Balanced Stetson Attack Tops Mercer Women, 72-60

MACON, Ga. (MERCER RELEASE) – The Mercer women’s basketball team Saw Stetson place five players in double figures and use a late run to knock off the Bears 72-60 Thursday evening at Hawkins Arena in Atlantic Sun Conference action.

Mercer (9-7, 2-3 A-Sun) drop its eighth-straight game against Stetson in the all-time series, while the Hatters (11-5, 3-1 A-Sun) continue to roll, winning their sixth game in seven tries, including their third consecutive conference victory.

“I felt like we were trying to survive the game instead of win the game,” said head coach Susie Gardner. “I thought we had a chance to win this game. I want players who will do whatever it takes, whether you are fatigued or not, to be tougher and go out and try to win.”

Stetson opened the game with a pair of early buckets and quickly opened up a five-point lead in less than three minutes, but the Bears battled right back when Alicia Williams scored two of her 12 first-half points to knot the score at 10-10 with 14:47 remaining.

Mercer tied the score three different times in the first half and the Hatters led by as many as seven points in the opening period, but a Briana Williams three-pointer at the buzzer cut the Stetson advantage to 37-33 heading to intermission.

All the momentum Mercer gained in the final seconds of the first half was quickly taken away in the opening minutes of the second half when Stetson scored six straight points to open up a double-digit lead at 43-33 with 18:12 remaining in the game.

The Bears started to claw back later in the half as Alicia Williams scored five unanswered points and cut the Stetson lead to 49-45 with 13:27 left. After the Hatters pushed the lead back to nine points, Sharnea Boykin got in on the scoring and used back-to-back fast break layups to cut the Stetson advantage to just three at 58-55.

The Mercer spurt would be short lived however, as Stetson starting clicking on all cylinders and scored nine unanswered points to take a 55-67 lead with less than six minutes to play.

The Hatters led by double digits the rest of the way, including a game-high 14 points with 1:24 left, before picking up the 12-point victory on the road.

Alicia Williams led all scorers with a season-high 18 points, while Briana Williams chipped in 14 and Kendra Grant added 12. Boykin finished with nine assists for the second-straight game and added eight points in all 40 minutes of action.

Five Stetson players finished in double figures, led by 15 points from Amber Porter, while A-Sun Preseason Player of the Year Sasha Sims tied her season low for points with 10.

The Bears return to action Saturday afternoon, welcoming FGCU to town for another Atlantic Sun Conference matchup in Hawkins Arena. Tip-off against the Eagles is set for 3 p.m.