Bears Host Columbia International Friday Afternoon

MACON, Ga. – Mercer men's basketball opens its home schedule on Friday, Nov. 8 when they face Columbia International at 1 p.m. from Hawkins Arena. It will be the first matchup between these two programs.

GAME DAY LINEUP
Date: November 8, 2019 | 1 p.m. (ET)
Teams: Mercer (0-1) vs. Columbia International (2-1)
Location: Macon, Ga. | Hawkins Arena
Live Stats: MercerBears.com/LiveStats
Radio: 100.9 The Creek FM and SportsMic – Rick Cameron
TV: ESPN3 – Frank Malloy and Tim Scarborough
Twitter Updates: @MercerMBB

SERIES HISTORY
• Overall: 0-0
• Current Streak: n/a
• Last Meeting: First Meeting between the two programs

OPENING TIPOFF
Mercer Men's Basketball opens its 2019-20 home schedule on Friday, Nov. 8 when they host Columbia International at Hawkins Arena. Tipoff is set for 1 p.m. The contest will be streamed on ESPN3 with Frank Malloy and Tim Scarborough. The contest will be streamed on 100.9 The Creek FM with Rick Cameron on the call.

ABOUT THE RAMS
Columbia International enters the contest with the Bears with a 2-1 overall record… The Rams are a member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and a member of the Appalachian Athletic Conference… Columbia International was picked to finish tied for seventh in the Appalachian Athletic Conference where they received 90 points in its Preseason Poll… Over the Rams three games, they are averaging 81.3 points per game and scored a season-high 95 points against Brewton-Parker College on Nov. 1… The Rams are allowing 76.0 points per game and opponents are shooting 46.7 percent from the floor… The Rams have three players scoring in double-figures this season, led by Skyler McKinney, who is averaging 19.7 points per game… Corey Benton is second on the team averaging 18.7 points per game… The Rams have seven players averaging double-figure minutes on the season and have 14 players who have played this year… The Rams are being outrebounded on the season by four rebounds per game… They are committing 14.0 turnovers per game and have committed a season-high 19 turnovers against Brewton-Parker.

LAUREN TALLEY TO SING ANTHEM ON MONDAY NOV. 11
Lauren Talley is one of Christian music's dynamic talents will be singing the national anthem at the Mercer men's basketball game on Monday, Nov. 11. Born into a rich musical heritage, Lauren sang her first solo at age 2 when she toddled onto the stage, interrupted her family's concert and announced she wanted to "thing." Lauren went on to make her own mark on the gospel music world as a member of her family group, The Talleys, with whom she received numerous awards, including a 2015 Dove Award for their song, "Hidden Heroes." Lauren's lead vocals shine on eleven number one hits for the group. She has recorded seven solo albums, including 2019's unprecedented release of two albums simultaneously, "Glorious God: Songs of Worship and Wonder," and "Loudest Praise: Hymns Of Mercy, Love and Grace." She is frequently recognized for her appearances on numerous Gaither Homecoming videos and concerts, RFD-TV's "The Music City Show" and "In Touch" with Dr. Charles Stanley. In 2014 she was awarded an honorary doctorate degree in Worship Arts from John Wesley University.

LAST TIME OUT
The Bears opened the season on Wednesday, Nov. 6 at St. John's. In the contest, Ethan Stair scored 23 points, a career-high and collected 10 rebounds for a double-double in the Bears, 109-79, loss to St. John's. As a team, Mercer hit 12 three-pointers and had six different players hit a three-pointer. The Bears were outrebounded by St. John's 42-41. Mercer committed 24 turnovers in the game and the Red Storm scored 30 points off those turnovers. The Bears recorded 16 assists in the contest on 26 made field goals against the Red Storm.

STAIR SETS CAREER-HIGH
Against St. John's, senior Ethan Stair set a career-high for points. In 28 minutes of action, Stair scored 23 points on 8-for-16 shooting. He was also 3-for-8 on three-pointers for the contest. His previous career-high was 22 points, which was set at VMI on Feb. 28, 2019. This was only the second time in his career that he scored 20 or more points. In his 22 point effort at VMI on Feb. 28, 2019, Stair was 8-for-12 shooting including going 5-for-7 on three-pointers.

3-POINT FIELD GOALS
Not only is Ross Cummings closing in at 1,000 points but also he is closing in on becoming the all-time leading three-point field goals leader. In his three years at Mercer, Cummings has hit 162 three-pointers, which ranks fourth all-time. He is 94 threes away from tying the career record holder of Langston Hall, who hit 256 threes. Below are the top five career three-point shooters to wear a Mercer uniform. With his 162 made three-pointers in his career, Cummings is the third active leader in the SoCon.

3-Point Field Goals Made (Career)
                Name                   3-FGM Years
1.            Langston Hall      256         2010-14
2.            James Florence 242         2006-10
3.            E.J. Kusnyer        190         2008-10
4.            Ross Cummings 162         2016-Present
5.            Bud Thomas       161         2010-14

THREE IN A ROW
The Bears open up a three-game homestand on Friday starting with Columbia International. The following week, the Bears take on former ASUN rivals Kennesaw State (Monday, Nov. 11) and Florida Gulf Coast (Friday, Nov. 15) at Hawkins Arena. This longest the Bears will be home during a stretch this season is Nov. 8-15 and Dec. 20-28. The homestand in Dec. figures Furman (Dec. 20), Florida Atlantic (Dec. 22) and Milligan (Dec. 28).

HOME OPENERS
Friday's matchup against Columbia International will be the first home game of the season for the Bears. Since the 2008-09 season, the Bears are 11-0 in home openers. The last loss in a home opener was 90-83 loss to Alabama on Nov. 12, 2007.

