Sunday, March 4
Asheville, N.C.
12 P.M.
Mercer University
30-2, 14-0
68
vs
53
ETSU
20-12, 11-3
1
2
3
4
F
ETSU
14
9
18
12
53
Mercer
14
19
21
14
68
Team Stats
ETSU
MER
FG%
.423
.453
3FG%
.111
.385
FT%
.583
.750
RB
28
33
TO
16
12
STL
8
12
Game Leaders
Pts
29
FGM
10
3FGM
3
FTM
6
Pts
14
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
4
Pts
11
FGM
4
3FGM
2
FTM
1
Pts
9
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
3
Players Mentioned
G
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's BasketballF
/ Women's BasketballF
/ Women's Basketball
Mercer Wins First SoCon Tournament Title
3/4/2018 1:46:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Kahlia Lawrence drops game-high 29 points, leads Bears to NCAA Tournament berth
ASHEVILLE, N.C. – No. 25 (AP) Mercer won its first Southern Conference Women's Basketball Tournament title as it defeated ETSU, 68-53, behind a game-high 29 points from Kahlia Lawrence at the U.S. Cellular Center.
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After heartbreaking defeats in the conference title game each of the last two seasons, top-seeded Mercer (30-2) clinched the SoCon's automatic bid to the 2018 NCAA Tournament with the 15-point victory over the No. 2 seed Bucs. It was Mercer's 27th consecutive win, tying Chattanooga's record set in 2003-04. The Bears have now gone 100 days without falling with the last loss being on Nov. 24, 2017 to Western Kentucky.
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Stat of the Game
Three Bears scored in double figures, led by Lawrence with 29. Alex Williams chipped in 14 points, while KeKe Calloway ended the game with 11. Amanda Thompson was one point shy of a double-double, finishing the game with nine points and 11 boards.
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Player of the Game
Kahlia Lawrence garnered player of the game honors, scoring 29 points to cap off a Tournament MVP performance. Lawrence finished the game 10-of-18 from the field, including 3-of-6 from downtown. Lawrence averaged 25 points per game during the SoCon Championships.
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How It Happened
The Bears have been accustomed to hot starts in the tournament and jumped off to another quick start in the championship game. Mercer scored 10 of the first 14 points in the game as Lawrence scored seven points in the first 3:46. The Bucs battled back, eventually taking a 14-13 advantage before Means tied the game up at 14 with a free throw.
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The Bears pulled away in the second quarter, outscoring ETSU by 10 points for the 33-23 advantage. With Mercer holding a narrow 22-20 advantage with 4:21 in the half, the Bears went on an 8-0 run to take the 30-20 lead with 52 seconds remaining. The two squads traded the final six points of the half to give Mercer the 10-point cushion.
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ETSU closed the gap to within six (39-33) with 5:32 left in the third quarter after a layup from Erica Haynes-Overton. Mercer responded with a 10-2 run over the next three minutes to push its lead back to a comfortable 14-point advantage. The Bears would go on to outscore the Bucs 21-18 in the third quarter for the 13-point lead heading into the final 10 minutes of play.
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The final quarter was all Mercer, outscoring ETSU 14-12 for the 68-53 victory. The Bears received a big boost in the fourth quarter from Williams, scoring eight points and knocking down all four free throws. The Mercer defense forced six turnovers in the final quarter, coming away with five steals.
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Notables
» Mercer earned its 27th consecutive win, tying Chattanooga's SoCon record of 27 wins in the 2003-04 season.
» The Bears now improve to 19-18 all-time against ETSU, including 10-8 under current head coach Susie Gardner.
» Mercer notched its 30th win of the season, setting the program record for most wins in a single season.
» The Bears forced 16 ETSU turnovers, turning those slip ups into eight points. Mercer also outrebounded ETSU by the final count of 33-28.
» With the win, Mercer earned the SoCon's automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament for the first time in program history.
» The Bears posted four players on the SoCon All-Tournament Teams as Sydni Means and Amanda Thompson garnered a spot on the second team, while KeKe Calloway and Kahlia Lawrence were slated on the first team.
» Lawrence was tabbed as the SoCon Tournament Most Outstanding Player.
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Coach's Corner
Opening Statement
"First of all, ETSU had a great season. Tiana Tarter is one of the best players I've coached against. Obviously, this is exactly where we wanted to be, a year ago today. I remember all the awful emotions and I was like "We got to get through this". There was an energy, a passion coming to practice that we had one thing else we needed to do. To have a [win] streak, to go undefeated in this great conference, that's hard to do…I think our loss last year [in the SoCon championship game] is the reason this year was so incredible."
Â
On the 2017-18 season
"I knew we had a good team coming in because we had the same team. We really focused on one day at a time. I didn't anticipate going undefeated in the conference. I think once we have time to catch our breath and reflect, we've made so much history at Mercer. You just don't have these kinds of years and I'm just so happy for these guys."
