Saturday, December 8
Macon, Ga.
4 p.m.
Mercer University
4-6
74
vs
89
Georgia Southern
6-2
1
2
F
Georgia Southern
39
50
89
Mercer
34
40
74
Team Stats
GS
MER
FG%
.516
.455
3FG%
.385
.316
FT%
.750
.571
RB
40
31
TO
12
10
STL
6
4
Game Leaders
Pts
18
FGM
7
3FGM
1
FTM
3
Pts
15
FGM
6
3FGM
0
FTM
3
Pts
14
FGM
7
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Pts
14
FGM
5
3FGM
4
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
F
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
Photo by: Judy Stapleton
Stowe Nets Career-High in Home Loss to Eagles
12/8/2018 7:01:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Mercer falls at home for first time this season in 89-74 defeat
MACON, Ga. – Four Bears scored double-figures but Mercer was unable to match a hot-shooting Georgia Southern in an 89-74 defeat at Hawkins Arena on Saturday afternoon.
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The loss was Mercer's (4-6) first at home this season, as it fell to 4-1 in Hawkins Arena. Georgia Southern, which shot 51 percent from the field for the game, improved to 6-2 overall while besting Mercer in the two teams' first head-to-head clash since Nov. 20, 2016.
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A layup by Jaylen Stowe – who scored a team-best 18 points – with 13:38 left on the clock pulled Mercer within one point, 52-51, but the Eagles would score 14 of the next 17 points to pull ahead 66-54 by the 9:32 mark. Mercer pulled within seven points on a three-pointer by Ethan Stair (7:51) and nine points on a layup by Fardaws Aimaq (3:46) before Georgia Southern put the game away by making its final three shots.
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Mercer claimed its only lead of the contest, 45-44, with 16:08 remaining in the second half after Marcus Cohen hit a pair of free throws. The made three throws capped an 11-5 run by Mercer to start the second half after the Bears entered the intermission with a 39-34 deficit.
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Ross Cummings (11 points) and Aimaq (10 points) reached double-figures in scoring by halftime as the Bears shot 15-of-35 from the field. The Eagles jumped out to a 20-8 advantage on Mercer with 10:32 left in the first half before the Bears hit their stride with a 22-10 run, tying the game 30-30 by 4:26. Cummings hit a trio of three-pointers during the run while Stowe added one trey and Aimaq notched six points in the paint.
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PLAYER OF THE GAME
Jaylen Stowe tallied a career-high 18 points on an efficient 7-of-10 shooting from the floor to lead the Bears in points scored. The senior added eight rebounds, tying a season-high that he set earlier in the week at Florida Atlantic. Stowe also recorded four assists and one steal.
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NOTABLES
» Stowe set a career-high in points for the second time in as many games. His 18 points mark the third consecutive game and seventh time this season that he has scored in double-digits.
» Marcus Cohen, who missed the last two games, notched season-bests in points (15) and assists (six).
» Fardaws Aimaq notched a career-high 14 points on 7-of-14 shooting. He matched his previous career-high of 10 points by halftime.
» Mercer outscored the Eagles in the paint, 46-36, marking the sixth time this season that the Bears have outplayed their opponents under the basket.
» Mercer's bench tallied 33 points compared to 10 points by Georgia Southern's reserves.
» Ross Cummings hit four three-pointers, marking the fourth time this year he has tallied at least four.
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QUOTABLES
Coach Bob Hoffman – "I thought it was a great college basketball game but we got beat at the glass over and over again. We grabbed some offensive rebounds ourselves but just didn't finish as many of them as [Georgia Southern] did. That was a really good team that we played against today.
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"Every time we made a run or got ahead, we couldn't seem to gain any momentum in order to maintain the lead. That's something we've talked about and something we're working really hard on. We worked hard to get the lead, but it seemed like we didn't work as hard or harder in order to maintain it. We didn't play as good as we needed to today, but we're going to keep getting better. I believe in our guys and think they have some special things in them."
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RECORDS UPDATE
» Mercer: 4-6
» Georgia Southern: 6-2
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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The loss was Mercer's (4-6) first at home this season, as it fell to 4-1 in Hawkins Arena. Georgia Southern, which shot 51 percent from the field for the game, improved to 6-2 overall while besting Mercer in the two teams' first head-to-head clash since Nov. 20, 2016.
Â
A layup by Jaylen Stowe – who scored a team-best 18 points – with 13:38 left on the clock pulled Mercer within one point, 52-51, but the Eagles would score 14 of the next 17 points to pull ahead 66-54 by the 9:32 mark. Mercer pulled within seven points on a three-pointer by Ethan Stair (7:51) and nine points on a layup by Fardaws Aimaq (3:46) before Georgia Southern put the game away by making its final three shots.
Â
Mercer claimed its only lead of the contest, 45-44, with 16:08 remaining in the second half after Marcus Cohen hit a pair of free throws. The made three throws capped an 11-5 run by Mercer to start the second half after the Bears entered the intermission with a 39-34 deficit.
Â
Ross Cummings (11 points) and Aimaq (10 points) reached double-figures in scoring by halftime as the Bears shot 15-of-35 from the field. The Eagles jumped out to a 20-8 advantage on Mercer with 10:32 left in the first half before the Bears hit their stride with a 22-10 run, tying the game 30-30 by 4:26. Cummings hit a trio of three-pointers during the run while Stowe added one trey and Aimaq notched six points in the paint.
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PLAYER OF THE GAME
Jaylen Stowe tallied a career-high 18 points on an efficient 7-of-10 shooting from the floor to lead the Bears in points scored. The senior added eight rebounds, tying a season-high that he set earlier in the week at Florida Atlantic. Stowe also recorded four assists and one steal.
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NOTABLES
» Stowe set a career-high in points for the second time in as many games. His 18 points mark the third consecutive game and seventh time this season that he has scored in double-digits.
» Marcus Cohen, who missed the last two games, notched season-bests in points (15) and assists (six).
» Fardaws Aimaq notched a career-high 14 points on 7-of-14 shooting. He matched his previous career-high of 10 points by halftime.
» Mercer outscored the Eagles in the paint, 46-36, marking the sixth time this season that the Bears have outplayed their opponents under the basket.
» Mercer's bench tallied 33 points compared to 10 points by Georgia Southern's reserves.
» Ross Cummings hit four three-pointers, marking the fourth time this year he has tallied at least four.
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QUOTABLES
Coach Bob Hoffman – "I thought it was a great college basketball game but we got beat at the glass over and over again. We grabbed some offensive rebounds ourselves but just didn't finish as many of them as [Georgia Southern] did. That was a really good team that we played against today.
Â
"Every time we made a run or got ahead, we couldn't seem to gain any momentum in order to maintain the lead. That's something we've talked about and something we're working really hard on. We worked hard to get the lead, but it seemed like we didn't work as hard or harder in order to maintain it. We didn't play as good as we needed to today, but we're going to keep getting better. I believe in our guys and think they have some special things in them."
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RECORDS UPDATE
» Mercer: 4-6
» Georgia Southern: 6-2
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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