Mercer Uses Free Throw Shooting, Timely Defense To Rally Past Georgia Southern

Thursday, November 5

Macon, Ga.

7 p.m.

Mercer University

2-0,0-0SoCon

Georgia Southern

0-2,0-0Sun Belt

Team	1	2	3	4	F
Ga. Southern	19	11	15	16	61
Mercer	21	8	23	17	69

11/5/2026 10:25:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

By: Ben Kinealy, kinealy_ben@mercer.edu

MACON – Home-standing Mercer used 41 percent field goal shooting and a 31-for-41 clip from the free throw line to offset 35 turnovers, but it was a handful of late defensive stands that allowed the Bears to surge past visiting Georgia Southern, 69-61, on Thursday evening at Hawkins Arena.

Mercer (2-0) got double-digit scoring efforts from four different players in the victory that kept the Bears perfect through two games for the first time since the 2017-18 campaign. It was the seventh loss in the last eight series matchups for the Eagles (0-2) who finished Thursday's outing with 18 steals and 17 assists.

THE BASICS

SCORE: Mercer 69, Georgia Southern 61
RECORDS: Mercer 2-0 (0-0 SoCon); Georgia Southern 0-2 (0-0 Sun Belt)
LOCATION: Macon, Ga. (Hawkins Arena)

HOW IT HAPPENED

1ST QUARTER

Georgia Southern forced seven turnovers in the opening 10 minutes, but Mercer countered with a 10-for-11 clip from the free throw line to stay within arm's length. Lia Anderson gave the visitors a 19-13 lead on a jumper at the 1:57 mark, but the Bears tacked up the last eight points of the stanza to lug a 21-13 advantage into the second quarter.

2ND QUARTER

The Bears connected on just two of their 10 field goal attempts and committed 11 turnovers in the second period, but limited the Eagles to just a 29.4 percent shooting clip and forced five turnovers to keep it close. The second quarter saw five lead changes and a trio of tie scores before Georgia Southern used a Markayla Holland free throw to roll into the break with a 30-29 advantage.

3RD QUARTER

Mercer shot better than 58 percent from the field in the third period, including a 3-for-3 showing from the perimeter, and used a late surge to turn the momentum for good. Georgia Southern scored four points in the opening minute of the second half to push its lead out to five points, 34-29, but the Bears hung around and ultimately stole the show with seven-straight points in the final 73 seconds of the stanza.

4TH QUARTER

Georgia Southern hinted at a fourth-quarter rally, but Mercer scoffed at the pressure and went 11-for-14 at the free throw line to help its lead stand up. Georgia Southern gave the game its seventh tie score, 52-52, on a second-chance layup from Unique Horton with 8:08 left to play, but a pair of Avani Tella free throws just more than a minute later marked the first of six-straight points that swung the pendulum to the home side for good.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

+ Senior Micah O'Dell went 9-for-12 from the free throw line in the fourth quarter alone and finished her night with a team-best 15 points. She added seven rebounds and a pair of assists as well.
+ Three players – freshman Maliyah Lofton, senior Abigail Holtman and 5^th Year Ada Anamekwe – chipped in 10 points apiece to the scoring effort. Anamekwe also tallied a team-best four assists.
+ Freshman Jala Wilson registered a game-high 12 rebounds to complement six points and a trio of blocks.

NOTABLES

+ Mercer is 2-0 for the first time since the 2017-18 season. The Bears are also perfect through two games for just the fourth time in the last two decades. MU won its first two games in 2007-08, 2012-13 and 2015-16 as well.
+ MU registered its most free throws (31) in a game since tallying 36 made free throws in a 70-60 home win over Florida Atlantic on Jan. 2, 2006. The Bears were one better than last year's 30-for-38 showing in a road win over Western Carolina.
+ The Bears improved to 39-30 all-time in their 55-year-old series with Georgia Southern. Mercer is 7-2 against the Eagles since the 2011-12 campaign.

UP NEXT

Mercer will take to the road for the first time this season on Sunday when the Bears trek to Winston-Salem, N.C., to take on Atlantic Coast Conference foe Wake Forest (1-0). Tipoff is scheduled for 12:30 p.m. inside LJVM Coliseum.

STAY CONNECTED

Follow Mercer Women's Basketball on Twitter and Instagram and "Like" Mercer Women's Basketball on Facebook.

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.

SUPPORT THE BEARS

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 GiveMAF.com.