Wednesday, December 5
Boca Raton, Fla.
7 p.m.
Mercer University
4-5
64
at
68
FAU
7-2
1
2
F
MER
19
45
64
Florida Atlantic
29
39
68
Team Stats
MER
FAU
FG%
.389
.444
3FG%
.118
.231
FT%
.870
.636
RB
37
34
TO
20
18
STL
12
10
Game Leaders
Pts
16
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
6
Pts
13
FGM
5
3FGM
2
FTM
1
Pts
12
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Pts
10
FGM
1
3FGM
0
FTM
8
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
Photo by: Daniel Gibbons
Mercer’s Second-Half Rally Falls Short at FAU
12/5/2018 10:05:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Bears rally strong before falling 68-64 in road loss at FAU
BOCA RATON, Fla. – A sluggish start by Mercer overshadowed a 45-point second-half effort as the Bears fell to Florida Atlantic, 68-64, on the road at FAU Arena on Wednesday night.
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Mercer (4-5) outscored FAU (7-2) 45-39 in the second half – was led by 13 second-half points by Ethan Stair – but entered the halftime break with a 10-point deficit (29-19) after shooting only 29 percent from the field over the first 20 minutes of play.
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Trailing by 12 (55-43) with 6:31 left on the clock, Mercer went on a 16-5 run over the following five minutes to cut the Owls' lead to one point, 60-59, at the 1:21 mark. The Bears were highly efficient from the free throw line during the run, connecting on all eight attempts from the charity stripe. Stair, who was 5-of-10 from the field on the night, tallied consecutive steals and fast-break layups during the run as well.
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A critical three-pointer by FAU's Jailyn Ingram with 41 seconds remaining pushed the Owls' lead back to four points, however, keeping the Bears out of reach. Cory Kilby hit a pair of free throws and Stair drained one of his two made three-pointers with 10 seconds left before FAU sealed the win with two free throws of its own with seven seconds on the clock.
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Early shooting woes by the Bears resulted in the 10-point halftime deficit. Mercer shot 8-of-27 from the field in the first half despite a strong individual performance from Jaylen Stowe, who entered the locker room with 4-of-5 shooting and five rebounds at halftime. The Owls jumped out to a 10-2 advantage by the 14-minute mark and ended the first half on a 6-2 run.
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PLAYER OF THE GAME
Ethan Stair scored all 13 of his points in the second half and added three rebounds and a career-high five steals to lead the Bears. The redshirt junior was 5-of-7 from the field in the second half, nailing Mercer's only pair of three-pointers in the game.
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NOTABLES
» Ethan Stair's 13 points are a season-high. He has scored double-figures in five games this season.
» Jaylen Stowe scored a career-high 16 points, the most among the Bears. He added a team-best eight rebounds.
» Mercer outscored FAU 38-24 in the paint and off of turnovers, 22-21.
» The Bears hit 20-of-23 free throw attempts. Cory Kilby was 8-of-9 individually.
» Mercer fell to 10-11 all-time against FAU.
» Djordje Dimitrijevic tallied 12 points and five rebounds. He has scored double-figures in seven of nine games as a Bear.
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QUOTABLES
Coach Bob Hoffman – "We challenged FAU in the second half and played hard toward the end, but we struggled to make shots and had a really poor first half. We can't do what we're doing against good teams on the road. Our ability to battle back in the second half was great – these kids want to win and I know they'll battle every day. I don't mince words and I told the guys how I felt about that first half. It hurt our chances tonight.
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"I was really impressed by Ethan Stair's effort…he's an amazing player. He's hurt, but he's out there playing no matter what and I love him for that."
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RECORDS UPDATE
» Mercer: 4-5
» FAU: 7-2
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 (4-5) outscored FAU (7-2) 45-39 in the second half – was led by 13 second-half points by Ethan Stair – but entered the halftime break with a 10-point deficit (29-19) after shooting only 29 percent from the field over the first 20 minutes of play.
Â
Trailing by 12 (55-43) with 6:31 left on the clock, Mercer went on a 16-5 run over the following five minutes to cut the Owls' lead to one point, 60-59, at the 1:21 mark. The Bears were highly efficient from the free throw line during the run, connecting on all eight attempts from the charity stripe. Stair, who was 5-of-10 from the field on the night, tallied consecutive steals and fast-break layups during the run as well.
Â
A critical three-pointer by FAU's Jailyn Ingram with 41 seconds remaining pushed the Owls' lead back to four points, however, keeping the Bears out of reach. Cory Kilby hit a pair of free throws and Stair drained one of his two made three-pointers with 10 seconds left before FAU sealed the win with two free throws of its own with seven seconds on the clock.
Â
Early shooting woes by the Bears resulted in the 10-point halftime deficit. Mercer shot 8-of-27 from the field in the first half despite a strong individual performance from Jaylen Stowe, who entered the locker room with 4-of-5 shooting and five rebounds at halftime. The Owls jumped out to a 10-2 advantage by the 14-minute mark and ended the first half on a 6-2 run.
Â
PLAYER OF THE GAME
Ethan Stair scored all 13 of his points in the second half and added three rebounds and a career-high five steals to lead the Bears. The redshirt junior was 5-of-7 from the field in the second half, nailing Mercer's only pair of three-pointers in the game.
Â
NOTABLES
» Ethan Stair's 13 points are a season-high. He has scored double-figures in five games this season.
» Jaylen Stowe scored a career-high 16 points, the most among the Bears. He added a team-best eight rebounds.
» Mercer outscored FAU 38-24 in the paint and off of turnovers, 22-21.
» The Bears hit 20-of-23 free throw attempts. Cory Kilby was 8-of-9 individually.
» Mercer fell to 10-11 all-time against FAU.
» Djordje Dimitrijevic tallied 12 points and five rebounds. He has scored double-figures in seven of nine games as a Bear.
Â
QUOTABLES
Coach Bob Hoffman – "We challenged FAU in the second half and played hard toward the end, but we struggled to make shots and had a really poor first half. We can't do what we're doing against good teams on the road. Our ability to battle back in the second half was great – these kids want to win and I know they'll battle every day. I don't mince words and I told the guys how I felt about that first half. It hurt our chances tonight.
Â
"I was really impressed by Ethan Stair's effort…he's an amazing player. He's hurt, but he's out there playing no matter what and I love him for that."
Â
RECORDS UPDATE
» Mercer: 4-5
» FAU: 7-2
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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