The Spartans (12-7, 6-4 A-Sun) would get their sixth win in the last seven contests with the help of 20-point efforts from Chelsea McMillan (24) and Tee’Ara Copney (23). McMillan would also record a game-high 12 rebounds.

USC Upstate used a 15-2 run in the second half to take the lead after shooting 17-for-30 en route to a game-best 46.8 percent (29-62) from the floor. The Dolphins (5-13, 4-6) shot 43.9 percent (29-66) from the floor, while getting outscored in paint points (38-26) and bench points (27-11)

“This was a tough game,” said JU head coach Jill Dunn. “We did a good job of coming back and taking lead in the contest, but we didn’t finish them off when we had the chance. We have to play two complete halves if we want to get victories and we didn’t today.”

Sophomore guard Jessica George recorded a career-best 15 points and four assists to lead five Dolphins in double figures. Junior forward Taneskei Richardson added 13 points, while senior forward Crystal Grable 12 points and 10 rebounds.

In the second half, Copney closed out the Spartans’ 15-2 run with a three-pointer (9:54) to give USC Upstate a 57-50 lead. George (9:29) and sophomore guard Ashanti Williams (8:46) would hit buckets on consecutive trips to narrow the JU deficit before Richardson tied it at 61 all with layup at 6:15.

The Dolphins tied it two more times before USC Upstate used a small 5-1 run to take a 73-69 advantage on a free throw by Lauren McRoberts. A jumper by Richardson made it a 73-71 deficit for JU with less than 30 seconds remaining, but the Spartans would hold off the late surge to secure the win.

Senior guard Courtney Jackson recorded 11 points for the Dolphins, while Williams finished in double-figures for the fourth straight game with 10 points. She also added a game-high six assists.

In the first half, the Spartans would build a seven-point lead, 19-12, on a fade away jumper by McMillan (10:45). After a run by the Dolphins, USC Upstate would take a 25-20 advantage on a pair of free throws by Courtney Hawkins (6:21). The Dolphins found their spark with an 15-3 run to close out the half, which included consecutive steals for break away layups by Grable, to take a 35-32 lead in the locker room.

Hawkins was the only other Spartan players in double-digits with 11 points, while McRoberts finished with eight points.

The Dolphins are off until Wednesday when they face UNF in the second SunTrust River City Rumble matchup. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m.