Women

 

By Michael A. Lough

The Sports Report

centralgasports@gmail.com

 

          The banners and history of North Carolina women’s basketball meant nothing to Mercer.

          Winning did.

          Only nine days after North Carolina gave head coach Sylvia Hatchell her 1,000th career win, the Tar Heels ran into a sizzling Mercer team and Kahlia Lawrence and fell 97-86 to the visiting Bears Thursday afternoon.

          The fourth quarter was a stunner, with Mercer outscoring North Carolina 33-8, just after the Tar Heels took a 35-21 third quarter to seemingly gain control, leading 78-64 entering the fourth quarter.

          That advantage grew by two before Mercer got rolling on two Lawrence free throws, the senior en route to a monster 39-point game, and 13 rebounds.

          KeKe Callaway hit a 3 and Lawrence nailed two freebies in less than half a minute, and the margin fell to 82-71 with 7:49 left.

          The Bears were just starting, and went on a 13-2 run in less than three minutes, tying it at 84 on Lawrence’s 3-pointer with 3:31 left.

          Callaway put the Bears on top with a bomb at the 2:57 mark, the Tar Heels finally breaking their slump with a bucket with 1:31 left, and that only pulled them to within 89-86.

          The Bears closed out the upset strong, Amanda Thompson getting a block on UNC’s next possession as Mercer outscored the hosts 8-0 in the final minute.

          Callaway added 22 points, while Sydni Means had 16 assists togo with nine points, and Alex Williams had eight rebounds.

          Paris Kea led UNC with 16 points, while Janelle Bailey had 19 and Jamie Cherry 14.

          The Tar Heels outrebounded the Bears 48-41, but Mercer was 10 for 24 on 3s, led by Lawrence’s 6-for-9 effort, to 3 for 10 for UNC.

          Mercer also had a dominating 22-5 assist-to-turnover ratio to 14-17 for North Carolina.

          It was the first meeting of the teams since 1985, a 121-61 win by UNC at the Sunshine Classic in Lake Mary, Florida.

          Mercer won its ninth straight in ending UNC’s eight-game winning streak.

 

Quotables

(Mercer Sports Information)

          On the team's resilience: "We were down in the first quarter, before tying the game up at halftime. The second half didn't start the way we wanted and we were down 16 at one point in the fourth quarter. We never lost that look in our eyes that the game was over. This was a total team effort as everyone stepped up down the stretch."

          On the ability to control the assist-to-turnover battle: "We tend to do really well in the assist-to-turnover category. We were able to force 17 turnovers which was big for us down the stretch. I feel like the key to any win is your assist-to-turnover ratio and it all starts with your point guard.

 On the active hands defensively: "We were well undersized with Alex and Amanda in the post. However, Alex is going to battle. Alex had some huge defensive rebounds at the end and Amanda held her own against a 6' 4" post player. Without the fight in those two, we don't win that basketball game."

Mercer head coach Susie Gardner

 

 

Men

 

Mercer Sports Information

(edited)

 

          Mercer's red-shot second-half shooting lifted the Bears to a convincing 89-56 victory over Kennesaw State Thursday evening at Hawkins Arena.

          The win improves Mercer to 7-6 on the season and is the Bears' final regular season non-conference matchup of the year.

          Mercer (7-6) led 38-31 at the half before shooting a sizzling 72.4% (21-29) from the floor in the second stanza to post the impressive win.

          The Bears capitalized on a 13-5 run early in the second half to stretch a 50-40 lead into a comfortable 63-45 advantage and never looked back in claiming their seventh consecutive victory over the Owls (3-10).

Mercer shot a season-best 60.3 percent from the field.

          Ria'n Holland, Mercer's leading scorer on the season, had a game-high 20 points on eight of 11 shooting from the floor. Holland, who entered the game as the Southern Conference's second leading scorer, now has hit for double digits in 37 of 42 career games with the Bears.

 Other double figure scorers for the Bears included Cory Kilby, who gave Mercer a lift off the bench with 11 points; Demetre Rivers went for 11; and Desmond Ringer chipped in 10.

          Jordan Strawberry, who leads the SoCon in assist/turnover ratio, dished out seven assists on the night without committing a turnover.

          James Scott led Kennesaw State in scoring with 18 points.

          Mercer dominated the inside play, outscoring the Owls 44-24 in the paint. The Bears also continued their accurate marksmanship from three-point range, as they sank 10 of 18 treys on the evening.

 

QUOTABLES

          "Tonight's win is a credit to our players, who work real hard to improve their game. When we got back Christmas night; our guys and assistant coaches were on it; they were ready to go back to work. This time of the year you can lose games easily by being distracted.

          "I thought our second half may be as good as we've been all year. We were fortunate to win against a scrappy team that knows how to play. We continue to receive solid play from our bench. We have versatile players that keep listening and learning how to play different positions. If we can continue to share the ball like we did tonight, with 24 assists, that's a real plus.

          "Des (Desmond Ringer) had a big game tonight; Jordan (Strawberry) found him on several occasions. We shared the ball in the lane and we were shooting threes. If you can do those two things, you have a chance to be special.

          (On heading into conference play this Sunday): "We need to do a better job of rebounding the basketball. East Tennessee State is extremely well-coached; they have a fantastic, athletic team. They played Xavier down to the wire and had the opportunity to win that game on the road. They know how to play. No matter who says what in what poll, it all comes down to who's ready to play and giving it all you've got. We'll have to have an amazing effort against their team.

Mercer head coach Bob Hoffman

 

UP NEXT

          The Bears open Southern Conference by hosting East Tennessee State Sunday at 2 p.m.