Mercer's Rally Against UNCG Falls Short

Saturday, February 13

Macon, Ga.

2:00 PM

Mercer University

12-8,5-7SoCon

UNCG

15-6,10-3SoCon

UNC Greensboro

Mercer

Photo by: Alex Keller

2/13/2021 6:35:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

Leon Ayers III scored 17 points.

By: Kraig Doremus

MACON, Ga. – Mercer's shot at the buzzer bounced off the rim and out as the Bears' second half rally fell short with UNCG claiming a 77-74 win in Hawkins Arena.

The two teams traded the lead four times in the first 6:17 with the Mercer leading by no three, 9-6, when Ross Cummings knocked down one of his three three-pointers. UNCG took the lead at the 13:43 mark of the opening half off Khyre Thompson's triple, but only 74 seconds later Leon Ayers III knotted things at 14.

UNCG (15-6, 10-2 SoCon) pulled in front for good with 11:09 remaining in the first half as Keyshaun Langley made a layup. The Spartans led by 15, 32-17, with 7:45 until the intermission, but the Orange & Black battled, cutting the deficit to 10.

Mercer (12-8, 5-7 SoCon) had trimmed only a single point of the visitors' advantage with 4:38 to play, but a pair of jumpers from Cummings, which were sandwiched break an Isaiah Miller layup on a fast break, made it a 12-point game. Jeff Gary's free throws with 2:38 left in the half pulled Mercer within 10, but the Spartans extended their lead to 14, 45-31, by the end of the first 20 minutes.

UNCG's largest advantage of the game – 18 points – came at multiple points throughout the second half. The Spartans were hopeful of putting the game out of reach, but after a Miller layup with 7:29 to play, the Bears began a furious rally to bring the Mercer faithful to their feet in Hawkins Arena.

Gary responded to Miller's layup with a jumper, and two possessions later Kamar Robertson drilled a three-pointer. Robertson's three cut UNCG's advantage to 69-56 with 6:24 to good, but for the next 3:05 neither team managed a to hit a shot from the floor. A free throw by Mohammed Abdulsalem, followed by a Mercer turnover and Miller jumper, pushed UNCG's lead to 16, but Mercer quickly countered with an 8-0 run.

Mercer's run lasted 1:28 with Cummings starting it by cutting behind the UCNG defense for a wide-open layup from the right block. After Maciej Bender went 1-of-2 from the charity stripe, the Bears forced a stop on the defensive end, and Cummings was left alone in the corner where he caught a long pass from Felipe Haase, rose up and swished a three-pointer, his third of the afternoon. Neftali Alvarez's acrobatic layup made it 72-64, but after missing the free throw attempt for the old-fashioned three-point play, UNCG capitalized in transition with Miller hitting a layup.

Down 10 with a mere 84 seconds remaining, the Bears nearly completed an incredible comeback. Ayers III caught fire at the right time, knocking down three-pointers on three consecutive possessions. The second of his treys happened directly in front of the Mercer bench with 1:02 left and cut the home team's deficit to four, 74-70.
35 seconds later, UNCG's Kaleb Hunter turned the ball over near midcourt, and Ayers III had another three-pointer left in the tank. He curled off a screen from Hasse and took a pass from Gary at the top of the key, shooting with pinpoint accuracy to make it a one-point game, 74-73, with only 27 seconds remaining.

A foul on Alvarez allowed UNCG's Miller to head to the charity stripe with less than 20 seconds to go. Miller made both, and the Bears quickly advanced down the floor, finding the hot hand in Ayers III. The junior guard rose up from beyond the arc as he was fouled by Langley, earning three crucial free throws. After missing the first free throw he connected on the second attempt. His last try at the charity stripe bounced out, and a defensive board by UNCG followed by a Mercer foul sent Angelo Alllegri to the line for two tries. Allegri went 1-of-2, giving Mercer the ball down three, 77-74, with 14 seconds to play.

The Bears had the ball deflected out of bounds with 4.2 seconds left, setting up a final shot with the ball set to be inbounded in front of the Mercer bench. The inbounds pass was lobbed over the top of the Spartans' defense to Cummings on the right wing. After a pump fake, Cummings rose up and nearly knocked down his fourth three of the game, but it bounced off the rim and out as the Spartans from Greensboro escaped with a 77-74 win.

Mercer connected on 26-of-56 (46.4 percent) of its shots in the contest and 10-of-24 (41.7 percent) of its tries from beyond the arc. Ayers III shot 50 percent from the floor and caught fire from three-point range, hitting four of his six tries. He paced the Orange & Black with a game-high 17 points while Cummings added 15 on 6-of-14 shooting. Gary led all Mercer reserves with 14 points, going 3-of-5 from the floor and a perfect 6-of-6 at the charity stripe.

UNCG's Allegri led his team with 16 points along with seven. Isiah Miller struggled from the floor making only six of his 16 tries, but he ended the afternoon with 15 points. Miller also pulled down seven boards while dishing out four dimes. Hunter was the final Spartan to eclipse the 10-point mark with 11 points. UNCG shot 45.5 percent (30-of-66) for the afternoon.

Coach Greg Gary Quotables

ON THE GAME
"We came up just short. I commend our guys for fighting back and making shots, clawing back into it. It is hard to put yourself in a hole so early in the game. UNCG averages seven three-pointers a game and hit eight in the first half. Some of it was us not being engaged like we needed to as we allowed UNCG to get comfortable. In the second half, we picked up the intensity. We had more urgency. When you are down 18 and getting your butt kicked, you have to have some pride, and our guys do. We made shots and were better on the defensive end as far as getting stops and rebounding. UNCG had no second chance points in the second half. Leon [Ayers III] was in rhythm for us late, and we did a good job finding him. For us to come back like we did shows that we have some heart and toughness. We just need more of it."

ON JEFF GARY
"He has been consistent for us the past four games. I am glad to see him looking for his shot more, and he is moving really well. He is taking care of the ball and making good decisions. I am happy to see him playing well."

ON LEON AYERS III GIVING THE TEAM A BOOST
"We have balanced scoring, so there have been times when he has hasn't scored but others have; although today he did, and it gives us a boost when he is scoring."

NOTABLES

With his 15 points, Cummings passed former teammate Ethan Stair, reaching the top-20 in Mercer scoring history. He now has 1,172 career points.
Cummings surpassed 230 career made three-pointers. He has hit 232 triples during his time in with the Orange & Black.
Alvarez, Cummings and Gary have all been in double figures for the past three games.
Gary tied his season-high of 14 points.
Gary has come off the bench in each of Mercer's last four games and has led Mercer reserves in scoring in each contest.
Robertson tied his season-best of six points.
Bender pulled down seven rebounds in the loss. He has collected 13 boards over the past two contests, doing so for the first time since Jan. 16 and 20.
Alvarez dished out a team-best five assists.
Four players – Alvarez (5), Gary (4), Cummings (3) and Haase (3) had at least three helpers.
The Bears' 19 assists were their fourth highest total this season. Mercer has recorded at least 19 dimes in seven games.
Each team had 23 points from its bench which marked the first occasion all season Mercer and its opponents had a tie in scoring from its reserves.

UP NEXT
The Bears will travel to Johnson City, Tenn. on Wednesday to battle ETSU. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. Rick Cameron will have the radio call on the Mercer Sports Network – 100.9 The Creek and SportsMic – with fans also able to watch live on ESPN+.

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