Mercer University
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North Fla.
Men's Basketball Cruises to 66-47 Win at North Florida
1/10/2013 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Mercer men's basketball team smothered a potent North Florida offense on Thursday night in a 66-47 win at UNF Arena. Four Mercer players reached double-figure scoring in the win, led by senior Travis Smith's 15 points.
The Bears' fourth win in its last five games sent the team to 10-7 (3-1 A-Sun) on the season while UNF dropped to 7-11 (2-3 A-Sun). The Bears are now 3-1 in conference play for the second-straight season.
"It's always important to bounce back from a disappointing loss with win," Mercer associate head coach Spencer Wright said. "I go back to last year - our team has always been able to bounce back and play exceptional."
Smith's 15 points marked the fourth-straight game he's led the Bears offensively. Joining him in double-digits were juniors Bud Thomas (14), Anthony White, Jr. (12) and Langston Hall (10).
White Jr. had his best collegiate game since transferring from Lake Land Junior College prior to the academic year. His 12 points marked a Division I career-high and came on efficient five-of-seven shooting.
His efforts were equally as impressive on the defensive end, as he was a major factor in limiting UNF's Parker Smith to just six points and four total shots. Entering the game, Smith was averaging 16. 4 points per game and had the second most made three pointers (66) in the nation.
Mercer rushed out to a 6-0 lead in the opening 90 seconds, but a three-ball from UNF freshman Beau Beech started an 8-0 Osprey charge that put the hosts on top at the first media timeout. When action resumed, White, Jr. poured in five points in 24 seconds to put Mercer back in front.
His spurt ushered-in a 16-2 Mercer run that put the Bears in front by 12 (24-12) with 7:16 to go before halftime. During that run, Mercer's defense clamped down and held UNF to just one field goal in over 8:30 of game time.
The Bears would push that lead to 14 before UNF freshman Ray Rodriguez closed the half's scoring with a layup to make Mercer's advantage 32-20 at halftime.
Mercer stumbled out of the gates in the second half, and the Ospreys used a 5-1 run to climb within eight. The Orange and Black would regain control, pushing the lead back to 14 on the heels of a Kevin Canevari three pointer at the 11:37 juncture.
Rodriguez did his best to bring the Ospreys back, canning three triples in 65 seconds to cut the deficit to seven midway through the half. Beech joined the action with a three pointer on the next possession and the hosts were within six for the first time in over 19 minutes of game time.
Mercer proved resilient as Thomas and Smith scored the game's next five points to put the Bears back up by double-digits. With just over six minutes to play, the Bears led 56-46 before White Jr. hit another pull-up jumper to spark the Bears offense again. The subsequent 8-0 surge put the game out of reach.
At game's end, the Bears had limited UNF to a season-low 34% (17-of-50) field goal percentage. In contrast, the Bears shot 51% (26-of-51) from the floor.
Smith's 15 points came in conjunction with four assists and three rebounds. Thomas booked his season-high 14 points on five-of-eight shooting. He also finished with four rebounds, two steals and an assist.
White Jr. added two rebounds, a block and an assist to his coffers. Hall collected six rebounds and a steal to go along with his 10 points.
Sophomore T.J. Hallice played a career-high 30 minutes and responded with two points, five rebounds and a block. Junior Jakob Gollon registered six points, eight rebounds, four steals and an assist in the winning effort.
The Bears continue their River City stay at Jacksonville on Saturday. Tip time is scheduled for 3:15 p.m.
