Call It a Mercer Monday as Bears Host Western Carolina

MACON, Ga. – Don't wish it was Sunday, it's just another Mercer Monday as the Bears host Western Carolina at Hawkins Arena on Monday, Jan. 30 with a 7 p.m. tipoff on ASN.

GAMEDAY DETAILS
Date: Monday, Jan. 30 | 7 p.m.
Teams: Mercer (10-12, 4-5 SoCon) vs. Western Carolina (7-15, 2-7 SoCon)
Location: Macon, Ga. | Hawkins Arena (3,500)
TV: ASN - How to Watch | Watch ESPN (blackout restrictions apply)
TV Talent: Pete Yanity (play-by-play), Dean Keener (analyst), Megan Trammell (sideline)
Radio: Mercer Sports Network (Flagship: 97.3 FM The Bull Icons) | iHeartRadio
Radio Talent: Rick Cameron (play-by-play)
Live Stats: MercerBears.com/livestats
Twitter Updates: @MercerMBB
Tickets: Click Here to Purchase
Game Notes: Mercer | SoCon | Western Carolina

Series History
Just over a week after meeting in Cullowhee, the Bears and the Catamounts will battle once again but this time in Macon. After Mercer's 70-50 win on Jan. 21, Western Carolina's lead in the all-time series was cut to 7-5 and snapped a four-game winning streak by the Catamounts.

Last Time Out
Mercer 82, The Citadel 66 on Jan. 28
Demetre Rivers had 23 points to lead Mercer to its 12th straight victory over The Citadel as the Bears pulled away in the second half for an 82-66 win on Saturday.

Stephon Jelks had a season-best 14 rebounds while dishing out a career-high eight assists for Mercer (10-12, 4-5 Southern Conference). Mercer's defense held the nation's highest-scoring offense to its fewest points in a league game this year as the Bulldogs scored almost 30 points less than their per game average this season.

Rivers hit 7 of 10 from the floor. Ria'n Holland added 17 points and Jordan Strawberry hit 3 of 4 from distance to total 15 points for Mercer.

The Last Time vs. Western Carolina
Mercer 70, Western Carolina 50 on Jan. 21, 2017
CULLOWHEE, N.C. - Ria'n Holland drilled 5 of 9 from beyond the arc for 23 points as Mercer bounced back from two straight defeats to dominate Western Carolina 70-50 on Saturday.

The Bears hit 11 of 24 from distance, shooting 50 percent from the floor. Western Carolina made just 2 of 17 long range attempts, and 16 of 51 (31 percent) field goals.
Mercer (9-12, 3-5 Southern Conference), which jumped out to a 43-23 halftime advantage, shot 60 percent from the floor in the opening half while limiting the Catamounts to just 36 percent shooting. The Bears were up 61-48 with 4:04 remaining in the game.

Jaylen Stowe added a career-high 10 points and Jordan Strawberry chipped in eight while dishing out ten assists for the Bears.

The Bears controlled the boards, grabbing 38 rebounds to 27 for Western Carolina (6-14, 1-6) which has lost six of its last seven games.

Haboubacar Mutombo led the Catamounts with 13 points.

Somebody's Got a Case of the Mondays!
Mercer will be looking for its first win of the season on a Monday as the Bears host Western Carolina on Jan. 30 at Hawkins Arena. The Orange and Black are 0-1 on Mondays this season after dropping a 71-69 contest at Furman on Monday, Jan. 2.

Hoffman to Coach 300th Game Monday
Mercer's game on Jan. 30 against Western Carolina will mark Bob Hoffman's 300th game as head coach of the Mercer Bears. The Bears head coach is currently in his ninth season in Macon and has amassed 174 wins entering today's game, averaging more wins per season in his current position than any other SoCon coach (that has more than five years at his current school).

You Look Familiar...
It has only been nine days but Mercer and Western Carolina will meet on the hardwood once again in an odd scheduling quirk. This will mark the fastest turnaround to face the same team in regular season play in Bob Hoffman's nine years at Mercer.

Win No. 80? Quite the Homecourt Advantage!
The 82-66 win for the Bears on Saturday against The Citadel marked the team's 80th win at Hawkins Arena since the start of the 2011-12 season. That's an average of over 13.3 wins at home per season. To put that in perspective, Mercer is hosting 15 home games this year.

Not Two, Nor Four ... But Three!
A win over Western Carolina Monday evening at Hawkins Arena would mark a third consecutive win for Mercer matching the team's longest winning streak of the season. That earlier streak came back in November with consecutive wins over Georgia Southern (80-67), Radford (58-47) and East Carolina (70-66).

Ria'n is More Reliable than A Rolex
Death, taxes and Ria'n Holland scoring 20-plus points. Like clockwork, these seem to be the three constants in life. Holland, who ranks third in the SoCon in scoring averaging 17.5 points per game, has registered nine games of 20 points or more. That ranks second in the SoCon (behind ETSU's T.J. Cromer) and just two behind likely All-American Malik Monk (Kentucky).

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.

Call It a Mercer Monday as Bears Host Western Carolina

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Players Mentioned

Ria'n Holland

Stephon Jelks

Demetre Rivers

Jaylen Stowe

Jordan Strawberry

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