Mercer Faces Winthrop in Sunday Showdown

Sunday, December 18

Rock Hill, S.C.

2:00 PM ET

Mercer University

Winthrop

Photo by: Judy Stapleton

12/17/2016 2:51:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Live Stats Watch Mercer Game Notes

The Bears seek their fourth road win of the year

By: Gerrit Van Genderen

MACON, Ga. – Mercer will return to the court after an eight-day layoff for final exams to battle nonconference foe Winthrop at 2 p.m. Sunday afternoon at the Winthrop Coliseum in Rock Hill, South Carolina.

The contest will air on the Big South Network with Mike Pacheco and Karl Lyles calling the action as Mercer (8-2) looks to continue its best start under head coach Susie Gardner.

THE BEAR NECESSITIES
Date: Sunday, December 17 | 2 p.m.
Teams: Mercer (8-2, 0-0 SoCon) at Winthrop (1-9, 0-0 Big South)
Location: Rock Hill, S.C. | Winthrop Coliseum
Game Notes: Mercer | Winthrop
Live Stats: WinthropEagles.com | Watch: Big South Network
Twitter Updates: @MercerWBB

SERIES HISTORY
Mercer leads the series 7-3, which includes a 3-2 mark in Rock Hill, S.C. The Bears and the Eagles have not faced one another since 2011, when Winthrop left Macon with an 88-74 victory.

SCOUTING WINTHROP
Winthrop is 1-9 on the season after falling in record-setting fashion to No. 3 Baylor on Thursday, 140-32. The 108-point loss was the largest margin in NCAA Division I history. So far this season the Eagles have been outscored by an average of 29.8 points per game and are riding a nine-game losing streak.

Erica Williams leads Winthrop with 14.6 points per game and ranks second on the team with 5.3 rebounds. Three other Eagles are averaging at least six points per game.

STELLAR START
Mercer has started the season with an 8-2 record, the best under Coach Gardner. It is also the best start since Mercer went 8-1 at the beginning of the 1980-81 season.

GAINING ROAD MOMENTUM
Mercer is 3-2 away from Hawkins Arena so far this season, having collected all three victories during a three-game road swing at Illinois, Houston and Georgia Southern. A pair of losses to Georgia and Georgia Tech have bookended the Bears' road contests.

NO SOPHOMORE SLUMP FOR CALLOWAY
KeKe Calloway finished her freshman season as one of Mercer's leading scorers in the SoCon Tournament. The guard has started her sophomore season in much of the same fashion as she leads Mercer with 16.4 points per game.

Calloway has reached double figures in eight games this season and led the Bears in scoring in five games, including a 21-point performance vs. West Georgia on Saturday, Dec. 10. She also ranks third in the league and 112th nationally in ppg. Additionally, she ranks 81st nationally and third in the SoCon with 164 total points.

TWO FOR THREE
KeKe Calloway and Linnea Rosendal lead Mercer from outside the arc with 28 and 19 made three-pointers, respectively. Calloway is third in the SoCon and 35th nationally in made three pointers. Calloway is also first in the conference and 23rd nationally in three-point attempts. Rosendal ranks sixth in the conference with a 34.5 percentage from behind the arc.

BEARS ON THE BOARDS
Amanda Thompson leads Mercer on the boards with 8.5 rebounds per game this season, followed by Kayla Potts and Kahlia Lawrence with 5.9 and 5.1 rpg, respectively.

Thompson ranks third and fourth, respectively, in the SoCon in rebounds per game and total rebounds (85). She has grabbed at least nine rebounds in six of her last seven contests, including a career-high 16 against Kennesaw State.

SMOOTH CRIMINALS
As a team, Mercer has tallied 107 steals and is averaging 10.7 steals per game. The Bears lead the SoCon in both categories and rank 31st and 44th nationally. Mercer has also recorded three of the SoCon's top five single-game steals performances, which includes the Bears' season-high 19 against Georgia Southern.

IT'S FOR FREE!
As a team, the Bears have connected on 75.9 percent of their attempts from the free throw line this season. Mercer leads the league and ranks 30th nationally in free throw percentage. Mercer has hit over 80 percent of its free throws in four games this season.

KeKe Calloway has the highest percentage on the team, having gone 20-of-22 from the charity stripe so far this season for SoCon-best 90.9 percent. Kahlia Lawrence is 24-for-29 from the free throw line, giving her an 82.8 percentage and ranking her in a tie for fifth among SoCon players.

SHARING IS CARING
After finishing last season leading the SoCon in total assists and assists per game, Sydni Means is still on top. Means has dished out 63 assists and is averaging 6.3 apg, both of which lead the conference. She is ranked 15th nationally in total assists and 21st in apg. Means also leads the conference with a 3.32 assist/ turnover ratio and ranks 14th nationally.

ALL ABOUT THE GIVE AND TAKE
In addition to leading the SoCon in assists and assists per game, Sydni Means has notched 29 steals and 2.9 steals per game. Means ranks first in the conference and 27th nationally in total steals and first in the league and 37th nationally in steals per game.

HOLDING ONTO THE BALL
The Bears are protecting the rock well this year and are second in the nation with just 10.5 turnovers per game. Against Florida Atlantic, Mercer committed just three turnovers, which is a nation-wide single-game low this season.

Mercer is also second in the nation in turnover margin, as the Bears have recorded a +10.70 turnover margin thus far. Mercer is forcing 21.20 turnovers per game, ranking first in the SoCon and 35th nationally.

FOLLOW THE BEARS
For complete coverage of Mercer Women's Basketball, please follow the Bears on social media at @MercerWBB (Twitter), /MercerWBB(Facebook) and @MercerWBB (Instagram) or visit the official home of Mercer Athletics at MercerBears.com.