Saturday, January 20
Greensboro, N.C.
5 p.m.
Mercer University
10-10, 3-4SoCon
66
at
70
UNCG
14-5, 5-1SoCon
1
2
OT 1
F
Mercer
24
31
11
66
UNCG
23
32
15
70
Team Stats
MER
UNCG
FG%
.400
.386
3FG%
.526
.286
FT%
.800
.643
RB
35
32
TO
18
9
STL
7
7
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
11
FGM
3
3FGM
3
FTM
2
Pts
11
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
2
Pts
11
FGM
4
3FGM
2
FTM
1
Pts
10
FGM
3
3FGM
2
FTM
2
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
Photo by: Judy Stapleton
Mercer Drops 70-66 Overtime Decision at UNCG Despite Late Heroics
1/20/2018 8:19:00 PM | Men's Basketball
GREENSBORO, N.C. – Mercer fought to the finish and came up just short, dropping a 70-66 overtime decision to the University of North Carolina Greensboro Saturday evening at the Greensboro Coliseum.
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Playing without leading scorer Ria'n Holland, who was out with an injury, the Bears battled throughout the contest. Stephon Jelks turned in his fourth straight double-double performance with 11 points and 11 rebounds. Demetre Rivers contributed 11 while Ross Cummings came off the bench to score 11. Ethan Stair, who started in place of Holland, scored 10 points and grabbed seven rebounds.
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Both teams struggled to score in the opening half as strong defensive play ruled the day.
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Mercer's Marcus Cohen scored on a layup at the 13:40 mark of the first half to put the Bears up 10-5. Mercer remained in the lead until UNCG's Demetrius Troy sank a three pointer with 4:30 left to tie the score at 18-18. Mercer's Ross Cummings connected on a three with 2:58 remaining to put the Bears up 21-18. Mercer took a 24-23 lead into the locker room at the opening break.
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UNCG's Jordy Kuiper hit a basket in the opening moments of the second half to give the Spartans a 25-24 lead. UNCG then went on a 14-7 run to open up a 39-31 lead at the 12:03 mark.
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Mercer continued to battle back as Stair's three-point bucket with 7:18 remaining trimmed the UNCG lead to 44-42. UNCG's Francis Alonso drained another three at the 3:54 mark to give the Spartans a 49-42 advantage. Mercer rallied back and consecutive three point baskets by
Cummings cut the lead to one at 53-52. UNCG then went up by three on a couple of free throws by Alonso. Mercer got right back in it when Jelks sank a three point shot with 19 seconds left to knot the score at 55-55, forcing the game into overtime.
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The Spartans quickly gained control in the extra period. UNCG's Demetrius Troy scored five points in a row to give the home team a 60-55 lead and the Spartans went on to record the 70-66 victory. Alonso led UNCG in scoring with 17 points while Smith tossed in 15.
PLAYER OF THE GAME
Sophomore guard Ross Cummings was the player of the game for the Bears, scoring a career-high 11 points in nine minutes of play and knocking down two clutch threes at the end of regulation to help Mercer get to overtime. Cummings was 3-of-6 from the field with all three baskets coming behind the arc. Cummings was also perfect from the charity stripe (2-for-2).
QUOTABLES
"It was an unbelievably physical game. Both teams fought really hard and got after it. It was amazing how our players continued to fight back and never give up to give us a shot in overtime. I was really proud of what Ross (Cummings) brought to the game today. He stepped right in to the big moment and did some great things for us today. I hate it for our guys because they played their tails off and fought with everything they had and deserved to win today. I love how our guys are fighting and not giving in. We played a really good team today and unfortunately were not able to get it done. We will be playing another tough team on Wednesday and will need to go in there with the same effort and fight we brought today." – Head Coach Bob Hoffman
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NOTABLES
Mercer, now 10-10 overall and 3-4 in the Southern Conference, stays on the road for its next contest, visiting league-leading East Tennessee State Wednesday, Jan. 24. Tipoff time at Freedom Hall in Johnson City, Tenn., is 7 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 was out with an injury, the Bears battled throughout the contest. Stephon Jelks turned in his fourth straight double-double performance with 11 points and 11 rebounds. Demetre Rivers contributed 11 while Ross Cummings came off the bench to score 11. Ethan Stair, who started in place of Holland, scored 10 points and grabbed seven rebounds.
