Wednesday, November 29
Knoxville, Tenn.
7 p.m.
Mercer University
5-3
60
at
84
Tennessee
5-1
1
2
F
Mercer
27
33
60
Tennessee
46
38
84
Team Stats
MER
UT
FG%
.378
.556
3FG%
.412
.520
FT%
.731
.786
RB
31
23
TO
20
11
STL
2
7
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
20
FGM
5
3FGM
3
FTM
7
Pts
11
FGM
4
3FGM
2
FTM
1
Pts
6
FGM
2
3FGM
1
FTM
1
Pts
5
FGM
2
3FGM
1
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
Mercer Falls 84-60 To SEC Powerhouse Tennessee In Knoxville
11/29/2017 10:16:00 PM | Men's Basketball
KNOXVILLE, Tenn.- Mercer fell behind early and competed hard but was never able to close the gap as the Bears dropped an 84-60 decision to a top-flight Tennessee team Wednesday night in Knoxville.
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Playing without leading scorer Ria'n Holland, who missed his second consecutive game due to an injury, the Bears started slowly, falling behind 18-4 to start the game. Tennessee's offense was clicking on all cylinders early on, as the Volunteers shot a blazing 65.4% in the opening half, while Mercer was held to just 31.8 % shooting. UT took a commanding 46-27 lead into the locker room at the intermission.
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Mercer's offense performed better in the second half, as the Bears connected on 43.5% of their field goal attempts over the final 20 minutes but it wasn't nearly enough to overcome the deficit that they found themselves facing. Tennessee shot a solid 55.6 % from the floor for the game and handed out 26 assists while committing only 11 turnovers.
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Mercer was led in scoring by senior guard Jordan Strawberry, who scored a season-high 20 points on five of nine shooting from the field and seven of nine from the free throw line. Strawberry also grabbed four rebounds. The only other Bear to score in double figures was Ethan Stair, who got the starting nod for the second straight game due to Holland's injury. Stair contributed 11 points on four of seven shooting from the field. Mercer did win the battle of the boards, 31-23, with Demetre Rivers grabbing six rebounds.
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Tennessee had three players score in double figures, led by forward Grant Williams, who went for 21 points. Guard Jordan Bowden scored 18, while Admiral Schofield came off the bench to contribute 10. Starting guard James Daniel dished out a game-high 10 assists for the Vols.
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Mercer falls to 5-3 on the season while Tennessee improves to 5-1. The Bears continue their road swing through the Volunteer State by playing at Memphis this Saturday, Dec. 2, with start time set for 5 p.m. (ET).
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PLAYER OF THE GAME
Senior guard Jordan Strawberry was the Bears' player of the game scoring a season-high 20 points. Strawberry went 5 for 9 from the field, 3 for 5 behind the arc and was 7 for 9 at the free throw line. The senior guard also recorded four rebounds and one assist.
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STAT OF THE GAME
The Volunteers aggressive and physical defense was the difference in the game, forcing the Bears to 20 turnovers, capitalizing for 32 points off the mistakes.
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QUOTABLES
"It was a hard fought game against a quality team that put us in positions in which we weren't able to execute like we wanted to in order to win against a great team and a great coach. I love their team; I love how they compete. I like how my team competed for about 30 minutes tonight and we fought. Playing a quality opponent on the road like Tennessee; we've got to learn from a game like this. (On Ria'n Holland being out) "He's still day to day with that injury. He's a good player and we miss him but our other guys fought really hard tonight. I thought we had some other people really step up tonight. It's great to see Jordan (Strawberry) get going. If we can get everyone going at the same time, I think this team has a chance to be really special. The main thing I was disappointed with in the first half was that we weren't in the right places defensively. There were several possessions that really bothered us and wish we had back. Tennessee has a really good team. They were up 15 on Villanova in the first half, and they are one of the best teams in the country, and I think Tennessee ranks up there as one of the best teams in the country and they have one of the best coaches in the country. For us to compete like we did; we are going to keep working hard. The speed and quickness that we saw tonight is what you need to be a championship team. I'm never happy about losing, but I am thrilled that we competed tonight and put up a great fight. We're really close; we've played some really good teams and while we haven't gotten any of those, I think we have a chance to get one before we head into conference play. (On playing Memphis) "Another great hall of fame coach; a national championship coach; another storied program. That's what we'll be facing."– Head Coach Bob Hoffman
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NOTABLES
The Bears will continue their two-game Rocky Top road swing as they travel to Memphis, Tenn., to face the Tigers this Saturday, Dec. 2. Tip-off is slated for 5 p.m. ET.
