Mercer University
VMI
Men's Basketball Remains Unbeaten in SoCon Play with 85-75 Win at VMI
1/5/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
LEXINGTON, Va. – Mercer poured in 55 second half points to overcome a four-point halftime deficit and defeat VMI, 85-75 in Monday night's Southern Conference men's basketball game. The Bears improved to 3-0 in conference play for the first time under head coach Bob Hoffman and first time since the 2002-03 season.
Senior Darious Moten and junior Phillip Leonard each scored 21 points to league a quartet of Mercer players in double figures. The Bears' second-straight win pushed the team 8-8 on the year while VMI lost its third-straight and fell to 5-10 (1-3 SoCon).
"Our guys battled and guarded tonight," Hoffman said. "Late we kept driving and getting to the free throw line, and that was the difference in the game."
Senior T.J. Hallice and junior Ike Nwamu both scored 12, while freshmen Jordan Strawberry and Stephon Jelks chipped in seven apiece off the bench. Leonard's 21 points were a career-high, while Moten's 21 points equaled his career best.
Mercer led by as many as eight in the first half, but the Keydets closed the period on a 15-3 run to take a 34-30 advantage into intermission. When play resumed, the Bears employed a 12-2 surge to reassert a lead they wouldn't surrender.
With 9:01 left in the game, Strawberry hit a driving floater that pushed the visitor lead to 57-48. The Keydets whittled the margin back to three by the 6:40 mark, and the buffer was still three when free throws by Moten sparked a 14-2 charge that put Mercer up 74-59 with 1:34 to go.
The Keydets kept battling, intentionally fouling Mercer to extend the game and ultimately pulling within seven in the final minute. The Bears were able to seal the game with solid free throw shooting, hitting 9-of-10 from the stripe in the final 90 seconds.
"When the game was on the line we hit a bunch of free throws, and that's what you have to do on the road," Hoffman said.
Mercer finished the game with 55.1 percent (27-of-49) shooting from the floor and a 40-32 advantage in rebounding. The Bears also dominated paint scoring, 40-16 and second-chance scoring, 16-5.
Hoffman improved to 8-0 against SoCon teams in his seven-year Mercer tenure. The Bears' 55 second-half points was a season-high total and combined with a defensive effort that held the Keydets to 5-of-20 3-point shooting in the stanza.
After each team failed to score in the opening 2:10 of play, Mercer got on the scoreboard first as Moten found Hallice for a breakaway layup. The Bears would ultimately pull out to a 6-0 lead before VMI got their first triple to fall at the 15:52 juncture.
The Keydets pulled ahead by six midway through the half, but the Mercer defense buckled down and held the hosts scoreless for a 6:40 stretch of game time, ripping off a 14-0 run in the process. At the end of the spurt, the Bears had assumed a 27-19 lead with 4:21 to go before intermission.
VMI used its quick-strike offense to get back ahead, closing the half on a 15-3 run to take the 34-30 halftime lead.
Hallice led Mercer with eight rebounds, while also adding an assist and a steal. Leonard and Moten combined to shoot 19-of-26 from the free throw line, with 15 of the makes coming in the second half.
Mercer completes its season-high six-game road trip at ETSU on Thursday night. Game time in Johnson City is slated for 7 p.m.
