Sergio Guerra, Sports Editor/Photographer 

This past weekend saw the much-anticipated return of two of Greensboro’s basketball teams in the Greensboro Swarm and the UNCG Spartans. The Greensboro Swarm opened its 10^th season in the G-League with back-to-back wins over the Maine Celtics, including an overtime thriller on opening night. The UNCG Men’s Basketball team was up against Elon in the newly named Bodford Arena, formerly Fleming Gymnasium, in an overtime loss to the Phoenixes. 

The Greensboro Swarm’s 10^th Anniversary 

The Greensboro Swarm competes in the NBA G-League, which develops future talent to play in the world’s premier basketball league, the NBA. The Swarm is an affiliate of the Charlotte Hornets and is celebrating its 10^th anniversary in the G-League, opening the season by facing the Maine Celtics, affiliates of the NBA’s Boston Celtics.  

The Swarm’s opening night was on Friday, November 7^th at the Novant Fieldhouse which showcased Greensboro overcoming a 13-point deficit to send the game to overtime through a clutch 3-pointer from Antonio Reeves, with the score tied at 124-124. 

The game would continue in the overtime period with the winner being decided by the first side to reach 131 points. It was a back-and-forth overtime period with the score once again tied at 129-129. Greensboro’s Marcus Garrett was sent to the line after a fast break and would make the final two free throws to start the Swarm’s season on the right foot.  

Terrell Brown Jr. led the team’s offense coming off the bench, finishing the match with a team-high 26 points, six rebounds, and four assists. Meanwhile, Jaylen Sims and Antonio Reeves both put up 24 points on the night.  

The Greensboro Swarm completed its back-to-back against the Maine Celtics on Saturday, November 8 with a 122-120 win over the Boston-affiliate. Jaylen Sims led the Swarm in points with 22 on the night, while Josiah Allick led in rebounds with 8. Tidjane Salaun would sink a three-pointer in the final 10 seconds of the match to win it for the Charlotte-affiliate. 

The Greensboro Swarm (2-0) is back on the road for the first time this season on November 13, at 7:00 pm against the Delaware Blue Coats (1-0). 

UNCG Spartans Basketball Home Opener 

UNCG Men’s Basketball opened the newly named Bodford Arena on Saturday, November 8, against local rivals Elon in an overtime thriller. The Spartans came into this match on the back of a 93-64 loss against Kansas State last Tuesday. Meanwhile, Elon opened its season at home with a 99-51 blowout victory over Belmont Abbey last Wednesday.  

It was an evenly fought contest with the sides going into halftime level 42-42. It wasn’t until the final minutes that UNCG pulled away and was up 86-83. However, Elon hit a three-pointer in the final five seconds of the match to tie it up. The Spartans’ Donald Whitehead Jr. thought he had won the game for the home side after a tough layup went in at the buzzer, however the play was ruled out. 

A low-scoring overtime would see the Elon Phoenixes win the match 92-90 to the frustration of around 1,700 in attendance for the Bodford Arena home opener. Donald Whitehead Jr. led the Spartans in points 18 and Justin Neeley led the team in rebounds with 11, three of those being offensive rebounds. 

It’s a second straight loss for the UNCG Spartans who are back in action on Wednesday night when they travel to NC State (2-0).  

UNCG Men’s Soccer Update 

The Southern Conference Men’s Soccer Championship has started, and the UNCG Spartans have continued to shine in the 2025 post season. The quarterfinals saw the No. 3 seeded Spartans take on the No. 6 seed VMI on Thursday night. Arnaud Tattevin led the Spartans to an emphatic 5-1 victory with a first-half hat-trick to take his season tally to 11 goals after this match, making him the team’s outright top goalscorer. Enzo Dovlo also grabbed his tenth goal of the season while Colton Sessoms scored his third. 

UNCG’s next task was a semifinal clash against No. 2 Mercer. The Spartans and the Bears met in the final match of the 2025 regular season, where UNCG won 3-0 at home. The semifinal rematch did not go much differently than the last meeting, with the Spartans winning 2-0 away from home to punch their ticket to the SoCon Tournament final.  

UNCG’s Teva Lossec got on the scoresheet in the first five minutes, capitalizing on a corner kick delivered by Steven Hernandez. Arnaud Tattevin would ensure victory for the Spartans with a goal in the 58^th minute, making him the highest goalscorer in all the Southern Conference with 12 goals.  

The Spartans face a familiar foe in the SoCon Final – the Furman Paladins – which is the same side that knocked them out of the tournament in the semifinals last year. The Paladins went on to win the SoCon tournament in 2024, earning an automatic berth into the NCAA tournament. UNCG will be eager to not let history repeat itself on Saturday, November 15.