DELAND, Fla. -- Deion Holmes and Mike Cunningham scored 24 points each and South Carolina Upstate defeated Stetson 97-86 on Saturday.

Cunningham made 5 of 7 3-point attempts in tying his career-high scoring total, and Holmes hit 10 of 11 free throws. Josh Cuthbertson grabbed a career-high 10 rebounds for the Spartans (14-8, 4-1), who were pegged for last in a preseason coaches poll but find themselves tied atop the Atlantic Sun Conference after their third straight win and seventh in their last eight.

Derick Newton scored 30 points for the Hatters (8-13, 1-4), who have lost four of their last five. Divine Myles added 18 points.

A 3-pointer by Moore gave the Spartans the lead at 80-78 with 4:25 left and began a game-ending 20-8 run, including eight points from Cunningham. Upstate took the game's first double-digit lead with just under a minute to go. A layup with 20 seconds left was Stetson's first field goal in nearly seven minutes.