Bears Test Furman in 3-Point Defeat

Wednesday, February 22

Greenville, SC

7 PM

Mercer University

12-18,5-12SoCon

Furman University

23-7,14-3SoCon

Mercer

Furman

Shawn Walker Jr. shooting a three-pointer

2/22/2023 11:27:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

Held two-possession game entire second half

By: Amanda Cover

GREENVILLE, S.C. – The Mercer men's basketball program forced Furman into its third-straight game decided by four points or less on Wednesday evening, falling 70-67. This is Mercer's eighth loss by three points or less this season.

"I thought our guys played well enough to win the game," head coach Greg Gary said. "We didn't get enough stops there at the end."

The Bears drop to 12-18 overall and 5-12 in the Southern Conference while Furman improves to 23-7 on the season and 14-3 in the conference.

HOW IT HAPPENED
The teams traded the lead for the first 7:31 until Furman posted a 13-0 run during a 5:40 scoring drought by the Bears. Once Mercer got on the board again, the sides alternated scoring possessions to flip the lead back and forth between eight and ten points.

Mercer finished the first half with two triples in the last 47 seconds to cut the deficit to four, 33-29.

The Bears scored the first four points of the second half to tie the game for the first time since 15:28 in the first half at 33-33. The score alternated between a tie game and a two-point Furman lead for over four minutes. The Paladins scored 17 of their next 19 points from the free throw line.

Furman's largest lead of the second half was six points, but two layups by Jah Quinones quickly cut that down to two with under a minute left. On Furman's next possession, the Bears fouled Mike Bothwell who drained both free throws. Mercer drove back down the floor, and Shawn Walker Jr. hit a jumper.

With 11 seconds left, Mercer fouled JP Pegues on the inbound, and the sophomore missed both shots from the charity stripe. The Bears snagged the rebound but lost the ball out of bounds.

After another personal foul to stop the clock, Jalen Slawson missed his first free throw but made the second. The clock showed four seconds remaining, and the score was 68-65 in favor of the Paladins. Mercer scored a layup with one second left to cut it to a one-point game.

Marcus Foster made both free throws from another foul to make it a three-point game again with less than a second left. The last-ditch effort from backcourt did not fall in, resulting in a 70-67 win for Furman.

BY THE NUMBERS
Mercer scored five more field goals than the Paladins, with the same number of three-pointers, but Furman significantly edged the Bears from the free throw line. Furman went 23-of-35 from the charity stripe while Mercer posted only 10-of-14.

The Bears also won the battle on the boards, outrebounding the Dins 36 to 31. Mercer recorded 15 turnovers to Furman's 14. Both teams notched six steals.

Walker Jr. led four players scoring in double figures with 15 points. Quinones finished with 12 points and grabbed a team-high six rebounds. Jalyn McCreary and Luis Hurtado Jr. each finished with 10 points.

Furman was paced by Jalen Slawson with 27 points, 10 of which came from the free throw line. The Bears held the Southern Conference's leading scorer, Mike Bothwell, to nine points total and zero from the field in the second half.

UP NEXT: Mercer will conclude the regular season against The Citadel on Saturday, February 25 at 2 p.m. in Hawkins Arena. Five seniors will be recognized before the game.

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.