Friday, December 21
Washington, D.C.
12 P.M.
Mercer University
(7-5)
61
at
53
George Washington
(2-9)
1
2
3
4
F
Mercer
16
12
21
12
61
George Washington
6
16
17
14
53
Team Stats
MER
GW
FG%
.419
.400
3FG%
.250
.389
FT%
.625
.556
RB
32
35
TO
10
21
STL
14
5
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
17
FGM
7
3FGM
0
FTM
3
Pts
16
FGM
7
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Pts
10
FGM
4
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Pts
10
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Players Mentioned
G
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's Basketball
C
/ Women's BasketballF
/ Women's BasketballG/F
/ Women's Basketball
Photo by: Judy Stapleton
Four Bears Eclipse Double Figures in Win
12/21/2018 3:11:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Mercer upended George Washington, 61-53, to conclude Washington, D.C. trip
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Four of Mercer's five starters reached double digits in Friday's 61-53 victory over George Washington in Washington, D.C. With the win, Mercer improves to 7-5 and rides a three-game winning streak heading into the holidays. Â
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Amanda Thompson tallied her second consecutive double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds, while KeKe Calloway chipped in for 16 points, six assists, five rebounds and five steals.
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STAT OF THE GAME
Mercer's defense was all over the court on Friday afternoon, forcing 21 turnovers and coming away with 14 steals, both of which are the second-highest marks in a single game this season. The Bears also tallied 24 points off of the Colonials' turnovers.
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PLAYER OF THE GAME
For the second consecutive game, Amanda Thompson paved the way for the victory. The senior forward finished with 17 points and 11 rebounds for her fourth double-double this season and second in a row. Thompson also came away with four steals, passing both Rhonda Owens (159) and Tiffany Howard (161) for 10th and 9th all-time in program history with 162 career steals.
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HOW IT HAPPENED
It took just over two minutes for the first basket to be registered as Amanda Thompson nailed a jumper for the early 2-0 lead, an advantage that Mercer would not relinquish. With 3:08 left in the quarter and Mercer leading by three, KeKe Calloway knocked in her first three pointer to double the advantage and become the Southern Conference's 5th all-time leader in career threes. The Bears ended up taking the 16-6 advantage after the first 10 minutes of play, led in scoring by Shannon Titus with six points.
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Midway through the second quarter, Mercer extended its lead to 12 before Anna Savino knocked in a pair of threes to bring George Washington back to within six. The Bears would not allow the Colonials any closer in the opening half, clinging to the 28-22 advantage at halftime.
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The start to the second half was picture perfect for the Bears' offense, knocking down their first five shots to rebuild the double-digit lead. Linnea Rosendal buried eight of the first 13 points for Mercer, knocking in a pair of triples. The Colonials would not disappear, scoring six unanswered points to trim the Mercer lead to 43-36 with 3:10 left in the quarter. Yet again, the Mercer offense answered the call to end the quarter, scoring six of the final eight points to push its lead back to 49-39.
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The Bears scored the first six points in the final quarter, building their largest lead of the game at 55-39 with 7:48 left to play. George Washington trimmed the Mercer advantage to seven points once again with 2:55 remaining, but could not overcome the large deficit put on by the Bears. Mercer held the Colonials at bay, icing the game in the final minute following Calloway's breakaway layup for the 11-point advantage.
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NOTABLES
COACH'S CORNER
Final thoughts on the afternoon:
"We knew it was going to be a time and score because George Washington holds the opponents to less than what they are averaging coming in to the game. We knew from the beginning that it was going to be a back-and-forth game. I was pleased with the way we were able to hang in there and make the big plays at the important times."
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On the defensive effort:
"We needed to score in transition today and our defense was able to make that happen. Shannon ran the floor great and Amanda was able to push the ball when she got a defensive rebound. It was a statistic that was very important for us."
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On the duo of Thompson and Calloway:
"Amanda is playing great basketball right now. Her role has changed a little bit from last year and she has accepted that assignment. KeKe's assignment today was to guard their leading scorer [Bautista] and she held her to four points. KeKe's shot wasn't necessarily falling but she did other things for us like get rebounds, steals and assists."
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RECORDS UPDATE
NEXT GAME
Follow the Bears
For complete coverage of Mercer Women's Basketball, please follow the Bears on social media at @MercerWBB (Twitter), /MercerWBB(Facebook) and @MercerWBB (Instagram) or visit the official home of Mercer Athletics at MercerBears.com.
