Thursday, February 9
Lexington, Va.
7:00 PM ET
Mercer University
12-14, 6-7
81
at
51
VMI
5-17, 2-9
1
2
F
Mercer
39
42
81
VMI
23
28
51
Team Stats
MER
VMI
FG%
.528
.333
3FG%
.364
.241
FT%
.850
.667
RB
39
28
TO
13
16
STL
12
8
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
18
FGM
7
3FGM
1
FTM
3
Pts
12
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
3
Pts
10
FGM
2
3FGM
0
FTM
6
Pts
10
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
1
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
Holland has 18 Points as Mercer Roars Past VMI 81-51
2/9/2017 9:28:00 PM | Men's Basketball
LEXINGTON, Va. – Ria'n Holland had 18 points to lead five players in double figures as Mercer roared past VMI for an 81-51 victory on Thursday night.
Holland was 7 of 14 from the field. Jordan Strawberry added 12 points while dishing out five assists to give him 300 assists in his career. Desmond Ringer, Demetre Rivers and Cory Kilby chipped in 10 apiece for Mercer (12-14, 6-7 Southern Conference), which has won four of the last six games.
The Bears made 28 of 53 (53 percent) from the floor while limiting VMI to 19-of-57 (33 percent) shooting. The Bears also won the rebound battle 39-28.
Mercer never trailed, jumping out to a 39-23 halftime advantage. The Bears had an 11-6 run to open the second half and pushed their lead to 60-38 midway of that period.
QJ Peterson had 18 points and seven rebounds for VMI (5-17, 2-9).
PLAYER OF THE GAME
Desmond Ringer gets the nod for not only posting solid numbers but also providing an early spark. Ringer's energy led to the game's first layup and made sure Mercer would never trail in the game. Additionally, he was a rebound shy of a double-double with 10 points and nine rebounds.
STAT OF THE GAME
The 30 point differential marked Mercer's largest road win since joining the Southern Conference. The last road win for the Bears by such a large margin came on Dec. 30, 2013 at Jacksonville, a 37-point win over the Dolphins with an 86-49 final score.
COACH HOFFMAN'S COMMENTS
"I thought our guys were really good. The one guy that I thought really got us going was Desmond Ringer. His energy was great, they found him a couple times and he got some tough baskets. We got some fouls on their bigs that put them in jeopardy. But the most important thing tonight was we got all over the floor. We might have had more guys on the floor tonight more times than we have had in nine years. The hustle was fantastic as were the energy plays. It wasn't just one guy, it was multiple plays."
On Jordan Strawberry's 300th career assist:
"Jordan had five assists, one turnover and got his 300th assist in his career. I'm really happy for him. He made some big plays tonight, got some big baskets when we needed them."
RECORDS UPDATE
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.
Holland was 7 of 14 from the field. Jordan Strawberry added 12 points while dishing out five assists to give him 300 assists in his career. Desmond Ringer, Demetre Rivers and Cory Kilby chipped in 10 apiece for Mercer (12-14, 6-7 Southern Conference), which has won four of the last six games.
The Bears made 28 of 53 (53 percent) from the floor while limiting VMI to 19-of-57 (33 percent) shooting. The Bears also won the rebound battle 39-28.
Mercer never trailed, jumping out to a 39-23 halftime advantage. The Bears had an 11-6 run to open the second half and pushed their lead to 60-38 midway of that period.
QJ Peterson had 18 points and seven rebounds for VMI (5-17, 2-9).
PLAYER OF THE GAME
Desmond Ringer gets the nod for not only posting solid numbers but also providing an early spark. Ringer's energy led to the game's first layup and made sure Mercer would never trail in the game. Additionally, he was a rebound shy of a double-double with 10 points and nine rebounds.
STAT OF THE GAME
The 30 point differential marked Mercer's largest road win since joining the Southern Conference. The last road win for the Bears by such a large margin came on Dec. 30, 2013 at Jacksonville, a 37-point win over the Dolphins with an 86-49 final score.
COACH HOFFMAN'S COMMENTS
"I thought our guys were really good. The one guy that I thought really got us going was Desmond Ringer. His energy was great, they found him a couple times and he got some tough baskets. We got some fouls on their bigs that put them in jeopardy. But the most important thing tonight was we got all over the floor. We might have had more guys on the floor tonight more times than we have had in nine years. The hustle was fantastic as were the energy plays. It wasn't just one guy, it was multiple plays."
On Jordan Strawberry's 300th career assist:
"Jordan had five assists, one turnover and got his 300th assist in his career. I'm really happy for him. He made some big plays tonight, got some big baskets when we needed them."
RECORDS UPDATE
- Mercer: 12-14, 6-7 SoCon
- VMI: 5-17, 2-9 SoCon
- Mercer: at ETSU on Saturday Feb. 11 at 4 p.m. (ESPN3)
- VMI: hosts The Citadel on Saturday, Feb. 11 at 1 p.m. (ESPN3)
- With the win, Mercer now leads the all-time series over VMI, 7-2. The Bears are now 3-1 all-time in Lexington, Virginia.
- The 30-point road win marked Mercer's largest road win since the school joined the Southern Conference and the largest road win since a 37-point decision at Jacksonville on Dec. 30, 2013 (86-49).
- Jordan Strawberry dished out his 300th career assist in the game. He is currently sixth all-time in career assists at Mercer.
- Thursday's game at VMI marked the first time Mercer has had five players score in double figures since a 70-66 win over East Carolina on Nov. 25, 2016.
- Mercer's 52.8 percent shooting from the field marked the team's highest field goal shooting of the conference season.
- Cory Kilby scored a season-high 10 points
- The 12 steals credited to Mercer Thursday night marked a season high
- The 12 fouls charged to Mercer Thursday night marks the fewest against a Division I opponent this season
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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