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Both teams struggled to score in the opening half as strong defensive play ruled the day.
Â
Mercer's Marcus Cohen scored on a layup at the 13:40 mark of the first half to put the Bears up 10-5. Mercer remained in the lead until UNCG's Demetrius Troy sank a three pointer with 4:30 left to tie the score at 18-18. Mercer's Ross Cummings connected on a three with 2:58 remaining to put the Bears up 21-18. Mercer took a 24-23 lead into the locker room at the opening break.
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UNCG's Jordy Kuiper hit a basket in the opening moments of the second half to give the Spartans a 25-24 lead. UNCG then went on a 14-7 run to open up a 39-31 lead at the 12:03 mark.
Â
Mercer continued to battle back as Stair's three-point bucket with 7:18 remaining trimmed the UNCG lead to 44-42. UNCG's Francis Alonso drained another three at the 3:54 mark to give the Spartans a 49-42 advantage. Mercer rallied back and consecutive three point baskets by
Cummings cut the lead to one at 53-52. UNCG then went up by three on a couple of free throws by Alonso. Mercer got right back in it when Jelks sank a three point shot with 19 seconds left to knot the score at 55-55, forcing the game into overtime.
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The Spartans quickly gained control in the extra period. UNCG's Demetrius Troy scored five points in a row to give the home team a 60-55 lead and the Spartans went on to record the 70-66 victory. Alonso led UNCG in scoring with 17 points while Smith tossed in 15.
PLAYER OF THE GAME
Sophomore guard Ross Cummings was the player of the game for the Bears, scoring a career-high 11 points in nine minutes of play and knocking down two clutch threes at the end of regulation to help Mercer get to overtime. Cummings was 3-of-6 from the field with all three baskets coming behind the arc. Cummings was also perfect from the charity stripe (2-for-2).
QUOTABLES
"It was an unbelievably physical game. Both teams fought really hard and got after it. It was amazing how our players continued to fight back and never give up to give us a shot in overtime. I was really proud of what Ross (Cummings) brought to the game today. He stepped right in to the big moment and did some great things for us today. I hate it for our guys because they played their tails off and fought with everything they had and deserved to win today. I love how our guys are fighting and not giving in. We played a really good team today and unfortunately were not able to get it done. We will be playing another tough team on Wednesday and will need to go in there with the same effort and fight we brought today." – Head Coach Bob Hoffman
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NOTABLES
- Senior forward Stephon Jelks turned in his fourth straight double-double posting 11 points and 11 rebounds. Jelks went 4-of-9 from the field, knocking down two three balls. The senior also provided two blocks, one assist and a steal.
- Senior guard Jordan Strawberry led the team in assists with five.
- Redshirt-sophomore Ethan Stair started in place for Ria'n Holland, tallying 10 points, seven rebounds and a steal.
- Senior guard Demetre Rivers also scored in the double figures with 11 points. Rivers also earned a steal and an assist on the night.
- Mercer out-rebounded the Spartans 35 to 32.
- The Bears out-shot UNCG, going 40 percent from the field on 20-of-50.
- Mercer's bench out-scored the Spartans 22-9.
- Mercer:Â (10-10, 3-4 SoCon)
- UNCG:Â (14-5, 5-1 SoCon)
Mercer, now 10-10 overall and 3-4 in the Southern Conference, stays on the road for its next contest, visiting league-leading East Tennessee State Wednesday, Jan. 24. Tipoff time at Freedom Hall in Johnson City, Tenn., is 7 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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