Box score
FORT MYERS, Fla. – All five Mercer starters scored in double figures, but FGCU redshirt freshman Anthony Banks scored on a put-back attempt with just seven seconds remaining to give the Eagles a 71-70 win in Sunday afternoon’s Atlantic Sun men’s basketball game at Alico Arena.
Mercer drops to 9-10 (5-4 A-Sun) while FGCU improves to 6-13 (3-6 A-Sun)
“We let one get away from us that we could have had,” Mercer head coach
Bob Hoffman said. “They played better than us for the majority of the game.”
Down 69-67 with 49 seconds left, Mercer senior guard
James Florence drove the length of the court and scored in four seconds to get the Bears within two. After a brief pause for Mercer substitutions, Mercer’s guard trio of
Tevin Swann,
Chris Smith and
Brendan Walker applied full-court pressure and forced FGCU into a turnover.
Moments later, Mercer senior
E.J. Kusnyer pump faked to shake a defender and buried a three to give Mercer a 70-69 lead with 29 seconds to go. Kusnyer’s three gave Mercer its first lead since the 7:19 mark of the second half.
On FGCU’s next possession, guard Reed Baker missed a three-pointer from the corner, but Banks crashed the boards and scored the game-winning put-back. After Banks’ shot, Mercer rushed the other way, but was unable to get off a shot before the buzzer sounded.
Mercer senior forward
Daniel Emerson scored a game-high 19 points and grabbed 14 rebounds to post his 11th double-double of the season. Kusnyer and junior forward
Brian Mills tallied 12 points apiece while Florence netted 11 points and Smith contributed 10.
After FGCU started the game with a 4-0 run, Mercer recovered with a 13-2 run to go on top, 13-6. Mercer’s seven-point cushion held strong for the majority of the first half, but the Eagles chipped away at the deficit and eventually took the lead back with 46 seconds remaining in the half.
With just over 17 minutes left in the second half, Mercer trailed 41-37. Mills did his best to close the gap, elevating for a powerful slam and draining a three on back-to-back possessions to bring the Bears within one, at 43-42.
After again falling behind, 54-46, Mercer stroked three-point shots on three-consecutive possessions to close to within one once more at 56-55. Smith fired the first two threes from the corner of the floor, while Kusnyer buried the third shot from the left side.
Sensing his lead was withering, FGCU head coach Dave Balza called a timeout in an effort to repress the Mercer momentum. The stoppage proved effective as Mercer tied the game, but then fell behind once again until its brief lead in the waning seconds on Kusnyer's trey.
Mercer returns home to challenge Kennesaw State in its next outing. The game on Jan. 27 is scheduled for 7 p.m.