Mercer Holds Off Chattanooga

Thursday, February 3

Chattanooga, TN

7:00 PM

Mercer University

14-6,7-1SoCon

Chattanooga

6-17,4-4SoCon

Mercer

Chattanooga

Photo by: Mitch Robinson

2/3/2022 10:04:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

Neal-Tysor nets 25 in road win

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. – Kicking off the month of February and the second half of the SoCon slate, Mercer held off Chattanooga in a road contest, 59-53, in McKenzie Arena. Amoria Neal-Tysor paced the Bears (14-6, 7-1 SoCon) with 25 points and eight rebounds as they put away the Mocs (6-17, 4-4 SoCon) on Thursday night. Standout freshman, Erin Houpt, added 12 of her own (including 2-of-2 from outside the three-point line), including two free throws in the waning part of the game to put the result out of Chattanooga's reach.

Shannon Titus, a super senior from Johns Creek, Ga., corralled 12 defensive boards in addition to her nine points.

Q4 1:40 » Amoria ties her season-high with 25 points tonight. MER 56, UTC 51#WhateverItTakes | #RoarTogether pic.twitter.com/YBSU5Hin0z
— Mercer Women's Basketball (@Mercer_WBB) February 4, 2022

The Bears shot 62.5% (5-for-8) from beyond the three-point line and scored 18 in the paint and 15 off Moc miscues.

How it Happened
Despite conceding the game's first points to the hosts, Mercer grabbed a seven-point lead before the Mocs trimmed it down to just two at the conclusion of the frame. Mercer dominated the second quarter with a 17-8 margin and led by as much as 32-19 before taking the 32-21 lead into the intermission. The Bears defense stifled the Mocs with a 10-0 run and forcing an offensive drought of 4:25. Chattanooga used a 4-0 run out of the locker room and forced Mercer to take an early timeout and ultimately put up 18 points in the frame to just Mercer's 12.

In the late stages of the contest, Mercer saw its lead shrink to just three before it found its way back up. The Bears secured their sixth road win in nine tries and seventh league win in eight attempts late in the fourth quarter when Neal-Tysor and Houpt combined for five points in 90 seconds to take it from a three-point to a seven-point affair.

Amoria answers UTC's 3 with one of her own. MER 8, UTC 6#WhateverItTakes | #RoarTogether pic.twitter.com/rvJ7sARqzz
— Mercer Women's Basketball (@Mercer_WBB) February 4, 2022

Quotables – Head Coach Susie Gardner
On the game
"We played a great first half and held them to just 21 points, then gave up 18 in the third quarter. We need to become more consistent as a team. We're fouling too much and gave up nine from the free-throw line in the third quarter. It's a win, but we need to have more consistency."

Notables
• Amoria Neal-Tysor matched her season-best of 25 points, last achieved on the road at Western Carolina
• Erin Houpt has now made two or more 3s in all SoCon games but one
• The 7-1 league start is the best for the Bears since the 2018-19 squad, which finished 14-0 in SoCon play
• Mercer has swept the regular season series versus the Mocs for the first time since the 2018-19 campaign
• The Bears have now won three of the last four versus Chattanooga in McKenzie Arena

Up Next
The ETSU Bucs will be next on the docket for Mercer, as the Bears will venture to Johnson City for a Noon tip on Saturday, February 5.

Follow the Bears:
For complete coverage of Mercer 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.