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On heading into the NCAA Tournament
"We played a really hard schedule. We've played some big-time schools and we play all kinds of different conferences. We'll just approach the NCAA Tournament like we always do with each game."
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Records Update
» Mercer: 30-2
» ETSU: 20-12
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Next Game
After earning the SoCon's auto-bid, Mercer will await the NCAA selection show on Monday, March 12, at 7 p.m. where it will find out its next opponent as well as the date and location of the match.
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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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After heartbreaking defeats in the conference title game each of the last two seasons, top-seeded Mercer (30-2) clinched the SoCon's automatic bid to the 2018 NCAA Tournament with the 15-point victory over the No. 2 seed Bucs. It was Mercer's 27th consecutive win, tying Chattanooga's record set in 2003-04. The Bears have now gone 100 days without falling with the last loss being on Nov. 24, 2017 to Western Kentucky.
Â
Stat of the Game
Three Bears scored in double figures, led by Lawrence with 29. Alex Williams chipped in 14 points, while KeKe Calloway ended the game with 11. Amanda Thompson was one point shy of a double-double, finishing the game with nine points and 11 boards.
Â
Player of the Game
Kahlia Lawrence garnered player of the game honors, scoring 29 points to cap off a Tournament MVP performance. Lawrence finished the game 10-of-18 from the field, including 3-of-6 from downtown. Lawrence averaged 25 points per game during the SoCon Championships.
Â
How It Happened
The Bears have been accustomed to hot starts in the tournament and jumped off to another quick start in the championship game. Mercer scored 10 of the first 14 points in the game as Lawrence scored seven points in the first 3:46. The Bucs battled back, eventually taking a 14-13 advantage before Means tied the game up at 14 with a free throw.
Â
The Bears pulled away in the second quarter, outscoring ETSU by 10 points for the 33-23 advantage. With Mercer holding a narrow 22-20 advantage with 4:21 in the half, the Bears went on an 8-0 run to take the 30-20 lead with 52 seconds remaining. The two squads traded the final six points of the half to give Mercer the 10-point cushion.
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ETSU closed the gap to within six (39-33) with 5:32 left in the third quarter after a layup from Erica Haynes-Overton. Mercer responded with a 10-2 run over the next three minutes to push its lead back to a comfortable 14-point advantage. The Bears would go on to outscore the Bucs 21-18 in the third quarter for the 13-point lead heading into the final 10 minutes of play.
Â
The final quarter was all Mercer, outscoring ETSU 14-12 for the 68-53 victory. The Bears received a big boost in the fourth quarter from Williams, scoring eight points and knocking down all four free throws. The Mercer defense forced six turnovers in the final quarter, coming away with five steals.
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Notables
» Mercer earned its 27th consecutive win, tying Chattanooga's SoCon record of 27 wins in the 2003-04 season.
» The Bears now improve to 19-18 all-time against ETSU, including 10-8 under current head coach Susie Gardner.
» Mercer notched its 30th win of the season, setting the program record for most wins in a single season.
» The Bears forced 16 ETSU turnovers, turning those slip ups into eight points. Mercer also outrebounded ETSU by the final count of 33-28.
» With the win, Mercer earned the SoCon's automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament for the first time in program history.
» The Bears posted four players on the SoCon All-Tournament Teams as Sydni Means and Amanda Thompson garnered a spot on the second team, while KeKe Calloway and Kahlia Lawrence were slated on the first team.
» Lawrence was tabbed as the SoCon Tournament Most Outstanding Player.
Â
Coach's Corner
Opening Statement
"First of all, ETSU had a great season. Tiana Tarter is one of the best players I've coached against. Obviously, this is exactly where we wanted to be, a year ago today. I remember all the awful emotions and I was like "We got to get through this". There was an energy, a passion coming to practice that we had one thing else we needed to do. To have a [win] streak, to go undefeated in this great conference, that's hard to do…I think our loss last year [in the SoCon championship game] is the reason this year was so incredible."
Â
On the 2017-18 season
"I knew we had a good team coming in because we had the same team. We really focused on one day at a time. I didn't anticipate going undefeated in the conference. I think once we have time to catch our breath and reflect, we've made so much history at Mercer. You just don't have these kinds of years and I'm just so happy for these guys."
Â
On heading into the NCAA Tournament
"We played a really hard schedule. We've played some big-time schools and we play all kinds of different conferences. We'll just approach the NCAA Tournament like we always do with each game."
Â
Records Update
» Mercer: 30-2
» ETSU: 20-12
Â
Next Game
After earning the SoCon's auto-bid, Mercer will await the NCAA selection show on Monday, March 12, at 7 p.m. where it will find out its next opponent as well as the date and location of the match.
Â
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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