Mid-major Basketball rivals collided on Tuesday night in UNC-Greensboro and Winthrop Basketball.
Big South Basketball and SoCon Basketball clashed on Tuesday night as some mid-major basketball former conference rivals squared off. The UNC-Greensboro Spartans came into the game with a leg up on the Winthrop Eagles on Tuesday night, with a win already under their belt. Winthrop kicked off their 2020-21 season after going 24-10 and 15-3 in the Big South a season ago.
Eagles head coach Pat Kelsey and Spartans head coach Wes Miller are two up-and-coming names in the coaching ranks. Winthrop is this season’s preseason favorite to win the Big South Conference while UNC-Greensboro is an early favorite to win the SoCon as well.
As far as the series goes, the Spartans came in holding an advantage with a 9-6 record in the head-to-head matchup and a two-game winning streak dating back to 2000-01, when the teams last faced each other. Both were members of the Big South Conference from 1993-97.
In a rivalry renewed in 2020, the Winthrop Eagles got a 75-67 victory in a gritty game that saw 10 lead changes and 10 ties.
Led by the play of Chandler Vaudrin and freshman Kelton Talford, the Eagles got their first victory of the 2020-21 season. Here’s a look at the 5 biggest takeaways from Winthrop’s victory over UNC-Greensboro.