Bears Drop Tough One To ETSU In Final Seconds

Saturday, February 15

Macon, Ga.

2 p.m.

Mercer University

7-18,2-8SoCon

East Tennessee State

15-11,6-5SoCon

ETSU

Mercer

Bears Drop Tough One To ETSU In Final Seconds

2/15/2025 7:25:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score Box Score

By: Todd Anderson, anderson_t02@mercer.edu

MACON – Home-standing Mercer battled all the way back from a 14-point deficit in the second quarter to knot the game up with 11 seconds left to play, but Courtney Moore's 3-pointer with seven seconds left in regulation pushed East Tennessee State by the Bears, 70-67, on Saturday afternoon in Hawkins Arena.

It was the second one-possession loss of the season for the Bears (7-18, 2-8 SoCon) who registered their best shooting percentage (.532) since the season-opening win over UNC Asheville back in early November. The result marked the second-straight series victory for the Buccaneers (15-11, 6-5) who have now captured three of their last four road outings.

THE BASICS

SCORE: East Tennessee State 70, Mercer 67
RECORDS: Mercer 7-18 (2-8 SoCon); East Tennessee State 15-11 (6-5 SoCon)
LOCATION: Macon, Ga. (Hawkins Arena)

HOW IT HAPPENED

1ST QUARTER

Mercer connected on half (6-for-12) of its field goal attempts in the opening period, but East Tennessee State used a big rebounding edge, as well as a 6-for-6 clip from the free throw line, to take a 19-12 lead after 10 minutes of play. Ashlee Locke made it a one-point game, 9-8, on a jumper midway through, but ETSU responded with five consecutive points to gain some separation.

2ND QUARTER

The story was much of the same in the second stanza but, this time around, the Bucs canned 67 percent of their field goal attempts, including a trio of 3-pointers, to tote a 38-31 lead into the locker rooms. East Tennessee State led by as many as 14 points, 36-22, after Courtney Moore's 3-pointer at the 5:22 mark, but Chelsy Bautista's running layup on the ensuing possession sparked a half-ending 9-2 run that trimmed the deficit down to single digits.

3RD QUARTER

Mercer came out of the halftime gates still showing the hot hand as the Bears connected on 54.5 percent of their field goal attempts, including a trio of 3-pointers, to outscore the Bucs, 20-16, in the stanza and get the fans back on the edge of their seats. The visitors got a layup from Meghan Downing with 1:49 left to play in the period to push their lead out to eight points, 54-46, but Mercer got a pair of free throws from Ariana Bennett, as well as a clutch 3-pointer from Kayla Smith 30 seconds later, to make it a one-possession game heading to the fourth.

4TH QUARTER

The Bears knotted the game up for just the second time on Ariana Bennett's layup just less than two minutes in and signal what would turn out to be a back-and-forth affair down the stretch. East Tennessee State forged a 67-61 lead with 2:46 to play, but the Orange & Black scored the next six points, including a pair of free throws from Nahawa Diarra with 11 ticks remaining, to even up the game once again.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

+ Senior Ashlee Locke scored 10 of her team-high 18 points in the first half and finished her afternoon with a 9-for-12 shooting tally. She also turned in four rebounds and two blocks as well.
+ Junior Ariana Bennett and Nahawa Diarra added 16 points apiece. Bennett was 6-for-8 from the field and recorded three assists and a pair of steals, while Diarra registered a team-best five assists and a trio of swipes.
+ Junior Kayla Smith went 3-for-6 from the perimeter on the way to a 10-point afternoon. She also grabbed three rebounds.

NOTABLES

+ Mercer's 53.2 percent success rate from the field marked its second-best shooting performance of the season. The Bears connected on 58.8 percent of their field goal attempts in the 75-52 win over visiting UNC Asheville in the season opener on November 4.
+ MU has now registered four or more blocks in five-straight games. The hosts posted five swats for the second consecutive game on Saturday.
+ The Bears finished Saturday's outing with a season-best six 3-pointers, and the 6-for-12 success rate from the perimeter marked their best shooting percentage from downtown since going 4-for-8 from beyond the arc on November 30 at Bethune-Cookman.

UP NEXT

The Bears will play their final two regular season road games next week when they travel to both Furman (13-13, 3-7 SoCon) on Thursday and Wofford (15-8, 7-3) on Saturday.

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BACK THE BEARS

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