Bears Welcome S.C. State to Hawkins on Tuesday

MACON, Ga. – The Mercer Women's Basketball team will be at Hawkins Arena for the final time in non-conference play as the Bears welcome South Carolina State to middle Georgia on Tuesday for a 7 p.m. tip-off.

BEAR NECESSITIES
Date: Tuesday, Dec. 15, 2020 | 7 p.m.
Teams: Mercer (3-3) vs. South Carolina State (1-4)
Location: Macon, Ga. | Hawkins Arena
Live Stats: mercerbears.com/livestats
TV: ESPN+
TV Talent: Bryce Koon and Sybil Blalock
Twitter Updates: @Mercer_WBB
Game Notes: Mercer | South Carolina State
Tickets: bit.ly/2KX6jpk
Hawkins Arena Protocols: Click Here
Promotion: The Merrie Christmas Project

50 Years of Mercer Basketball
The Mercer women's basketball team is celebrating 50 years of competition throughout the 2020-21 season as the team is going to highlight a different decade each month from October to February for their accomplishments and the impact they made on the program.

Mercer's inaugural season was in 1970-71 when the Bears won their first-ever game against Wesleyan, 45-23.

Throughout the last half century, the Bears have collected multiple championship banners, including nine regular season conference titles and seven tournament crowns. Mercer has also won two regional tournaments and has been to the postseason 14 times.

Titus Closing In on 1,000 Points
Senior Shannon Titus is closing in on becoming the 27th member of the 1,000-point club in program history. The Johns Creek, Ga., native has scored 925 points throughout her career in the Orange and Black, putting her 75 points shy of reaching the milestone.

The Season of Giving
The Bears' offense has been distributing the ball effectively throughout the early going in the 2020-21 slate, dishing out the 19th-most assists nationally with 94. Amoria Neal-Tysor (22), Jill Harris (20) and Shannon Titus (18) have been spreading the ball around at a high level for Mercer, combining for 60 of those 94 assists.

Nothing She C(ANT) Do
Junior Amoria Neal-Tysor has started this season playing some of her best basketball, leading the team in scoring (101 pts./16.8 ppg), 3-pointers made (16) and assists (22). She has scored the 35th-most points in Division I this season, while draining the 22nd-most 3-pointers in the country. Her 22 assists rank second in the SoCon and are 40th-best in the nation.

The Sanford, N.C., native has been on fire to start the year, reaching double figures four times, including three 20-point performances. In Mercer's 71-68 overtime win at UAB on Thursday, Neal-Tysor scored a career-high 33 points which was the most by a Mercer player since KeKe Calloway's 40-point effort at Furman on Jan. 6, 2018. She has connected on three or more shots from long range on four occasions and has recorded multiple assists in four games.

The MERRIE Christmas Project
The United Way of Central Georgia unveiled 'The MERRIE Christmas Project' in the fall of 2019 with the help of Mike and Nancy Kaplan, parents the late Merrie Kaplan. Merrie was born with a rare genetic condition called Williams Syndrome and was known throughout central Georgia as a friendly, outgoing woman who brought joy wherever she went. Now, thanks to the MERRIE Christmas Project, her memory will bring joy across United Way of Central Georgia's 14-county service area.

Merrie's love for Christmas sparked the idea for this project, whose fundraising effort is aimed at providing gifts, holiday decor and food to families in need during the Christmas season.

To donate to 'The MERRIE Christmas Project', click here.

Bears Against the MEAC
Mercer sports a perfect 8-0 record against current members of the MEAC. The Bears are 4-0 against South Carolina State, 3-0 versus Howard and were victorious in their only meeting with Coppin State.

Five of the eight games have come during the Susie Gardner era began in 2010. Mercer has played four of those games in the last three years, the most recent coming in a 66-55 victory at South Carolina State last season on Dec. 1.

Last Time Out
Mercer battled against Alabama in a 78-61 loss at Hawkins Arena on Saturday afternoon.

The Bears celebrated Alumni Day during the game, recognizing more than a dozen former players who returned to Middle Georgia for the matchup.

The difference in the game was the visitor's post play as Alabama outscored Mercer in the paint, 40-12. The Crimson Tide added 17 points off turnovers and shot 48.1 percent (26-of-54) from the floor and 22-of-32 (68.8 percent) from the free throw line. Mercer's defense forced Alabama to turn the ball over 10 times, generating seven steals, and blocking four shots.

Mercer finished the game 24-of-63 (38.1 percent) from the floor, 6-of-17 (35.3 percent) from 3-point range and 7-of-9 (77.8 percent) from the charity stripe. Shannon Titus (21 pts.) and Jaron Dougherty (20 pts./12 reb.) led the Bears offensive efforts, while Dougherty collected her third double-double of the year. Titus finished with a complete stat line after tallying six rebounds, four assists, three steals and two blocks. Amoria Neal-Tysor joined Titus and Dougherty in double figures with 10 points on 3-of-6 shooting from long range in addition to a game-high seven assists.

Series History
Mercer and Alabama are meeting for the sixth time on Sunday and first time in Macon since their first-ever meeting in 1993.

Alabama owns a 4-1 lead in the series after a 111-56 victory in Tuscaloosa, Ala., last season. Shannon Titus (15 pts.) and Amoria Neal-Tysor (10 pts.) were both in double figures in the game.

Scouting the Bulldogs
South Carolina State is coming off its first win of the season after starting 0-4. The Bulldogs defeated UNC Asheville, 69-60, on Saturday behind trio of Jayah Hicks (19 pts./6 reb.), Amiah Lindsay (18 pts./8 reb./3 blks.) and Trinity Klock (12 pts.). Hicks finished a perfect 5-of-5 on 3-point attempts in the game. Mercer will be the first opponent for SCSU who is not from either of the Carolinas as the Bulldogs have also played Coastal Carolina (L, 56-88), Winthrop (L, 47-65), North Carolina (L, 28-98) and UNC Wilmington (L, 56-69).

On the season, Heniaya Moton is the only SCSU player averaging double figures with 15.2, while Klock and Lindsay are both averaging a team-best 4.8 rebounds per game.

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.

Bears Welcome S.C. State to Hawkins on Tuesday

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Players Mentioned

Jaron Dougherty

Jill Harris

Amoria Neal-Tysor

Shannon Titus

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