Charity Stripe Success Moves Jacksonville Past Visiting Mercer

Wednesday, November 27

Jacksonville, Fla.

6:30 p.m.

Mercer University

3-5,0-0SoCon

Jacksonville

4-3,0-0ASUN

Mercer

Jacksonville

Charity Stripe Success Moves Jacksonville Past Visiting Mercer

11/27/2024 7:30:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

By: Todd Anderson, anderson_t02@mercer.edu

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Home-standing Jacksonville sank 26 of its 35 free throw attempts and used big runs in the second and third quarters to fuel a 74-49 win over visiting Mercer on Wednesday evening in Swisher Gymnasium.

It was the second leg of a three-game road trip for the Bears (3-5) who fell to 0-4 away from Macon this season. The Dolphins (4-2) snapped a two-game losing streak with the result, while also moving to 3-0 at home this season as well.

THE BASICS

SCORE: Jacksonville 74, Mercer 49
RECORDS: Mercer 3-5 (0-0 SoCon); Jacksonville 4-2 (0-0 ASUN)
LOCATION: Jacksonville, Fla. (Swisher Gymnasium)

HOW IT HAPPENED

1ST QUARTER

Mercer limited Jacksonville to just 17.6 percent shooting in the first quarter, including a 0-for-8 clip from the perimeter, but the Dolphins used rebounding and turnovers to hang around. The hosts scored seven-straight points to forge a 7-2 advantage just three minutes in, but the Bears tacked up six of the period's final eight points to pull even, 12-12.

2ND QUARTER

The Dolphins turned the table on their shooting woes in the second stanza, connecting on better than 58 percent of their shots, including a 4-for-5 clip from downtown. A 3-pointer from Makayla Edwards at the 7:56 mark sparked the hosts on an 8-0 run over the next two minutes, and JU then closed out the second quarter with nine of the final 13 points to take a 33-24 advantage into the halftime break.

3RD QUARTER

Jacksonville canned 11 of their 13 attempts from the free throw line on the way to fueling a 21-10 scoring advantage in the third quarter. The Dolphins put together a 14-4 fun midway through the period to eventually stretch their lead out to 21 points, 50-29, following a pair of free throws from Priscilla Williams at the 4:06 mark.

4TH QUARTER

The Bears found their shooting touch in the fourth quarter, but the Dolphins closed out the game by shooting 50 percent from the field, while also adding a sextet of free throws. Stephanie Utomi and Chelsy Bautista combined for four-straight points midway through the stanza to make a dent in MU's deficit, but JU pushed its lead back out to a game-best 28 points a minute later.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

+ Freshman Stephanie Utomi paced the Bears with a season-best 13 points on 4-for-4 field goal shooting, as well as a 5-10 clip from the free throw line. She also added six rebounds, two steals and a pair of blocks.
+ Junior Chelsy Bautista chipped in nine points on a 4-for-5 clip from the field, while also posting four rebounds.
+ Senior Nahawa Diarra returned from injury to register eight points and a team-best nine rebounds in 30 minutes of action.

NOTABLES

+ Mercer scored nearly half (24) of its points in the paint on Wednesday evening, and matched the Dolphins with 25 defensive rebounds.
+ The Bears matched their second-lowest turnover output of the season against Jacksonville, registering just 14 in the setback.

UP NEXT

The Bears will close out their 3-game road trip on Saturday when they trek to nearby Daytona Beach, Fla., to take on Bethune-Cookman (2-4) in Moore Gymnasium. Tipoff is scheduled for 2 p.m.

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, email maf@mercer.edu.