Wednesday, December 7
Macon, Ga.
7:00 PM ET
Mercer University
5-4
98
vs
41
Oglethorpe
3-6
1
2
F
Oglethorpe
25
16
41
Mercer
45
53
98
Team Stats
OUM
MER
FG%
.320
.547
3FG%
.222
.444
FT%
.600
.762
RB
19
49
TO
15
11
STL
4
6
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
30
FGM
11
3FGM
5
FTM
3
Pts
11
FGM
2
3FGM
1
FTM
6
Pts
10
FGM
3
3FGM
2
FTM
2
Pts
10
FGM
4
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's BasketballRivers scores 30 points, Mercer beats Oglethorpe 98-41
12/7/2016 9:37:00 PM | Men's Basketball
MACON, Ga. – Demetre Rivers scored career highs with 30 points and 5 of 9 3-pointers and Mercer cruised past Division III Oglethorpe 98-41 on Wednesday night.
Rivers, who turned 21 Wednesday, scored 20 points and made four 3s in the first half, including back-to-back 3-pointers amid a game-breaking 17-2 run, and the Bears (5-4) led 45-25 at halftime.
Jaylen Stowe opened the second half with a 3-pointer, Rivers followed with a dunk and the Bears led by 36 with 9:04 left. The Stormy Petrels were scoreless for the final 10:08 while Mercer pulled away 98-41 and finished shooting 35 of 64 from the floor (54.7 percent) and 12 of 27 from behind the arc (44.4 percent).
Rivers was 11 of 16 from the floor and made all three of his free throws. Ryan Johnson scored 11 points, Ross Cummings and Rashad Lewis scored 10 apiece and Mercer outscored the Stormy Petrels 19-0 on fast breaks and 40-18 in the paint.
Chris Lawrence led Oglethorpe (3-5) with nine points.
PLAYER OF THE GAME
Who else but the birthday boy? Demetre Rivers not only posted career highs in points (30) and three-pointers (5) but it marked only the fourth time a Southern Conference player has scored 30 or more points this season.
STAT OF THE GAME
With so many good numbers this is a tough call but let's credit a smart Mercer team that only committed seven fouls in the entire game. Yes, you read that correctly. Not in a half, in the entire game. Also nominated for Stat of the Game: holding Oglethorpe scoreless over the final 10:08, a 19-0 advantage on fast break points, a 40-18 advantage on points in the paint and a 54.7 percent field goal shooting overall.
COACH HOFFMAN'S COMMENTS
 "I'm really happy how our guys fought tonight against a really well-coached team that understands what they are trying to accomplish every possession. We were able to finish as well as we have in a while in the last 10 minutes on defense."
On Demetre Rivers:
"Yeah, the birthday boy. He has the ability to have big nights. What I was really proud of was not having any fouls while some guys were going at him. He is 6-8 and they are 6-1 and trying to dribble-drive at him. We need him playing that kind of defense, rebounding the ball and using his length to make a difference out on the floor in the gaps. I thought that was special tonight.
"You mention the shots he made but he also got some layups. His friends found him, his buddies found him. You only get 26 minutes and have 30 points, that's pretty efficient."
RECORDS UPDATE
Mercer: 5-4 (3-1 Home)
UP NEXT
How to Follow the Bears:
For complete coverage of Mercer Basketball, please follow the Bears on social media at @MercerMBB (Twitter), /MercerBasketball (Facebook) and @Mercer_MBB (Instagram) or visit the official home of Mercer Athletics at MercerBears.com.
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Rivers, who turned 21 Wednesday, scored 20 points and made four 3s in the first half, including back-to-back 3-pointers amid a game-breaking 17-2 run, and the Bears (5-4) led 45-25 at halftime.
Jaylen Stowe opened the second half with a 3-pointer, Rivers followed with a dunk and the Bears led by 36 with 9:04 left. The Stormy Petrels were scoreless for the final 10:08 while Mercer pulled away 98-41 and finished shooting 35 of 64 from the floor (54.7 percent) and 12 of 27 from behind the arc (44.4 percent).
Rivers was 11 of 16 from the floor and made all three of his free throws. Ryan Johnson scored 11 points, Ross Cummings and Rashad Lewis scored 10 apiece and Mercer outscored the Stormy Petrels 19-0 on fast breaks and 40-18 in the paint.
Chris Lawrence led Oglethorpe (3-5) with nine points.
PLAYER OF THE GAME
Who else but the birthday boy? Demetre Rivers not only posted career highs in points (30) and three-pointers (5) but it marked only the fourth time a Southern Conference player has scored 30 or more points this season.
STAT OF THE GAME
With so many good numbers this is a tough call but let's credit a smart Mercer team that only committed seven fouls in the entire game. Yes, you read that correctly. Not in a half, in the entire game. Also nominated for Stat of the Game: holding Oglethorpe scoreless over the final 10:08, a 19-0 advantage on fast break points, a 40-18 advantage on points in the paint and a 54.7 percent field goal shooting overall.
COACH HOFFMAN'S COMMENTS
 "I'm really happy how our guys fought tonight against a really well-coached team that understands what they are trying to accomplish every possession. We were able to finish as well as we have in a while in the last 10 minutes on defense."
On Demetre Rivers:
"Yeah, the birthday boy. He has the ability to have big nights. What I was really proud of was not having any fouls while some guys were going at him. He is 6-8 and they are 6-1 and trying to dribble-drive at him. We need him playing that kind of defense, rebounding the ball and using his length to make a difference out on the floor in the gaps. I thought that was special tonight.
"You mention the shots he made but he also got some layups. His friends found him, his buddies found him. You only get 26 minutes and have 30 points, that's pretty efficient."
RECORDS UPDATE
Mercer: 5-4 (3-1 Home)
UP NEXT
- Mercer: at Clemson on Saturday, Dec. 10 at 4 p.m. (ACC Network Extra/Watch ESPN)
- Oglethorpe: hosts Piedmont on Tuesday, Dec. 20 at 6 p.m.
How to Follow the Bears:
For complete coverage of Mercer Basketball, please follow the Bears on social media at @MercerMBB (Twitter), /MercerBasketball (Facebook) and @Mercer_MBB (Instagram) or visit the official home of Mercer Athletics at MercerBears.com.
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