Brevard), the Spartans did not see their first triumph over an NCAA Division I foe until they knocked off Western Carolina in Cullowhee 74-68 on December 7th.

“We have depth, size, and guards”, said Marty Richter. “Our guard play is so much better. Tyler {Smith} does a great job of distributing the ball and getting up shots. Karmani {Gregory} made that jump as a player from sophomore to junior year, which I am very proud of. The size up front is so much different. Last year, we were 6’ 4” and 6’ 5”. This year we are 7’ 1” and 6’ 9”. So if you make a mistake defensively, we can clean it up and that is what is so great about this team.”

So far in the 2025-2026 campaign, the Spartans are 1-1, with a D1 win already under their belt. The season got underway last week with a road trip out to California, opening on Monday night with a tight contest against California Baptist University – the preseason favorite to win the WAC. Karmani Gregory led the way with 24 points on 9 for 13 shooting with a team-high 3 assists. Learic Davis tallied 15, going 5 for 7 from the floor with 5 rebounds while Mason Bendinger notched 10 points on 4-13 from the field. Adkins and Garcia both added 8 points, combining for 10 rebounds (Adkins tied with Collier for the team lead in boards). In the end, despite the solid offensive showing, the Spartans fell 87-75.

Wednesday night, Upstate made the trek down to Fresno State to face a team that is in a similar situation to them. The Bulldogs, like USC Upstate, won just 6 games last season. They brought on a new head coach and that has naturally made them more competitive. The Spartans trailed for much of the game, having to make a rally in the 2nd half, but it paid off as Upstate came away with a 67-66 victory. Once again, three Upstate players scored in double figures, led by Gregory with 15 points a rebound, 2 assists, and a steal. Bendinger added 14 with 3 boards and an assist, and Adkins hung 13 with 8 rebounds and a pair of steals. The Spartans shot 50% from the field in the win (25-50) and 64.7% from the charity stripe.

“The Cal Baptist and Fresno trip allowed us to see where we are”, said Richter of his team’s start. “Cal Baptist is as good a mid-major team as there is in the country. Their guard play – Dominique Daniels, would be an all-league player in 28 of the 33 leagues around the country. He is that good of a player. So we got a great test in the opener. In the 2nd game, Fresno State is a much-improved team. Coach Vance {Walberg} did a great job of upping his talent level and getting them better. They have a real chance to win some games in the Mountain West. So our ability to get that first win over a division 1 opponent, especially this early on, really gets you going in the right direction. It gives you a pep in your step.”

Saturday afternoon, Upstate returned home for their first non-division 1 game, looking to build on the momentum gained from Wednesday’s win. They welcomed the University of Southern Virginia Knights out of the NCAA Division III ranks, and despite a slow 1-4 start from the floor (Gregory got the scoring started with a layup at the 18:20 mark) and an 0 for 4 streak from three point range over the opening minutes (broken ahead of the under-12 media timeout by Adkins), things ended up going exactly as expected. At the under 16, Upstate led 6-2 with 2 points a piece from Garcia, Gregory, and Bendinger. After Adkins finally broke the lid off the basket as far as threes go, it sparked a 16-0 run that he was pretty much the sole contributor to, going four for his next 5 from beyond the arch to make for a nearly 3 minute 16-0 Spartan run. That push extended to 20-4 leading into the under-8 timeout, and all but put the game out of reach. By the final break of the opening stanza, Upstate had outscored the Knights 37-9, including yet another small 5-0 burst over the last minute of that stretch, building a 56-25 lead at the intermission.

In the 2nd half, Upstate used a 13-2 run ahead of the final media timeout to break the century mark, cruising to a 105-46 win. The Spartans had 4 players put up double figures and everyone that saw minutes in the game scored. Carmelo Adkins led the way with 23 pts, an assist, and 2 rebounds, including shooting 7 for 11 from three point range. Kanye Jones tallied 14 pts, a board, a steal, and a block in his first home game since early last season. Karmani Gregory added 12 pts with 3 assists and 5 rebounds. Mason Bendinger capped those in double digits with 11 points and 3 rebounds.

Breylin Garcia led the way in rebounds with 9 to go with 6 points and 5 assists while Isaiah Skinner logged the most assists with 6 to complement his 5 points and 3 steals.

“It is great because sometimes you get in games and not everybody gets a chance to score. Scoring makes everyone happy”, said Richter of his team’s offensive effort. “CJ Rich came in and drilled a three and a couple of free throws. Chico {Johnson} is finally back from his injury from the spring. He did a great job. It is a great feeling to get everyone on the scoreboard and a great feeling to have everyone contribute.”

While everyone scoring makes for a good story in and of itself, the best storyline from this game was by and large the first start back from injury for Kanye Jones in the Hodge Center, where he appeared in just 2 games a year ago.

“It felt great to be back. It is hard to put it in words, but I feel blessed to be back. I have waited a long time for this and it is really exciting for me to get back to being able to play at home in front of our fans”, said Jones, whose excitement level for his return is surpassed only by his coach.

“He has done a great job of getting himself ready to play after his injury”, Richter said with a smile. “I am so proud of how he has done that. He didn’t get to play in the opener. But he came back at Fresno State and played 13 minutes. He did an unbelievable job. He knocked a three down and guarded their point guard well, which I needed him to do. Today, he came out and played well offensively as well as defensively. His gift is his ability to guard the ball. He is a really good on-ball defender and that is what he is going to be used for this year.”

With the Spartans now sitting at 2-1 on the season, Richter and Jones will turn their attention to trying to continue the positive momentum in a 2nd straight home game over a non-NCAA division one foe as Upstate welcomes the Bob Jones University Bruins to the Hodge Center. Tip off is set for 7:00 PM.