Taylor scores 17 as Texas beats Mercer 76-73

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) – Freshman guard Isaiah Taylor scored 17 points and Texas rallied from nine points down in the second half to beat Mercer 76-73 Friday night in the season opener for both teams.

Texas trailed 62-53 with just under 10 minutes to play. Demarcus Holland’s dunk with 5 seconds left gave Texas a vital 3-point cushion and Connor Lammert blocked Jake Gollon’s 3-point attempt to tie at the buzzer.

Langston Hall scored 22 points to lead Mercer, which hit 10 3-pointers. Javan Felix and Jonathan Holmes each scored 11 points for Texas.

Texas had its first losing season since 1997-98 last season. That and disappointing results in recent NCAA tournaments has led to speculation that coach Rick Barnes may be fighting to keep this job this season, which will be his first under new athletic director Steve Patterson, whose contract is expected to be approved Monday by school regents.