Saturday, February 5
Chattanooga, Tenn.
NOON
Mercer University
at
Chattanooga
Photo by: Mitch Robinson
Bears to Host Game Two of a Back-To-Back Series
2/3/2022 2:38:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Bears' tip-off is slated for 7 P.M. in Hawkins on ESPN+
MACON, Ga. – The Mercer Bears host the Chattanooga Mocs in Hawkins Arena on Monday, Feb. 7 with tip-off slated for 7 P.M. on ESPN+. This will be game two of a back-to-back series with the Mocs.
BEAR NECESSITIES Date: Monday, Feb. 7, 2022 | 7 p.m. Matchup: Mercer (13-11, 6-5 SoCon ) vs. Chattanooga (19-5, 9-2 SoCon) Location: Macon, Ga. | Hawkins Arena Live Stats: StatBroadcast Radio: Listen Here TV: Watch on ESPN+ / Watch Here Twitter Updates: @MercerMBB Tickets: Buy Here LAST TIME OUT: Mercer fell short to Chattanooga, 77-68 on Saturday, February 5, in McKenzie Arena. Jalen Johnson led all Bears with 21 points in the contest on 7-of-14 shooting from the field and going 4-of-11 from behind the arc. Senior forward Felipe Haase chipped in with 17 points and four rebounds. Kamar Robertson notched 10 points as well as they were the three Bears to finish in double digit scoring. Point guard Neftali Alvarez returned to the court for Mercer after nearly missing two months on the day away the team.
Having the lead at halftime at halftime, Mercer wouldn't be able to hold the lead in second half in Chattanooga. After a made layup from Shawn Walker Jr. the Bears cut the deficit to one, Chattanooga used back-to-back three-pointers to stretch the lead to 67-62 with 4:05 remaining. Coming off a Mercer timeout, the Mocs continued their run with a layup to extend the lead to seven. In his first game back in over two months, guard Neftali Alvarez used an acrobatic move to get to the basket, cutting the deficit back down to five.
With little time remaining and with a seven-point deficit, forward Jalen Johnson converted both opportunities at the free throw line. However, the Mocs answered right back with a tough lay in. Chattanooga would then force a turnover and covert on the other end, stretching their lead to 77-66. The Bears answered with a quick basket but would ultimately fall short down the stretch.
SERIES HISTORY: Mercer leads the recent series 11-10 dating back to Dec. 30, 1980, but the Mocs have the overall series at 42-41. Saturday's game will be first time Mercer plays Chattanooga this season. The last time these two teams met was in Chattanooga, Tenn.. on February 5, 2022, and the Bears fell short to the Mocs 77-68, in McKenzie Arena. The last win at Hawkins Arena for the Bears against the Mocs came on February 24, 2021, with a final score of 81-77. In that game, there were 11 lead changes and 12 ties. Those lead changes tied the season high for the Mocs at the time. SCOUTING THE MOCS: Chattanooga Mocs (19-5, 9-2 SoCon) hosted the Bears (13-11, 6-4) in McKenzie Arena earning a 77-68 victory. Malachi Smith had 22 points as Chattanooga stretched its home winning streak to seven games, defeating Mercer 77-68 on Saturday. Josh Ayeni had 18 points for Chattanooga.
Mercer held the lead for the majority of the first half, however Chattanooga regained the lead, 31-30 (3:24), on a strong finish at the rim from David jean-Baptiste before the Balck & Orange ended the first half on a 6-1 run to retake the lead and end at 36-32. UTC shot just 37.0% (10-of-27) from the floor in the half.
The Mocs quickly erased the halftime deficit with a burst of offense that saw five of the team's first six attempts from the floor go down. KC Hankton gave the hosts a one-point lead, 42-41, at the first media timeout (15:51). Hankton once again separated the team's in favor of UTC, connecting on a hook shot in the paint to make it 48-46 (12:33). Ledford sparked the team in the coming minutes, scoring five-straight points including a three to put the Mocs ahead 58-53 with 8:56 remaining in the contest. It was Ledford again down the line with an essential offensive rebound that directly led to a Caldwell three to push the lead to 67-62 with 3:55. Mercer could never cut it to less than five down the stretch as UTC closed it out, going by as much as 11 before finalizing a 77-68 victory.
