Second Half Surge Falls Short Against ETSU

Thursday, January 23

Macon, Ga.

7 P.M.

Mercer University

3-16,0-4SoCon

ETSU

7-13,2-3SoCon

ETSU

Mercer

Photo by: Judy Stapleton

1/23/2020 10:39:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

Shannon Titus tied a Hawkins Arena record with seven steals against the Bucs.

By: Stephen Waldman

MACON, Ga. – The Mercer Women's Basketball team dug themselves into a hole in the second quarter that it was unable to dig itself out of, falling to ETSU, 72-66, on Thursday evening at Hawkins Arena.

The Bears faced a double-digit halftime deficit after ETSU scored 27 points in the second quarter on 10-of-13 shooting (76.9 percent) and was a perfect 5-of-5 from long range. Mercer turned up the pressure in the second half, forcing the Bucs into 10 turnovers which resulted in 13 points. Junior Shannon Titus led that effort with five steals in the final 20 minutes of the game.

Jaron Dougherty (23 points), Titus (20 points) and Amoria Neal-Tysor (19 points) led the Bears' attack, while Neal-Tysor collected a team-high eight rebounds. Jill Harris dished out five assists to lead the squad, while Titus' seven steals was a game high. Dougherty added three blocks in the contest, while Sierra Votaw had two denials on the night.

How It Happened
The two sides traded buckets early until a Dougherty jumper gave Mercer its first lead of the evening with three-and-a-half-minutes remaining in the first quarter, 10-9. The back-and-forth affair continued with neither team being able to gain any separation, and the Bears held a 16-14 advantage after the first quarter.

ETSU came out the gate quickly in the second quarter, jumping out to a 14-1 run through the first four minutes of the period to create a cushion for the visitors. Mercer's offense struggled to start the second, making only one of its first eight shots of the quarter. The Bucs extended their lead to 12 points by halftime by shooting 76.9 percent from the floor in the quarter and was a perfect 5-of-5 from 3-point range.

Following a timeout with 6:55 remaining in the third quarter, the Bears started to chip away at the ETSU lead. The 17-4 run started with a free throw from Neal-Tysor with 6:14 on the clock and carried into the fourth quarter and brought the Bears back within three points.

ETSU puffed its lead back up to nine points, but Mercer once again showed fight by bringing it back to a two-point game with under six minutes left. The Bears were unable to break through and regain the lead, however, as ETSU took care of business at the free throw line to secure the win.

Quotables – Head coach Susie Gardner
On generating turnovers/scoring in transition…
"We had an awful second quarter again (27-13), so at halftime we said we had to go all-out and run out half-court trap. We put Shannon at the top who is excellent at that defense. She is long and really excels at getting tips and steals for us which got us going. But we put ourselves in a hole again that put us in a position where we need to scramble."

On Shannon's performance…
"Shannon is someone who thrives on her defense. I think she is one of the best defenders in the conference. We have trouble scoring in the half court, so we try to generate points easily in transition. But we missed 10 layups and seven free throws tonight and lost by six points.
"I always tell the team we have control over our defense and rebounding. Our rebounding was not very good from the offensive end, and we have to do a better job there. We got outrebounded by 11 in the game, and it certainly hurt to have Summer Pahl out. She our toughest player and best rebounder."

Player of the Game
Titus sparked the Bears and helped turn defense into offense to help lead the team back into the game. The John's Creek, Ga., native matched a Hawkins Arena record with seven steals in the game while adding her second 20-point performance of the season. She finished 8-of-16 from the field and tallied five rebounds and three assists.

Notables
» Mercer lost its 10th straight game.
» The Bears have given up at least 60 points in all 16 losses this season.
» Titus recorded seven steals in the game, tying a Hawkins Arena record set by Sydni Means against Furman on Feb. 1, 2018.
» Titus also accomplished this feat on Nov. 24 against Eastern Kentucky this season.
» Titus collected her 15th double-digit scoring performance of the season.
» Neal-Tysor brought down a career-high eight rebounds.
» Dougherty tallied her team-leading seventh 20-point game.

Up Next
The Bears remain home for their next contest against Chattanooga on Saturday. Tipoff is slated for 2 p.m. on ESPN+.

Follow the Bears
For complete coverage of Mercer Women's Basketball, please follow the Bears on social media at @Mercer_WBB (Twitter), /MercerWBB (Facebook) and @MercerWBB (Instagram) or visit the official home of Mercer Athletics at MercerBears.com.