Mercer Falls Short in 64-57 Defeat at FGCU

Thursday, December 29

Fort Myers, Florida

7 PM

Mercer University

4-8,0-0SoCon

Florida Gulf Coast University

12-2,0-0ASUN

Mercer

FGCU

12/29/2022 10:39:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

Summah Evans had first career double-double in loss

FORT MYERS, Fla. – Mercer forward Summah Evans had a double-double, but the Bears couldn't find their offense in the fourth quarter as they fell 64-57 at Florida Gulf Coast on Thursday night.

In the second matchup between the two teams in just eight days, neither team found as much offensive success in the second game as they had in the first meeting.

Mercer shot 38 percent from the field on 25-of-66 shooting. Florida Gulf Coast shot 43 percent from the field on 21-49 shooting. Offensively, Mercer looked to go inside and use its size advantage as they held a 38-32 advantage in points in the paint.

FGCU entered the game leading the country in 3-pointers made per game at 11.2 per game. However, the Eagles made just five 3-pointers and instead got to the free-throw line quite a bit, where they were 17-for-25 (68 percent) compared to Mercer who was 6-for-10 from the free-throw line.

Summah Evans had her first career double-double with 13 points on 6-of-13 shooting to go with 12 rebounds. Coming off a career-high 32 points, Jaron Dougherty led all players with 16 points on 7-of-13 shooting and had four rebounds.

HOW IT HAPPENED
The Bears got out to a quick start and took an 8-2 lead in the opening minutes. The first four baskets came from four of Mercer's five starters. However, the Bears' offense hit a dry spell and didn't score for the remainder of the first quarter and found themselves down 16-8 after the first quarter.

Neither team could get on a run in the second quarter as the largest run in the second quarter by either team was a 4-0 run by Mercer in which Brittany Reeves scored both baskets for the Bears. A layup in the final minute by Dougherty made it 28-21 at halftime.

Evans and Dougherty combined to score the first 14 points of the third quarter for Mercer, including 10 straight points from Dougherty. She had 12 of her 16 points in the third quarter. With FGCU leading 39-31, the Bears would go on a 10-2 run to tie the game at 41 with under three minutes to play in the third quarter.

Down 47-44 entering the fourth quarter, Mercer couldn't knock down its shots in the final frame, scoring just four points in the first eight minutes of the fourth quarter. However, the Bears stuck to it defensively and after three made free throws they found themselves down just six at 57-51 with one minute to play. FGCU knocked down its free throws and held on to win 64-57.

COACH GARDNER ON THE TEAM'S DEFENSE AND ADJUSTMENTS MADE FROM THE PREVIOUS MEETING
"They scored 64 points instead of 91, so I was pleased with the adjustments we made defensively. They [FGCU] get a lot of credit for their offense but they are a great defensive team as well. We did some good things getting the ball in to Ashlee and Jaron, but for the most part I saw some positives, but disappointing because we did give ourselves a chance to win. We just did not make plays at the end."

COACH GARDNER ON ERIN HOUPT'S DEFENSE
"She took charges that were the hardest type to take which is on ball defensively. Houpt, that's just her will to compete. She's a great competitor and she's not the quickest and she's not the biggest, but she just decided 'Hey, you know what? I'm going to do what coach asks us to do and I'm going to step up and sacrifice my body,' and I'm really proud of her. She did a great job defensively for us."

NOTABLES

48 of Mercer's 57 points (84%) came from two-point field goals.
Mercer held FGCU to season lows in field goals made (21), 3-pointers made (5), and assists (8).
Jaron Dougherty's highest-scoring games this season, both came against FGCU (32 and 16 points).

UP NEXT:
Mercer will return home to welcome Anderson University on New Year's Day on Sunday. It is the last non conference game of the regular season for the Bears. Tip off is scheduled for 2 p.m. from Hawkins Arena.

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