Men’s Basketball Holds Off Georgia State In Home Thriller

Saturday, December 9

Macon, Ga.

2 p.m.

Mercer University

3-6,0-0SoCon

Georgia State

4-5,0-0Sun Belt

Georgia St.

Mercer

Men’s Basketball Holds Off Georgia State In Home Thriller

12/9/2023 4:49:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score Box Score

By: Makenzie Jones, jones_m@mercer.edu

MACON – Freshman Jake Davis scored 16 of his game-high 26 points in the opening half, and the Mercer men's basketball team held visiting Georgia State scoreless for the final 4-1/2 minutes of regulation, as the Bears tacked up their 200^th victory all-time in Hawkins Arena with a 64-60 win over the Panthers on Saturday in Macon.

The result snapped a three-game losing streak for the Bears (3-6), who also tacked up their first home win of the season in the process as well. It was the third loss in the last four outings for Georgia State (4-5) who has now come away empty-handed on three-straight trips to Macon.

THE BASICS

SCORE: Mercer 64, Georgia State 60
RECORDS: Mercer (3-6, 0-0 SoCon); Georgia State (4-5, 0-0 Sun Belt)
LOCATION: Macon, Ga. (Hawkins Arena)

HOW IT HAPPENED

1ST HALF

The Bears canned 15 of their 30 field goal attempts in the opening half, while also posting a sizeable advantage (20-13) in the rebounding column to key a 36-31 advantage at the break. The in-state rivals went jab-for-jab through the first seven minutes of action, but Mercer took the lead for good on a 3-pointer from Jake Davis at the 13:09 mark. A one-possession game with 7:43 left before the break, the hosts pushed their lead out to five points, 28-23, on consecutive baskets from Robby Carmody and Alex Holt to key the halftime lead.

2ND HALF

Amanze Ngumezi's hook shot two minutes into the second half signaled the start of five-straight points for the Bears that gave them a 51-40 lead with 14:10 to play, but the Panthers answered with a 17-7 run over the next eight minutes to pull to within one. Mercer took a five-point lead, 62-57, on Alex Holt's layup at the 5:21 mark, but Brenden Tucker's old-fashioned 3-point play on the other end of the court renewed the tension again. The Panthers, however, would miss their final six field goal attempts of the contest, and Amanze Ngumezi drained both ends of a 1-and-1 opportunity with 16 seconds left to ice it.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

+ Freshman Jake Davis scored 26 points on 10-for-13 field goal shooting in his first collegiate start, while also adding eight rebounds and one block in 37 minutes of action. It was the most points for a Mercer player since Jalyn McCreary tallied 26 against The Citadel on January 28 of last season.
+ Graduate transfer Amanze Ngumezi chipped in 13 points, three rebounds and a block in 19 minutes on the court.
+ Despite being held scoreless, sophomore Jah Quinones still contributed a career-high eight assists, as well as six rebounds and a pair of steals.
+ Junior Alex Holt came off of the bench to chip in 11 points and eight rebounds on 5-of-9 shooting, while senior Robby Carmody posted 10 points and a pair of boards.

NOTABLES

+ The home team has now captured the last five series matchups, and the last three meetings have been decided by six points or less. The last win for the road team came via Georgia State's 73-61 triumph in Macon on Dec. 7, 2019.
+ The Bears registered a 38-24 advantage on the boards, and have now out-rebounded two-straight opponents for the first time in 2023-24. The 14-rebound disparity was MU's largest rebounding win since out-doing The Citadel, 47-22, on the boards in the opening round of the 2023 SoCon Tournament.
+ The Mercer men's basketball program is now 200-96 (.676) all-time in Hawkins Arena. The Orange & Black has registered 16 winning home records in 20 full seasons inside its home arena.

UP NEXT

Mercer will continue a season-longest six-game home stand on December 16 when it battles Florida Gulf Coast (3-8) inside Hawkins Arena. Tipoff is scheduled for 2 p.m. Tickets can be purchased ahead of time by visiting MercerBears.com/Tickets.

STAY CONNECTED

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BACK THE BEARS

Fans can help support the Mercer athletics department by making a gift to the Mercer Athletic Foundation. To find out more information about the Mercer Athletic Foundation, visit S upportMAF.com or email maf@mercer.edu.