Mercer Women’s Basketball Opens 2013-14 Season With Exhibition Against Northwood (Fla.)

MACON, Ga. (MERCER RELEASE) – The Mercer women’s basketball team kicks off the 2013-14 season with an exhibition contest against NAIA member Northwood (Fla.) on October 31 at 7 p.m. at Hawkins Arena.

Admission is free to the public and fans can participate in a Halloween costume contest that will take place during halftime with the winner getting an official Mercer women’s basketball t-shirt.

Mercer returns four starters back from last year’s team that posted a 20-12 overall record and earned a spot in the Women’s Basketball Invitational for its first appearance in a nationally sponsored postseason tournament since 1985.

Among the starters back in the fold for the 2013-14 campaign are 2012-13 Atlantic Sun All-Conference first team selections Precious Bridges and Kendra Grant. Bridges led the A-Sun Conference in scoring by averaging 16.8 points per game while Grant ranked seventh in the league averaging 13.0 points per contest.

Also making her return from injury this season is junior guard Briana Williams. The last time the Mercer faithful saw Williams, she led the A-Sun Conference in scoring, averaging 17.5 points per game, on her way to being named an A-Sun All-Conference second team selection.

Scouting the Opposition

Northwood (Fla.) went 14-15 overall in 2012-13 and registered a 7-7 mark in Sun Conference play. The Seahawks were picked to finish fourth in the Sun Conference Preseason Coaches’ poll under the direction of first-year head coach Courtney McDaniel. Second team All-Conference senior guard Sharnele Brown paced the Northwood offense last season averaging 16.3 points per game on 41 percent shooting from the field.

Game Notes

– Mercer was picked to finish third in the 2013-14 A-Sun Conference Preseason Coaches’ poll while senior Kendra Grant joined juniors Precious Bridges and Briana Williams were all voted onto the A-Sun Preseason All-Conference team.

– Point guard Sharnea Boykin enters her senior season with 444 career assists which is the fourth-highest career total in Mercer program history and the 20th-most in A-Sun Conference history.