Saturday, January 3
Johnson City, Tenn.
4 p.m.
Mercer University
at
East Tennessee State
Mercer Visits ETSU Saturday
1/2/2026 1:00:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Tip-Off is at 4 p.m. inside Freedom Hall Civic Center
MACON, Ga. - The Mercer men's basketball team prepares for its second consecutive road conference game to start conference play as the Bears travel to Johnson City, Tennessee to take on ETSU. Tip off is set for 4 p.m. inside Freedom Hall Civic Center.
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LAST TIME OUT
Baraka Okojie led all players with 22 points, but had a game-tying jump shot in the final seconds roll off the rim as Mercer fell to Furman, 74-72 in the SoCon opener for both teams, Wednesday from Timmons Arena in Greenville, South Carolina.
SERIES HISTORY
Saturday's game will be the 44th all-time meeting between Mercer and ETSU. ETSU leads the all-time series 30-13. The Bucs have won each of the last four meetings.
NEED TO KNOW
Mercer and ETSU are tied at the top of the SoCon in steals per game at 9.8 per game.
SCOUTING ETSU
ETSU enters Saturday's game with a 9-5 overall record and 1-0 record in conference play. The Bucs defeated The Citadel to open conference play 74-49. ETSU has been much better at home than on the road this season as the Bucs are 7-1 at home this year.
ETSU was picked to finish fourth in the Southern Conference Preseason Coaches Poll. Junior guard Jaylen Smith was named to the Preseason All-Conference Team.
ETSU has the best scoring defense in the SoCon by a fairly wide margin. The Bucs are allowing just 66.2 points per game which also ranks in the top 40 in the country. The Bucs are well balanced offensively with four players averaging double figures led by SIUE transfer guard Brian Taylor II who averages 14.1 points per game. ETSU doesn't have one dominant rebounder on the team as its leading rebounder is Taylor who averages just 4.6 rebounds per game.
STAY CONNECTED
Follow Mercer Men's Basketball on Twitter and Instagram and on Facebook.
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| ABOUT THE GAME | |
| Date: Saturday, Jan. 3 Time: 4 p.m. ET Location: Johnson City, Tenn. I Freedom Hall Civic Center TV: ESPN+ Live Statistics: MercerStats.com Twitter Updates: @MercerMBB |
LAST TIME OUT
Baraka Okojie led all players with 22 points, but had a game-tying jump shot in the final seconds roll off the rim as Mercer fell to Furman, 74-72 in the SoCon opener for both teams, Wednesday from Timmons Arena in Greenville, South Carolina.
SERIES HISTORY
Saturday's game will be the 44th all-time meeting between Mercer and ETSU. ETSU leads the all-time series 30-13. The Bucs have won each of the last four meetings.
NEED TO KNOW
Mercer and ETSU are tied at the top of the SoCon in steals per game at 9.8 per game.
SCOUTING ETSU
ETSU enters Saturday's game with a 9-5 overall record and 1-0 record in conference play. The Bucs defeated The Citadel to open conference play 74-49. ETSU has been much better at home than on the road this season as the Bucs are 7-1 at home this year.
ETSU was picked to finish fourth in the Southern Conference Preseason Coaches Poll. Junior guard Jaylen Smith was named to the Preseason All-Conference Team.
ETSU has the best scoring defense in the SoCon by a fairly wide margin. The Bucs are allowing just 66.2 points per game which also ranks in the top 40 in the country. The Bucs are well balanced offensively with four players averaging double figures led by SIUE transfer guard Brian Taylor II who averages 14.1 points per game. ETSU doesn't have one dominant rebounder on the team as its leading rebounder is Taylor who averages just 4.6 rebounds per game.
STAY CONNECTED
Follow Mercer Men's Basketball on Twitter and Instagram and on Facebook.
Players Mentioned
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