Wednesday, January 25
Macon, Ga.
7 PM
Mercer University
10-12,3-6SoCon
71
vs
67
East Tennessee State University
8-14,4-5SoCon
1
2
OT 1
F
ETSU
32
27
8
67
Mercer
27
32
12
71
Team Stats
ETSU
Mercer
FG%
.375
.397
3FG%
.333
.267
FT%
.606
.650
RB
40
41
TO
16
11
STL
7
5
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
26
FGM
12
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Pts
13
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
6
Pts
13
FGM
4
3FGM
3
FTM
2
Pts
6
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
F
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
McCreary Leads Bears to OT Victory Over ETSU
1/25/2023 11:38:00 PM | Men's Basketball
26 points for the redshirt junior
MACON, Ga. – In thrilling fashion, the Mercer men's basketball program earned its second win over ETSU this season, 71-67, after the Buccaneers forced overtime on Wednesday in Hawkins Arena. Jalyn McCreary finished with a career-high 26 points along with seven rebounds in the contest.
The Bears improve to 10-12 overall and 3-6 in the conference while the Bucs drop to 8-14 and 4-5 in the SoCon. Mercer handed ETSU its first road loss in the Southern Conference this season to sweep the year's series.
"I'm very proud of the way our guys fought," head coach Greg Gary said. "Sometimes the momentum is not your way when you go into overtime, it can go south a little bit, but our guys did a really good job."
HOW IT HAPPENED
Mercer started slower on offense, shooting 0-for-4 from the field at the first media timeout while the Bucs had already attempted 12 field goals in the same timeframe. Back-to-back three pointers by James Glisson III and Shawn Walker Jr. lifted the Bears to a one-point lead, 9-8.
ETSU then went on a 7-0 run, all scored by Braden Ilic, to tilt the score in favor of the Bucs. Mercer responded with a 7-0 run of its own. Five free throws propelled the Buccaneers on a 9-2 run. The Bears struggled to score in the final minutes of the first half, and ETSU took a 32-27 lead into halftime.
Each team turned the ball over three times in the first four minutes of the second half. The two sides traded points to open the half while the Bucs held a slim lead. Back-to-back shot clock violations by ETSU helped Mercer take its first lead of the second period.
The Bears held the lead by at least four points for over five minutes in which McCreary scored 10-straight points. Mercer failed to score after that however, going scoreless for the final 6:08 of the second half. A steal by ETSU at 1:40 cut the lead to two points. The Buccaneers scored six points in the final six minutes, including four free throws, to tie the score, 59-59.
Glisson III opened the scoring in overtime with four free throws. McCreary scored the next six points for the Bears, but ETSU responded with multiple three pointers to stay in the game. Walker Jr. secured the win with two free throws to extend the lead to four as Mercer won, 71-67.
"We scored right away, got up four, which gave them some confidence and that was great to see," Gary commented.
BY THE NUMBERS
Mercer held ETSU to only 38% from the field (21-of-56), but the Bears only shot 40% (27-of-68). Both teams struggled with consistency at the free throw line as ETSU finished 20-of-33 (61%) and Mercer went 13-of-20 (65%).
The Bears forced 16 turnovers from the Bucs and narrowly edged ETSU in rebounds, 41-40, after a stronger second half effort.
McCreary's career-high 26 points were a season best for the Bears this year. Glisson III and Walker Jr. both finished with 13 points. In his 100th career appearance, Glisson III finished 6-for-6 from the free throw line and also snagged four rebounds.
ETSU's leading scorer, Jordan King, was held to only seven points on the night with both of his field goals scored in the first three minutes of the game.
"I thought Shawn did an unbelievable job on both ends: defensively having to guard Jordan King, one of the better guards in our league, and also on the offensive end, he was the main ball handler that we had," Gary added.
UP NEXT: Mercer travels to face The Citadel on Saturday, January 28 before a three-game home stretch.
FOLLOW THE BEARS:
For complete coverage of Mercer Men's 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.Â
Â
The Bears improve to 10-12 overall and 3-6 in the conference while the Bucs drop to 8-14 and 4-5 in the SoCon. Mercer handed ETSU its first road loss in the Southern Conference this season to sweep the year's series.
"I'm very proud of the way our guys fought," head coach Greg Gary said. "Sometimes the momentum is not your way when you go into overtime, it can go south a little bit, but our guys did a really good job."
HOW IT HAPPENED
Mercer started slower on offense, shooting 0-for-4 from the field at the first media timeout while the Bucs had already attempted 12 field goals in the same timeframe. Back-to-back three pointers by James Glisson III and Shawn Walker Jr. lifted the Bears to a one-point lead, 9-8.
ETSU then went on a 7-0 run, all scored by Braden Ilic, to tilt the score in favor of the Bucs. Mercer responded with a 7-0 run of its own. Five free throws propelled the Buccaneers on a 9-2 run. The Bears struggled to score in the final minutes of the first half, and ETSU took a 32-27 lead into halftime.
Each team turned the ball over three times in the first four minutes of the second half. The two sides traded points to open the half while the Bucs held a slim lead. Back-to-back shot clock violations by ETSU helped Mercer take its first lead of the second period.
The Bears held the lead by at least four points for over five minutes in which McCreary scored 10-straight points. Mercer failed to score after that however, going scoreless for the final 6:08 of the second half. A steal by ETSU at 1:40 cut the lead to two points. The Buccaneers scored six points in the final six minutes, including four free throws, to tie the score, 59-59.
Glisson III opened the scoring in overtime with four free throws. McCreary scored the next six points for the Bears, but ETSU responded with multiple three pointers to stay in the game. Walker Jr. secured the win with two free throws to extend the lead to four as Mercer won, 71-67.
"We scored right away, got up four, which gave them some confidence and that was great to see," Gary commented.
BY THE NUMBERS
Mercer held ETSU to only 38% from the field (21-of-56), but the Bears only shot 40% (27-of-68). Both teams struggled with consistency at the free throw line as ETSU finished 20-of-33 (61%) and Mercer went 13-of-20 (65%).
The Bears forced 16 turnovers from the Bucs and narrowly edged ETSU in rebounds, 41-40, after a stronger second half effort.
McCreary's career-high 26 points were a season best for the Bears this year. Glisson III and Walker Jr. both finished with 13 points. In his 100th career appearance, Glisson III finished 6-for-6 from the free throw line and also snagged four rebounds.
ETSU's leading scorer, Jordan King, was held to only seven points on the night with both of his field goals scored in the first three minutes of the game.
"I thought Shawn did an unbelievable job on both ends: defensively having to guard Jordan King, one of the better guards in our league, and also on the offensive end, he was the main ball handler that we had," Gary added.
UP NEXT: Mercer travels to face The Citadel on Saturday, January 28 before a three-game home stretch.
FOLLOW THE BEARS:
For complete coverage of Mercer Men's 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.Â
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