UP NEXT GRAPHIC:
THE SOCON RACE:
The Bears are currently ranked fourth in the conference with a 6-5 record in conference play.
SHARING IS CARING: The Bears are fourth as a team in the Southern Conference in assists. Mercer is averaging 15 assists per game this season. Felipe Haase leads Mercer with a 1.8 assist to turnover ratio.
Rk. Name (School) AST TO Avg
FREEBIES AT THE CHARITY STRIPE: Haase is ranked third in the Southern Conference making 85.5% percent of his free throws attempted. Haase has attempted 76 FTs so far on the season.
Rk. Name (School). FTM FTA Avg.
BLOCK PARTY:
The Durham, N.C. native and Tennessee/Wake Forest transfer is ranked fifth within the Southern Conference for blocked shots per game. He is the only guard within the top 5.
Rk. Name (School). GP. No. Avg.
HOME SWEET HOME:
Hawkins Arena has been kind to the Bears in recent years. Each of the past two seasons, Mercer has earned nine wins on their home floor. Below is Mercer's record at home since the 2019-20 campaign. Since the beginning of the Greg Gary era, Mercer is 27-12 at home during his current campaign.
Season Record
2019-20 9-6
2020-21 9-4
2021-22 9-2
Total 27-12
UP NEXT:
Mercer will host Chattanooga on Feb. 7 in Hawkins Arena. Tip-off is slated for 7 P.M.. The matchup on Monday can be viewed on ESPN+ and can be heard on the Mercer Sports Network (100.9 The Creek, SportsMic) with Rick Cameron on the call.
GET YOUR TICKETS NOW:
Purchase your 2021-22 season tickets here to watch the Bears in action at Hawkins Arena. The Bears' next home game is on Wednesday, Feb. 16 against ETSU at 7 p.m.
Tickets for this game can be purchased Tickets
BEAR NECESSITIES Date: Monday, Feb. 7, 2022 | 7 p.m. Matchup: Mercer (13-11, 6-5 SoCon ) vs. Chattanooga (19-5, 9-2 SoCon) Location: Macon, Ga. | Hawkins Arena Live Stats: StatBroadcast Radio: Listen Here TV: Watch on ESPN+ / Watch Here Twitter Updates: @MercerMBB Tickets: Buy Here LAST TIME OUT: Mercer fell short to Chattanooga, 77-68 on Saturday, February 5, in McKenzie Arena. Jalen Johnson led all Bears with 21 points in the contest on 7-of-14 shooting from the field and going 4-of-11 from behind the arc. Senior forward Felipe Haase chipped in with 17 points and four rebounds. Kamar Robertson notched 10 points as well as they were the three Bears to finish in double digit scoring. Point guard Neftali Alvarez returned to the court for Mercer after nearly missing two months on the day away the team.
Having the lead at halftime at halftime, Mercer wouldn't be able to hold the lead in second half in Chattanooga. After a made layup from Shawn Walker Jr. the Bears cut the deficit to one, Chattanooga used back-to-back three-pointers to stretch the lead to 67-62 with 4:05 remaining. Coming off a Mercer timeout, the Mocs continued their run with a layup to extend the lead to seven. In his first game back in over two months, guard Neftali Alvarez used an acrobatic move to get to the basket, cutting the deficit back down to five.
With little time remaining and with a seven-point deficit, forward Jalen Johnson converted both opportunities at the free throw line. However, the Mocs answered right back with a tough lay in. Chattanooga would then force a turnover and covert on the other end, stretching their lead to 77-66. The Bears answered with a quick basket but would ultimately fall short down the stretch.
