Box Score SPARTANBURG, S.C. – The Norfolk State women's basketball team could get used to this.

Junior Recca Trice set the Division I record for assists and the Spartans tallied its most points in regulation in nearly 13 years in a 94-81 victory over USC Upstate Monday night at the G.B. Hodge Center. For the second time in four games this year, NSU hit the 80-point barrier after not having done so in the previous 86 games prior to this year.

After trailing most of the first half and the first part of the second half, NSU (3-1) used a big 22-2 run midway through that second stanza to pull away from the Spartans of USC Upstate (0-5). NSU shot 53.1 percent for the game on 34-of-64 shooting, while Upstate connected on 52.5 percent (32-of-61).

Sophomore Rachel Gordon tallied a career-high 25 points on 9-of-13 shooting with 12 rebounds for the Spartans, the fourth straight game of the season and seventh in the last nine games dating back to last year she has reached double digits in boards.

Trice had 14 assists for the game, breaking her own D-I record of 12 set two years ago as a freshman. She also posted a game-high four steals, one more than Upstate had as an entire team. NSU held a 10-3 edge in steals for the game.

NSU last scored at least 94 points in regulation on Jan. 9, 1999 in a 97-62 win over South Carolina State at home. The Spartans scored 94 points in an overtime victory against Howard on Feb. 4, 2008.

Gordon and junior Batavia Owens, who had seven rebounds, helped the Spartans earn a 42-26 edge on the glass, including 24-11 in the second half. Sophomore Rae Corbo and senior Whitney Long added 17 and 15 points, respectively, while junior Marian Brooks contributed 11 points.

The 34 field goals were just three off the D-I record of 37 set against Howard in Feb. '08. NSU also had 22 assists as a team, the second-most in the D-I era behind the 23 the Spartans handed out at South Carolina State on Jan. 8, 2005. Upstate had 23 assists on the night, with Tyra Smith leading the way with nine.

Tee'Ara Copney led Upstate with 25 points on 9-of-17 shooting, including four 3-pointers, while Briana Robinson posted 18 points. Kim Roach and Hannah Ohl also scored in double figures with 16 and 10 points, respectively.

NSU hit 5-of-8 from 3-point land for the game, while Upstate sank 8-of-21. NSU dominated in the paint, outscoring Upstate 42-24 down low. NSU also connected on 21-of-31 free throws, while Upstate hit 9-of-13 for the game.

Long got NSU on the board first with a 3-pointer on the opening possession of the game, and then sophomore Carlon Chambers gave the Spartans a 7-5 lead after a free throw and tough layup inside at the 16:19 mark. USC Upstate scored the next 12 points of the game for a 17-9 lead before back-to-back jumpers by Brooks and Gordon made it 17-13.

Corbo sank a trey and Brooks connected on a layup with 9:27 to go to cut the deficit to two, 20-18. Brooks tied it up at 22-22 after a hard-earned offensive board was followed by an immediate layup. Robinson scored the next six points for USC Upstate to give those Spartans a 28-24 lead, and then baskets on two straight possessions by Robinson made it 37-33 as NSU called a 30-second timeout with 2:38 left in the half

Trice sank a jumper in the lane to again tie it up at 37-all, and then a pair of free throws from Gordon and a basket down low by Brooks with just two seconds left gave NSU the lead back at the half, 41-39.

USC Upstate sank six treys in the first half alone, while Copney led the way with 13 points. Gordon tallied 13 points to lead NSU, while Trice had eight assists in the first stanza.

Copney continued to terrorize NSU, scoring USC Upstate's first five points of the second half to get the lead back. The home Spartans extended it to 48-43 before Corbo drove across lane, sank the basket and hit the free throw to cut the deficit to one, 48-47, with 16:12 to go. USC Upstate's offense, or more specifically, Roach, exploded at that point, as she made the Spartans' next nine points for a 59-55 Upstate lead.  

Gordon sank a layup with exactly 11 minutes left in the game, and then, with no defender in her face, Corbo hit a trey to put NSU back on top, 66-64. Upstate called a 30-second timeout with 9:22 to go shortly after Long's fastbreak made it 68-64, but the snowball quickly rolled downhill from there. Gordon's basket started the decisive 22-2 run for NSU that lasted nearly five and a half minutes.

Long hit a pair of back-breaking treys approximately a minute apart during that run, and then USC Upstate finally ended the drought when Copney hit three free throws after getting fouled on an attempt from beyond the arc, cutting the Upstate deficit to 83-69 with 5:41 left.

Those free throws by Copney started a 13-4 run for Upstate that cut into NSU's lead, 87-79, with less than two minutes to go. Gordon and Copney traded baskets, and then Gordon picked up a pair of key rebounds and hit all four free throws with under 40 seconds to go to ice the win.

NSU's 3-1 record marks the second straight year the Spartans have won three of their first four games of the season. The Spartans won their season opener, 80-58, over Texas Southern.

NSU will return to the court Saturday at home against Virginia Union at Joseph Echols Hall for a 6 p.m. contest. The game was moved from its original 4 p.m. slot due to the 1:30 p.m. start of the NSU-ODU football playoff game.