USC Upstate went through a big change this season, climbing from Division II to the highest rung on the college basketball ladder.

The Spartans will face another dramatic change next season, playing without four-year veterans Luke Payne and Jeremy Byrd

"When they came in as freshmen (2004-05), we had a good team and they were viable contributors to that," head coach Eddie Payne, Luke's father, told the Spartanburg Herald-Journal. "They were immediately exposed to, and they came to embody, the sense that we are supposed to win."

Byrd and Payne led the team to 68 victories, an average of 17 per season. They reached the NCAA Division II tournament in each of their first two seasons, capturing the Peach Belt Conference regular-season crown in 2005 and a league tournament title in 2006.

The Spartans lost 23 games in 2007-08, but Byrd and Payne proved they could play in the Atlantic Sun. Byrd led the league in steals and Payne was 14th in scoring.

"It went by too fast," Byrd said. "I keep telling everybody that I don't want to leave. I wish I could keep playing here forever and ever."

Payne said he will treasure the relationships he developed with teammates and the extra time spent with his father.

"I've gotten so much out of playing basketball here, but I think the biggest thing I have enjoyed besides the competition is the fellowship and the friendships that I've made with my teammates," he said.

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