Mercer Women’s Hoops Heads to Northern Kentucky

MACON, Georgia (MERCER RELEASE) – MACON, Ga. – The Mercer women’s basketball team returns to action Thursday evening, looking to get back on track in Atlantic Sun Conference action as the Bears hit the road to take on Northern Kentucky at The Bank of Kentucky Center.

Gameday Lineup

Date: Thu. Jan. 9 | 7 p.m. EST
Teams: Mercer (8-5, 1-1 A-Sun) at Northern Kentucky (6-7, 2-0 A-Sun)
Location: Highland Heights, Ky. | The Bank of Kentucky Center (9,400)
TV: A-Sun.TV
Radio: none
Radio Talent: n/a
Live Stats: MercerBears.com
Twitter: @MercerWBB

Story Lines

With 19 points Saturday against Jacksonville, junior Precious Bridges is knocking on the door of the 1,000-point barrier, currently sitting at 998 points. With a single basket against Northern Kentucky, she will become the 23rd player in Mercer women’s basketball history to eclipse 1,000 points and just the sixth active A-Sun player with 1,000 points.

With nine blocks over the last two games, junior Teanna Robinson has 54 total blocks on the year and is tied with Iona’s Sabrina Jeridore for the nation’s lead in blocks per game at 4.15. She posted a career-high nine blocks at Georgia on Nov. 14 and has recorded five or more blocks five times this season.

Susie Gardner’s Bears continue to rewrite the program’s record books as Mercer tied the program record for non-conference wins in a season with seven, the most in a single-season since the 1995-96 version of the Bears were also victorious in seven non-conference tilts.

Last Time Out

The Mercer women’s basketball team erased an 18-point second-half deficit Saturday afternoon, but a layup with 10 seconds remaining propelled Jacksonville to a 71-67 victory inside Hawkins Arena on the opening weekend of Atlantic Sun Conference action. (Complete Story)

Scouting Northern Kentucky

The Norse (6-7, 2-0) are still a game under the .500 mark on the year, but were one of only two teams in the league to open the conference season with a perfect 2-0 record. With a high-major win over Cincinnati to open the year, NKU is 2-3 on its home floor, including three straight losses at The Bank of Kentucky Center.

Dawn Plitzuweit is in her second season as head coach of the Norse after leading the squad to a 12-6 conference record in the program’s first season at the Division I level. The NKU has 30 consecutive winning seasons, including a 15-13 overall mark a year ago.

The Norse are led by reigning and four-time A-Sun Player of the Week Melody Doss, who averaged a league-leading 18.2 points per game. She has three double-doubles on the year and scored a career-high 29 points against Illinois State on Nov. 13. Kayla Thacker is the only other NKY player averaging double figures at 12.2 points per contest, while four other players average more than 6.0 points per game.