Thursday, December 28
Macon, Ga.
7 P.M.
Mercer University
7-6
89
vs
56
Kennesaw State
3-10
1
2
F
Kennesaw State
31
25
56
Mercer
38
51
89
Team Stats
KSU
MER
FG%
.423
.603
3FG%
.286
.556
FT%
.615
.818
RB
27
31
TO
17
11
STL
6
7
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
20
FGM
8
3FGM
1
FTM
3
Pts
11
FGM
5
3FGM
1
FTM
0
Pts
11
FGM
4
3FGM
2
FTM
1
Pts
10
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's BasketballPhoto by: Judy Stapleton
Mercer Eases Past Kennesaw State 89-56 At Hawkins Arena
12/28/2017 7:07:00 PM | Men's Basketball
MACON, Ga.-Â Â Mercer's red shot second half shooting lifted the Bears to a convincing 89-56 victory over Kennesaw State Thursday evening at Hawkins Arena. The win improves Mercer to 7-6 on the season and is the Bears' final regular season non-conference matchup of the year.
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Mercer led 38-31 at the half before shooting a sizzling 72.4% (21-29) from the floor in the second stanza to post the impressive win. The Bears capitalized on a 13-5 run early in the second half to stretch a 50-40 lead into a comfortable 63-45 advantage and never looked back in claiming their seventh consecutive victory over the Owls. For the game, Mercer shot a season-best 60.3% from the field.
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Ria'n Holland, Mercer's leading scorer on the season, tallied a game-high 20 points on eight of 11 shooting from the floor. Holland, who entered the game as the Southern Conference's second leading scorer, now has hit for double digits in 37 of 42 career games with the Bears. Other double figure scorers for the Bears Thursday night included Cory Kilby, who gave Mercer a lift off the bench with 11 points; Demetre Rivers went for 11; and Desmond Ringer chipped in 10.
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Jordan Strawberry, who leads the SoCon in assist/turnover ratio, dished out seven assists on the night without committing a turnover. James Scott led Kennesaw State in scoring with 18 points.
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Mercer dominated the inside play, outscoring the Owls 44-24 in the paint. The Bears also continued their accurate marksmanship from three-point range, as they sank 10 of 18 treys on the evening.
PLAYER OF THE GAME
Senior guard Ria'n Holland was the player of the game for the Bears, leading the team in scoring with 20 points in 30 minutes played. Holland was 8 for 11 from the field and was 1 for 2 from behind the arc.
QUOTABLES
"Tonight's win is a credit to our players, who work real hard to improve their game. When we got back Christmas night; our guys and assistant coaches were on it; they were ready to go back to work. This time of the year you can lose games easily by being distracted. I thought our second half may be as good as we've been all year. We were fortunate to win against a scrappy team that knows how to play. We continue to receive solid play from our bench. We have versatile players that keep listening and learning how to play different positions. If we can continue to share the ball like we did tonight, with 24 assists, that's a real plus. Des (Desmond Ringer) had a big game tonight; Jordan (Strawberry) found him on several occasions. We shared the ball in the lane and we were shooting threes. If you can do those two things, you have a chance to be special. (On heading into conference play this Sunday) "We need to do a better job of rebounding the basketball. East Tennessee State is extremely well-coached; they have a fantastic, athletic team. They played Xavier down to the wire and had the opportunity to win that game on the road. They know how to play. No matter who says what in what poll, it all comes down to who's ready to play and giving it all you've got. We'll have to have an amazing effort against their team … This is the type of effort you want to have coming off of Christmas break and before you head into conference play. I'm pleased with how our guys came back and played tonight. We had a tremendous crowd here tonight and thanks to all those who worked hard to get the kind of crowd out here like we had. We'll need this type of crowd again Sunday against East Tennessee State."--Head Coach Bob Hoffman
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NOTABLES
The Bears will return to action as they open Southern Conference play by hosting East Tennessee State this Sunday, Dec. 31. Tipoff time for the New Year's Eve matchup is 2 p.m. at Hawkins Arena.
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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Mercer led 38-31 at the half before shooting a sizzling 72.4% (21-29) from the floor in the second stanza to post the impressive win. The Bears capitalized on a 13-5 run early in the second half to stretch a 50-40 lead into a comfortable 63-45 advantage and never looked back in claiming their seventh consecutive victory over the Owls. For the game, Mercer shot a season-best 60.3% from the field.
Â
Ria'n Holland, Mercer's leading scorer on the season, tallied a game-high 20 points on eight of 11 shooting from the floor. Holland, who entered the game as the Southern Conference's second leading scorer, now has hit for double digits in 37 of 42 career games with the Bears. Other double figure scorers for the Bears Thursday night included Cory Kilby, who gave Mercer a lift off the bench with 11 points; Demetre Rivers went for 11; and Desmond Ringer chipped in 10.
Â
Jordan Strawberry, who leads the SoCon in assist/turnover ratio, dished out seven assists on the night without committing a turnover. James Scott led Kennesaw State in scoring with 18 points.
Â
Mercer dominated the inside play, outscoring the Owls 44-24 in the paint. The Bears also continued their accurate marksmanship from three-point range, as they sank 10 of 18 treys on the evening.
PLAYER OF THE GAME
Senior guard Ria'n Holland was the player of the game for the Bears, leading the team in scoring with 20 points in 30 minutes played. Holland was 8 for 11 from the field and was 1 for 2 from behind the arc.
QUOTABLES
"Tonight's win is a credit to our players, who work real hard to improve their game. When we got back Christmas night; our guys and assistant coaches were on it; they were ready to go back to work. This time of the year you can lose games easily by being distracted. I thought our second half may be as good as we've been all year. We were fortunate to win against a scrappy team that knows how to play. We continue to receive solid play from our bench. We have versatile players that keep listening and learning how to play different positions. If we can continue to share the ball like we did tonight, with 24 assists, that's a real plus. Des (Desmond Ringer) had a big game tonight; Jordan (Strawberry) found him on several occasions. We shared the ball in the lane and we were shooting threes. If you can do those two things, you have a chance to be special. (On heading into conference play this Sunday) "We need to do a better job of rebounding the basketball. East Tennessee State is extremely well-coached; they have a fantastic, athletic team. They played Xavier down to the wire and had the opportunity to win that game on the road. They know how to play. No matter who says what in what poll, it all comes down to who's ready to play and giving it all you've got. We'll have to have an amazing effort against their team … This is the type of effort you want to have coming off of Christmas break and before you head into conference play. I'm pleased with how our guys came back and played tonight. We had a tremendous crowd here tonight and thanks to all those who worked hard to get the kind of crowd out here like we had. We'll need this type of crowd again Sunday against East Tennessee State."--Head Coach Bob Hoffman
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NOTABLES
- Senior guard Ria'n Holland went for 20 points on the night and has now scored 20 or more points in six games this season.
- Senior guard Jordan Strawberry was extremely efficient with the ball tonight, dishing seven assists with no turnovers. Strawberry also tallied six points and four rebounds.
- The Bears were red hot in the second half, shooting 72.4% from the field (21 of 29).
- Mercer out-rebounded the Owls 31 to 27.
- The Bears dished 24 assists on 35 made field goals.
- Mercer shot a season-high 60.3% from the field (35 for 58).
- Twelve different players saw action for the Bears, with 10 of them getting on the scoreboard.
- Mercer:Â 7-6
- Kennesaw State:Â 3-10
The Bears will return to action as they open Southern Conference play by hosting East Tennessee State this Sunday, Dec. 31. Tipoff time for the New Year's Eve matchup is 2 p.m. at Hawkins Arena.
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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