SERIES HISTORY: Mercer leads the recent series 11-10 dating back to Dec. 30, 1980, but the Mocs have the overall series at 42-41. Saturday's game will be first time Mercer plays Chattanooga this season. The last time these two teams met was in Chattanooga, Tenn.. on February 5, 2022, and the Bears fell short to the Mocs 77-68, in McKenzie Arena. The last win at Hawkins Arena for the Bears against the Mocs came on February 24, 2021, with a final score of 81-77. In that game, there were 11 lead changes and 12 ties. Those lead changes tied the season high for the Mocs at the time. SCOUTING THE MOCS: Chattanooga Mocs (19-5, 9-2 SoCon) hosted the Bears (13-11, 6-4) in McKenzie Arena earning a 77-68 victory. Malachi Smith had 22 points as Chattanooga stretched its home winning streak to seven games, defeating Mercer 77-68 on Saturday. Josh Ayeni had 18 points for Chattanooga.
Mercer held the lead for the majority of the first half, however Chattanooga regained the lead, 31-30 (3:24), on a strong finish at the rim from David jean-Baptiste before the Balck & Orange ended the first half on a 6-1 run to retake the lead and end at 36-32. UTC shot just 37.0% (10-of-27) from the floor in the half.
The Mocs quickly erased the halftime deficit with a burst of offense that saw five of the team's first six attempts from the floor go down. KC Hankton gave the hosts a one-point lead, 42-41, at the first media timeout (15:51). Hankton once again separated the team's in favor of UTC, connecting on a hook shot in the paint to make it 48-46 (12:33). Ledford sparked the team in the coming minutes, scoring five-straight points including a three to put the Mocs ahead 58-53 with 8:56 remaining in the contest. It was Ledford again down the line with an essential offensive rebound that directly led to a Caldwell three to push the lead to 67-62 with 3:55. Mercer could never cut it to less than five down the stretch as UTC closed it out, going by as much as 11 before finalizing a 77-68 victory.
UP NEXT GRAPHIC:
𝐍𝐞𝐱𝐭 𝐔𝐩 👀 - 2/7/22 l 7 P.M.
— Mercer Men's Basketball (@MercerMBB) February 5, 2022
🏀: Hawkins Arena | Chattanooga
🖥: Watch on @ESPNPlus
📊: StatBroadcast
📻: Mercer Sports Radio / https://t.co/5CEtLcWVS7
🎟: https://t.co/xPIwhzooyQ#LetsRoar x #BearNation pic.twitter.com/AezMh1GNWk
THE SOCON RACE:
The Bears are currently ranked fourth in the conference with a 6-5 record in conference play.
|
SHARING IS CARING: The Bears are fourth as a team in the Southern Conference in assists. Mercer is averaging 15 assists per game this season. Felipe Haase leads Mercer with a 1.8 assist to turnover ratio.
Rk. Name (School) AST TO Avg
| 1. | Alex Hunter-FUR | SR | 25 | 79 | 3.2 | 27 | 1.1 | 2.9 |
| 2. | Ryan Larson-WOF | SR | 24 | 96 | 4.0 | 37 | 1.5 | 2.6 |
| 3. | David Sloan-ETSU | SR | 25 | 129 | 5.2 | 61 | 2.4 | 2.1 |
| 4. | Trey Bonham-VMI | SO | 21 | 83 | 4.0 | 42 | 2.0 | 2.0 |
| 5. | Felipe Haase-MER | SR | 24 | 78 | 3.3 | 43 | 1.8 | 1.8 |
FREEBIES AT THE CHARITY STRIPE: Haase is ranked third in the Southern Conference making 85.5% percent of his free throws attempted. Haase has attempted 76 FTs so far on the season.
Rk. Name (School). FTM FTA Avg.
| 1. | Max Klesmit-WOF | SO | 23 | 59 | 67 | .881 |
| 2. | Ques Glover-SAM | SO | 20 | 86 | 99 | .869 |
| 3. | Felipe Haase-MER | SR | 24 | 68 | 79 | .861 |
Rk. Name (School). GP. No. Avg.
| 1. | Stephen Clark-CIT | JR | 22 | 55 | 2.5 |
| 2. | Jake Stephens-VMI | SR | 24 | 51 | 2.1 |
| 3. | Jalen Slawson-FUR | SR | 25 | 42 | 1.7 |
| 4. | Silvio DeSousa-UTC | SR | 22 | 26 | 1.2 |
| 5. | Jalen Johnson-MER | SR | 23 | 23 | 1.0 |
Tickets for this game can be purchased Tickets
Players Mentioned
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