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Amanda Thompson tallied her second consecutive double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds, while KeKe Calloway chipped in for 16 points, six assists, five rebounds and five steals.
Â
STAT OF THE GAME
Mercer's defense was all over the court on Friday afternoon, forcing 21 turnovers and coming away with 14 steals, both of which are the second-highest marks in a single game this season. The Bears also tallied 24 points off of the Colonials' turnovers.
Â
PLAYER OF THE GAME
For the second consecutive game, Amanda Thompson paved the way for the victory. The senior forward finished with 17 points and 11 rebounds for her fourth double-double this season and second in a row. Thompson also came away with four steals, passing both Rhonda Owens (159) and Tiffany Howard (161) for 10th and 9th all-time in program history with 162 career steals.
Â
HOW IT HAPPENED
It took just over two minutes for the first basket to be registered as Amanda Thompson nailed a jumper for the early 2-0 lead, an advantage that Mercer would not relinquish. With 3:08 left in the quarter and Mercer leading by three, KeKe Calloway knocked in her first three pointer to double the advantage and become the Southern Conference's 5th all-time leader in career threes. The Bears ended up taking the 16-6 advantage after the first 10 minutes of play, led in scoring by Shannon Titus with six points.
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Midway through the second quarter, Mercer extended its lead to 12 before Anna Savino knocked in a pair of threes to bring George Washington back to within six. The Bears would not allow the Colonials any closer in the opening half, clinging to the 28-22 advantage at halftime.
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The start to the second half was picture perfect for the Bears' offense, knocking down their first five shots to rebuild the double-digit lead. Linnea Rosendal buried eight of the first 13 points for Mercer, knocking in a pair of triples. The Colonials would not disappear, scoring six unanswered points to trim the Mercer lead to 43-36 with 3:10 left in the quarter. Yet again, the Mercer offense answered the call to end the quarter, scoring six of the final eight points to push its lead back to 49-39.
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The Bears scored the first six points in the final quarter, building their largest lead of the game at 55-39 with 7:48 left to play. George Washington trimmed the Mercer advantage to seven points once again with 2:55 remaining, but could not overcome the large deficit put on by the Bears. Mercer held the Colonials at bay, icing the game in the final minute following Calloway's breakaway layup for the 11-point advantage.
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NOTABLES
- With the win, Mercer improves to 7-5 on the season and 2-0 against George Washington.
- The Bears earn their first three-game winning streak of the season, capping off a Washington, D.C. trip with a 2-0 record.
- Amanda Thompson tallied yet another double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds.
- Thompson (162) surpassed Rhonda Owens (159) and Tiffany Howard (161) in the all-time steals category at Mercer for 9th place in program history.
- KeKe Calloway moves into a tie with former Samford great Hannah Nichols for the fourth-most threes in SoCon history (250).
- Mercer improves to 4-0 when four players reach double figures this season.
- Mercer forced 21 turnovers and scooped up 14 steals, scoring 24 points off the Colonials' blunders.
- Rachel Selph tied a career high in rebounds with 10, falling just two points shy of a double-double of her own.
COACH'S CORNER
Final thoughts on the afternoon:
"We knew it was going to be a time and score because George Washington holds the opponents to less than what they are averaging coming in to the game. We knew from the beginning that it was going to be a back-and-forth game. I was pleased with the way we were able to hang in there and make the big plays at the important times."
Â
On the defensive effort:
"We needed to score in transition today and our defense was able to make that happen. Shannon ran the floor great and Amanda was able to push the ball when she got a defensive rebound. It was a statistic that was very important for us."
Â
On the duo of Thompson and Calloway:
"Amanda is playing great basketball right now. Her role has changed a little bit from last year and she has accepted that assignment. KeKe's assignment today was to guard their leading scorer [Bautista] and she held her to four points. KeKe's shot wasn't necessarily falling but she did other things for us like get rebounds, steals and assists."
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RECORDS UPDATE
- Mercer: 7-5
- George Washington: 2-9
NEXT GAME
- Mercer vs. UNC Asheville on Sunday, Dec. 30 at 2 p.m. at Hawkins Arena in Macon, Ga.
Follow the Bears
For complete coverage of Mercer Women's Basketball, please follow the Bears on social media at @MercerWBB (Twitter), /MercerWBB(Facebook) and @MercerWBB (Instagram) or visit the official home of Mercer Athletics at MercerBears.com.
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