Saturday, March 3
Asheville, N.C.
2:30 p.m.
Mercer University
18-14, 11-7
53
vs
73
Wofford
21-11, 11-7
1
2
F
Wofford
37
36
73
Mercer
21
32
53
Team Stats
WOF
MER
FG%
.491
.386
3FG%
.320
.261
FT%
.765
.722
RB
26
32
TO
5
18
STL
13
3
Game Leaders
Pts
18
FGM
6
3FGM
1
FTM
5
Pts
16
FGM
5
3FGM
3
FTM
3
Pts
11
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
3
Pts
5
FGM
1
3FGM
1
FTM
2
Players Mentioned
F
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
Photo by: Judy Stapleton
Mercer Falls To Wofford 73-53 In SoCon Quarterfinals
3/3/2018 6:30:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Asheville, N.C. – Wofford led from start to finish in handing Mercer a 73-53 defeat Saturday afternoon in both teams' opening game in the Southern Conference Men's Basketball Championship presented by General Shale at the U.S. Cellular Center. The loss ended the eight-game winning streak Mercer had carried into tournament play.
The Bears had defeated Wofford twice during the regular season, including last Sunday's 69-68 thrilling victory at Wofford. However, the Terriers came out strong Saturday to grab an early double digit lead in the first half. Mercer committed 13 turnovers in the opening stanza and hit only 33.3% from the field, while Wofford shot 51.7% and turned the ball over just three times to take a 37-21 halftime lead.
Wofford's lead grew to 20 points, 43-23, just 90 seconds into the second half. Mercer tried to mount a rally, cutting the lead to 48-39 with 12:16 remaining, but that was the closest the Bears would get the rest of the way as the Terriers claimed the victory to advance to the tournament's next round on Sunday.
Senior guard Jordan Strawberry led Mercer with 18 points and five assists. Senior forward Stephon Jelks turned in his league-leading seventh double-double of the season with 16 points and 10 rebounds. Senior post man Desmond Ringer scored 11 points and grabbed nine boards.
Wofford was led by Nathan Hoover, who scored a game-high 22 points, and Cameron Jackson, who had a double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds.
Mercer shot 39% from the floor while Wofford hit 49.1% of its shots. The Terriers turned 18 Mercer turnovers into 20 points.
Mercer falls to 18-14 overall while Wofford improves to 21-11.
PLAYER OF THE GAME
Stephon Jelks turned in his SoCon leading seventh double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds. Jelks currently has 1,105 career points and 830 career rebounds. He is only the third player in Mercer men's basketball history to score more than 1,000 points and grab more than 800 rebounds in his career.
NOTABLES
Coach Bob Hoffman – "We just got our tails whipped. We were not ready like I hoped we would be. [Wofford] made several plays and got separation at the beginning. It was a physical game, as it seems to be [at the conference tournament] a lot, and we did not respond like we hoped. The game got away from us with the turnovers and the bumping and grinding of the game. [Wofford's] Coach [Mike] Young is a fantastic coach, and they made shot after shot when they needed to. They were fantastic with their win today."
On the physical game
"[Wofford] played really good defense and got into us pretty good, and we did not respond like you have to in those kinds of situations."
On the senior class
"Our seniors have been fantastic. With the adversity that we faced throughout the year, we could have just checked it in, but [the seniors] and the other guys just kept finding ways to get wins…I am just thrilled that I got to coach [the seniors]. They have been amazing guys and have been tremendous for us. They are a blessing, and I pray nothing but fantastic things for them in the future days."
Senior Guard Jordan Strawberry (On trying rally from a double-digit deficit)
"When you put yourself in a hole like that, it is really hard. You are fighting so hard to come back, and then [Wofford] comes down and hits a big 3-pointer. It's really hard, but
we tried our best. It is tough when you put yourself in that position."
RECORDS UPDATE
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 Bears had defeated Wofford twice during the regular season, including last Sunday's 69-68 thrilling victory at Wofford. However, the Terriers came out strong Saturday to grab an early double digit lead in the first half. Mercer committed 13 turnovers in the opening stanza and hit only 33.3% from the field, while Wofford shot 51.7% and turned the ball over just three times to take a 37-21 halftime lead.
Wofford's lead grew to 20 points, 43-23, just 90 seconds into the second half. Mercer tried to mount a rally, cutting the lead to 48-39 with 12:16 remaining, but that was the closest the Bears would get the rest of the way as the Terriers claimed the victory to advance to the tournament's next round on Sunday.
Senior guard Jordan Strawberry led Mercer with 18 points and five assists. Senior forward Stephon Jelks turned in his league-leading seventh double-double of the season with 16 points and 10 rebounds. Senior post man Desmond Ringer scored 11 points and grabbed nine boards.
Wofford was led by Nathan Hoover, who scored a game-high 22 points, and Cameron Jackson, who had a double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds.
Mercer shot 39% from the floor while Wofford hit 49.1% of its shots. The Terriers turned 18 Mercer turnovers into 20 points.
Mercer falls to 18-14 overall while Wofford improves to 21-11.
PLAYER OF THE GAME
Stephon Jelks turned in his SoCon leading seventh double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds. Jelks currently has 1,105 career points and 830 career rebounds. He is only the third player in Mercer men's basketball history to score more than 1,000 points and grab more than 800 rebounds in his career.
NOTABLES
- The defeat snapped Mercer's eight-game winning streak, which was the longest winning streak for a Mercer team since the 2013-14 season, in which the Bears ran off eight wins in a row in the month of January. Mercer's eight-winning streak was also tied for sixth best in the country.
- Jordan Strawberry tallied a team-high 18 points and dished out a team-best five assists. The senior guard currently has 1,154 career points and 484 career assists. He is only the third player in Mercer men's basketball history to score more than 1,000 career points and hand out more than 400 career assists.
- Desmond Ringer nearly had a double-double, scoring 11 points and pulling down nine boards.Â
Coach Bob Hoffman – "We just got our tails whipped. We were not ready like I hoped we would be. [Wofford] made several plays and got separation at the beginning. It was a physical game, as it seems to be [at the conference tournament] a lot, and we did not respond like we hoped. The game got away from us with the turnovers and the bumping and grinding of the game. [Wofford's] Coach [Mike] Young is a fantastic coach, and they made shot after shot when they needed to. They were fantastic with their win today."
On the physical game
"[Wofford] played really good defense and got into us pretty good, and we did not respond like you have to in those kinds of situations."
On the senior class
"Our seniors have been fantastic. With the adversity that we faced throughout the year, we could have just checked it in, but [the seniors] and the other guys just kept finding ways to get wins…I am just thrilled that I got to coach [the seniors]. They have been amazing guys and have been tremendous for us. They are a blessing, and I pray nothing but fantastic things for them in the future days."
Senior Guard Jordan Strawberry (On trying rally from a double-digit deficit)
"When you put yourself in a hole like that, it is really hard. You are fighting so hard to come back, and then [Wofford] comes down and hits a big 3-pointer. It's really hard, but
we tried our best. It is tough when you put yourself in that position."
RECORDS UPDATE
- Mercer:Â (18-14, 11-7 SoCon)
- Wofford:Â (21-11, 11-7 SoCon)
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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