MAKING THE FIRST APPEARANCE
In the Bears first game of the season, six new faces saw action for Mercer. After sitting out last year because of the NCAA Transfer protocol, Maciej Bender played 13 minutes and collected five rebounds. Mitch Prendergast earned a start and played 22 minutes while scoring six points in his first outing as a Bear. James Glisson III played 22 minutes and scored five points and collected five rebounds. Coming off the bench for more first time Bear players were Patrick Urey and Diego Rivera. Urey played eight minutes, while Rivera scored nine points on 3-of-3 shooting from behind the arc in 16 minutes.

TRAVELING BEARS
Following the three-game homestand, the Bears will be traveling for the next five games. Starting on Tuesday, Nov. 19, the Bears travel to Georgia Southern, which starts the five games away from Hawkins Arena. During the stretch, the Bears travel to Chicago for a contest against Illinois-Chicago (Nov. 23), Olean, N.Y. to face St. Bonaventure (Nov. 26). The trip concludes with the final two games being played in Boca Raton, Fla. as part of the Boca Raton Beach Classic.

BOCA RATON BEACH CLASSIC
The Mercer men's basketball team will be playing in the inaugural Boca Raton Beach Classic presented by Sport Changes Life. The event will be held in conjunction with the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. Games will be played on Sunday, Dec. 1 and Monday, Dec. 2 at Abessinio Court at FAU Arena, on the campus of FAU. The eight-team classic will be split into two separate four-team brackets. In addition to the contest on Dec. 1 and 2, the Bears will travel to Illinois-Chicago (Nov. 23) and St. Bonaventure (Nov. 26), respectfully, as part of the tournament.

SENIOR DUO LOOKING TO JOIN 1,000-POINT CLUB
Both Ross Cummings and Ethan Stair are closing into on becoming the Bears 41st and 42nd 1,000-career scores in Mercer History. Entering the season, Ross Cummings has scored 803 career points, while Ethan Stair has scored 727 points. Sitting in 40th on the 1,000 point club for Mercer is Dartez Talbott who scored 1,014 points in his career at Mercer, which stretched from the 1979-81 seasons. James Florence, who played for the Bears from 2006-10, is the all-time leading scorer as he scored 2,286 points. Florence is the only 2,000 point scorers in Mercer history. The list of players that Cummings and Stair are looking to catch is below.

1,000 Point Scorers (No. 36-40)
                Rk.         Name                    Pts
                36           Will Emerson     1,050
                T37         Jim Hearn            1,034
                T37         Reggie Elliott      1,034
                38           Rodney Kirtz       1,025
                39           Donnie Veal        1,023
                40           Dartez Talbott   1,014

MAKING 12 THREES A GAME
After averaging 7.4 made three-pointers a game last season, this season the Bears are averaging 12.0 three-pointers per contest. Although the stats for the exhibition contest do not count, the Bears have hit 12 three-pointers in each contest they have played this season. Ethan Stair and Diego Rivera lead the team with three, three-pointers each on the season. The 12 made three-pointers a game rank 21^st in the nation. The Bears of Baylor University leads the NCAA with 18 made three-pointers per game this season.

GREG GARY COACH'S SHOW
With the 2019-20 season underway, so is the Greg Gary Coach's Show. The 11 edition show will be streamed on Sportsmic Radio and the Mercer Men's Basketball Facebook page. The show is aired from Margaritas in Mercer Village from 6 to 7 p.m. The first show can be restreamed on the Mercer Men's Basketball Facebook page. The next Coach's Show will take part on Monday, Dec. 9.

PRESEASON All-SoCON TEAM
Mercer guard Ross Cummings, a 6-3 senior from Dickson, Tenn., has been selected to the preseason All-SoCon Team. Cummings started all 31 games a year ago and averaged 17.4 points per game. He hit 101 three-pointers last year, which was the second-most made in a single season in school history. Over his first three years of his career, Cummings has made 162 three-pointers, ranking him fourth all-time at Mercer. On three different occasions, Cummings set new career-highs for scoring. On Nov. 27, 2018, against Brewton-Parker, he scored 31 points. The career-high points changed 36 on Jan. 10 against Western Carolina. A month and a half later, he scored 37 points, setting another career-high against Chattanooga. His 37-point contest came at Hawkins Arena. This second-highest total scored by a Mercer player at Hawkins Arena. James Florence scored 39 points, a Mercer single-game high, on Feb. 16, 2007.

SoCON CHAMPIONSHIP
The 2020 Ingles SoCon Men's Basketball Championship presented by General Shale will be held March 6-9 at Harrah's Cherokee Center Asheville in Asheville, North Carolina. The 2020 edition of the tournament is the 100th for the nation's oldest collegiate conference basketball tournament.

UP NEXT
Following the contest with Columbia International, the Bears remain at Hawkins Arena when they host Kennesaw State on Monday, Nov. 11. The Bears and Owls will resume its rivalry from the days the Bears were in the ASUN. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m.

at St. John's, the Bears have a quick turnaround as they return to action on Friday, Nov. 8 at 1 p.m. at Hawkins Arena. The Bears season opener will be against Columbia International. The matchup between the Bears and Rams will be the first matchup in program history.

How to Follow the Bears:
For complete coverage of Mercer 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.

Bears Host Columbia International Friday Afternoon

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Players Mentioned

Maciej Bender

Ross Cummings

James Glisson III

Mitch Prendergast

Diego Rivera

Ethan Stair

Patrick Urey

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