GREENSBORO, N.C. – The UNCG men's basketball team picked up its second straight victory Wednesday afternoon as the Spartans held off crosstown foe Greensboro College 82-78 at the Greensboro Coliseum during the second annual Guilford County Schools Education Day as over 3,000 GCS middle school students were in attendance at the midweek matinee. The Spartans hit the road this weekend to open Southern Conference play, travelling to Johnson City, Tenn., for a meeting with league newcomer East Tennessee State.

“Hats off to Greensboro College and their staff as I thought they were terrific today and we were lucky to come out of here with a win,” head coach Wes Miller said. “We have to continue to learn how to win and if there is one thing I can be proud of today is we have now won two close games in a row where it could have gone either way down the stretch. We did the things we needed to do in the final four minutes to get the victory. We have to continue to improve our mentality - each day, each practice, each game – to be more consistent with our approach.”

Five different Spartans scored in double figures in the victory while six different players had nine or more points. Sophomore guard Tevon Saddler (Aberdeen, Md./St. Frances Academy) led the charge with a season-high 24 points, four assists, three steals and two blocked shots. Saddler connected on 7-of-13 from the field and was 9-of-10 from the free throw line.

Sophomore forward Jordy Kuiper (Groningen, Netherlands/Canaries Basketball Academy) notched his first career double-double in the victory. Kuiper scored a career-high 11 points and grabbed a career-high 10 rebounds in 19 minutes as he was 4-of-5 from the field and 3-of-3 from the charity stripe. Senior guard Nicholas Paulos (Salt Lake City, Utah/New Hampton School) added 19 points, including a critical 3-point play late in the game, as he was 7-of-13 from the field and 4-of-9 from distance.

Greensboro College had three in double figures scoring with Devan Gregory leading the way. Gregory scored a game-high 27 points on 9-of-14 shooting, including five 3-pointers. Simeon Hawkins chipped in 21 points while Parris Scales added 11 points and seven rebounds in the loss.

The Spartans finished the game shooting 45.2 percent (28-of-62) from the field and 30.4 percent (7-of-23) from distance. UNCG was strong from the free throw line, converting 86.4 percent (19-of-22) while also winning the rebounding battle 40-29. Greensboro College finished the day shooting 44.3 percent (27-of-61) from the field and hit 12-of-24 (50%) from long range but was just 3-of-9 in the second half.

The Spartans started slowly with the 11:30 a.m. tip time as Greensboro College opened up to a 22-7 lead just under nine minutes into the game. The Pride did its damage early on from long range as it hit six of its first nine from distance. Gregory and Howard were the catalysts as they both hit a pair of 3-pointers during the early run.

The Spartans finally settled in and scored the next 11 points on their way to a 25-9 run. Sophomore guard Diante Baldwin (Greensboro, N.C./High Point Christian) came off the bench for his first action of the season after missing the first eight games due to an injury. Baldwin made an immediate impact as he registered three steals that directly led to baskets on the other end to ignite the UNCG run. Saddler was the beneficiary of the defense as he scored 10 points during the stretch while Paulos added five points as the Spartans took a 32-31 lead with 4:23 left in the half.

The teams traded baskets down the stretch of the first half before Gregory hit a 3-pointer with 56 seconds remaining to tie the game at 41-41 at halftime. The Spartans connected on 42.4 percent (14-of-33) from the field in the first half while hitting just 3-of-13 (23.1%) from long range. Greensboro College conversely connected on 51.7 percent (15-of-29) from the field and hit 9-of-15 (60%) from distance in the opening 20 minutes. Saddler led the Spartans with 16 points while Gregory chipped in 14 points for the Pride.

The Spartans came out of the second half and posted a quick 7-2 run to force a GC timeout as Paulos scored five straight points for a 48-43 lead. Each time the Spartans tried to extend their lead, Greensboro College was able to keep itself within arms reach with the help of the outside shot.

UNCG took a 71-64 lead with 5:23 remaining as Paulos hit another 3-pointer and redshirt sophomore center RJ White (Frisco, Texas/Frisco) scored in the paint. The Pride answered back with a 9-2 run to tie the game at 75-75 with 2:43 remaining as Howard scored six straight at one point.

With the game tied, the Spartans went to their lone senior dressed in Paulos who converted an old-fashioned 3-point play with 1:34 remaining for a 78-75 lead. After a defensive stop, Baldwin calmly hit a pair of free throws to extend the lead to five at 80-75 but GC was fouled on a 3-point shot and Gregory hit all three to make it 80-78 with 21 seconds left. The Pride fouled Saddler and he hit both of his free throws to seal the victory as the Spartans' defense did not allow a shot in the final 15 seconds.

Baldwin finished the game with nine points, four steals, three rebounds and three assists in 25 minutes of action, his first of the year. He was 3-of-5 from the field, including a 3-pointer, while hitting both free throws. White added 10 points and eight rebounds as he was 5-of-6 from the field in 29 minutes.

The Spartans return to action Saturday afternoon as they play their SoCon opener on the road against league newcomer East Tennessee State. Game time is set for 4 p.m. in Johnson City and will be broadcast on the SoCon Digital Network for free.

-UNCG-