Follow the Bears
For complete coverage of Mercer Men's 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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Playing without leading scorer Ria'n Holland, who missed his second consecutive game due to an injury, the Bears started slowly, falling behind 18-4 to start the game. Tennessee's offense was clicking on all cylinders early on, as the Volunteers shot a blazing 65.4% in the opening half, while Mercer was held to just 31.8 % shooting. UT took a commanding 46-27 lead into the locker room at the intermission.
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Mercer's offense performed better in the second half, as the Bears connected on 43.5% of their field goal attempts over the final 20 minutes but it wasn't nearly enough to overcome the deficit that they found themselves facing. Tennessee shot a solid 55.6 % from the floor for the game and handed out 26 assists while committing only 11 turnovers.
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Mercer was led in scoring by senior guard Jordan Strawberry, who scored a season-high 20 points on five of nine shooting from the field and seven of nine from the free throw line. Strawberry also grabbed four rebounds. The only other Bear to score in double figures was Ethan Stair, who got the starting nod for the second straight game due to Holland's injury. Stair contributed 11 points on four of seven shooting from the field. Mercer did win the battle of the boards, 31-23, with Demetre Rivers grabbing six rebounds.
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Tennessee had three players score in double figures, led by forward Grant Williams, who went for 21 points. Guard Jordan Bowden scored 18, while Admiral Schofield came off the bench to contribute 10. Starting guard James Daniel dished out a game-high 10 assists for the Vols.
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Mercer falls to 5-3 on the season while Tennessee improves to 5-1. The Bears continue their road swing through the Volunteer State by playing at Memphis this Saturday, Dec. 2, with start time set for 5 p.m. (ET).
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PLAYER OF THE GAME
Senior guard Jordan Strawberry was the Bears' player of the game scoring a season-high 20 points. Strawberry went 5 for 9 from the field, 3 for 5 behind the arc and was 7 for 9 at the free throw line. The senior guard also recorded four rebounds and one assist.
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STAT OF THE GAME
The Volunteers aggressive and physical defense was the difference in the game, forcing the Bears to 20 turnovers, capitalizing for 32 points off the mistakes.
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QUOTABLES
"It was a hard fought game against a quality team that put us in positions in which we weren't able to execute like we wanted to in order to win against a great team and a great coach. I love their team; I love how they compete. I like how my team competed for about 30 minutes tonight and we fought. Playing a quality opponent on the road like Tennessee; we've got to learn from a game like this. (On Ria'n Holland being out) "He's still day to day with that injury. He's a good player and we miss him but our other guys fought really hard tonight. I thought we had some other people really step up tonight. It's great to see Jordan (Strawberry) get going. If we can get everyone going at the same time, I think this team has a chance to be really special. The main thing I was disappointed with in the first half was that we weren't in the right places defensively. There were several possessions that really bothered us and wish we had back. Tennessee has a really good team. They were up 15 on Villanova in the first half, and they are one of the best teams in the country, and I think Tennessee ranks up there as one of the best teams in the country and they have one of the best coaches in the country. For us to compete like we did; we are going to keep working hard. The speed and quickness that we saw tonight is what you need to be a championship team. I'm never happy about losing, but I am thrilled that we competed tonight and put up a great fight. We're really close; we've played some really good teams and while we haven't gotten any of those, I think we have a chance to get one before we head into conference play. (On playing Memphis) "Another great hall of fame coach; a national championship coach; another storied program. That's what we'll be facing."– Head Coach Bob Hoffman
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NOTABLES
- The Volunteers scored the first basket of the game and didn't look back, leading wire to wire.
- Ethan Stair earned his second start of the season, scoring 11 points from the field. Stair went 4 for 7 from the field, including 2 for 2 from behind the arc. Stair fouled out with 6:44 remaining in the game.
- Jordan Strawberry dropped a season-high 20 points, going 5 for 9 from the field and 3 for 5 from behind the arc.
- Freshman Marcus Cohen played a season-high 25 minutes, tallying five points, two rebounds and two assists.
- Demetre Rivers grabbed a team-high six rebounds on the night. Rivers also recorded four points and two assists.
- The Bears out-rebounded the Vols, 31-23 in the game.
- Eleven different players saw action for the Bears, with nine of them getting on the scoreboard.
- Mercer: 5-3
- Tennessee: 5-1
The Bears will continue their two-game Rocky Top road swing as they travel to Memphis, Tenn., to face the Tigers this Saturday, Dec. 2. Tip-off is slated for 5 p.m. ET.
Follow the Bears
For complete coverage of Mercer Men's 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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