Mercer University
Stetson
Bears Top Hatters for Fifth-Straight Win
1/28/2012 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
DELAND, Fla. – Sophomore Bud Thomas collected a career-high 19 points as the Mercer men's basketball team downed Stetson 75-64 at the Edmunds Center on Saturday afternoon.
The Bears captured their fifth-straight win and improved to 16-7 (8-2 A-Sun) while Stetson dropped its fifth-straight and fell to 7-14 (4-6 A-Sun). The Bears' fifth-consecutive win marked the third-straight year the team has accomplished that feat under head coach Bob Hoffman.
"You have to be consistent on the road," Hoffman said. "We had guys play with tremendous energy from the very beginning. We are a little frustrated because we need to finish games right and we didn't finish right tonight. It's never easy on the road, but we're grateful and thankful for it."
Thomas booked his career-high total on eight-of-10 shooting from the field while also notching four rebounds and three assists. His classmate Langston Hall tied a career-high with nine assists and also recorded five points and three rebounds.
Travis Smith also reached a career-high on Saturday, netting 13 points on five-of-six shooting. The John Island, S.C. native also tied season-highs with three steals and three assists against the Hatters.
Jakob Gollon got Mercer started on the right foot as he scored all nine of the Bears' first points and singlehandedly had the Orange and Black on top, 9-5 in the opening three minutes of play. All told, Gollon was four-of-four from the field at the outset and scored or assisted on 13 of Mercer's first 15 points.
Gollon finished the game with 17 points, 13 of which collected in the first half.
Gollon's hot hand saw the Bears in control by a 15-8 margin seven minutes in, and later the Bears had inflated their lead to 32-16 with 6:32 left in the half. A three-ball by Stetson's Aaron Graham closed the scoring of the first half and Mercer enjoyed a 43-30 lead at the break.
Mercer started the second period on an 11-4 run, capped by a Chris Smith baseline jumper that gave Mercer a 20-point cushion for the first time of the afternoon. The visitor's lead hovered around 20 points for the majority of the second half before Stetson made one final run at the A-Sun leading Bears. The Hatters cut a 20-point deficit to 11 in the final two minutes but ran out of time for the comeback.
Mercer was a red hot 12-of-19 (63.2%) from the field in the second half but struggled at the charity stripe, shooting just six-of-18 (33.3%) in the period.
The Bears continue south to play Florida Gulf Coast on Monday night in Fort Myers, Fla. Game time at Alico Arena is set for 7 p.m.
