Sometimes, you just have to post a win on the board.
That’s what Wake Forest Men’s Basketball needed to do Wednesday night — and they did, defeating the USC Upstate Spartans, 85-80.
Wake Forest struggled with the Spartans throughout the entirety of the night, as the two squads battled throughout what would be a back-and-forth contest with 12 lead changes.
One of the Demon Deacons’ strong suits that carried them through the game was the ability to generate turnovers. Forbes’ squad forced 12 turnovers throughout the first period, and finished with 17 on the night — the most since last season’s home win against Virginia Tech (18).
Despite their turnover-creating ability, the Demon Deacons struggled to stop the Spartans’ onslaught from 3-point land — shooting 11-29 (37.9%) from deep.
“I was disappointed,” Wake Forest Head Coach Steve Forbes said. “I was just disappointed in our effort in defensive transition, and that’s how [USC Upstate] got going offensively.”
Wake Forest continued their cold stretch from beyond the arc, too — shooting 26.9% on the night (and 25.9% on the season). The only player to shoot over 50% from three was Alabama transfer Davin Cosby, who scored each of his 15 points (5-7 3PT) as 3-pointers.
“[Cosby] came into the second half and made some shots that really opened up the floor for us,” Forbes said.
Hunter Sallis continued to lead the Demon Deacons in scoring on the season, putting up 23 points on 9-14 shooting. Sallis also assisted on six shots, a game-high.
“A lot of shots went in for me early on,” Sallis said postgame. “Throughout the game, [USC Upstate] were running a lot of guys at me, which allowed me to make an easy play.”
Center Efton Reid had his best game of the season, posting up 14 points and a team-high eight rebounds on the night.
USC Upstate’s offense was generated primarily through freshman Mister Dean, who led the Spartans with 24 points on 10-14 shooting. Dean played only 24 minutes in the contest due to foul trouble.
The Demon Deacons didn’t escape the night without injury news, either. Forbes announced earlier on in the day that forward Omaha Biliew (5.3pts, 2.3rebs) is expected to miss 8-10 weeks with a right foot injury.
“[Omaha] really wants to play through it, he really does,” said Forbes. “I know that’s what he wants to do, but that’s not what’s best for him right now, health-wise.”
Wake Forest travels to Cincinnati, Ohio’s Cintas Center on Saturday to face off against the Xavier Musketeers in another rendition of the Skip Prosser Classic. Tip-off is set for noon on Fox Sports 1.
