MACON, GA. – Beginning the New Year on a high note, Anderson University women's basketball team (7-6) put together a tremendous second half response, propelling the Trojans over Division 1 exhibition opponent Mercer (4-9), 67-62, on Sunday afternoon at Hawkins Arena.
"I am really proud of our team's effort, both on the floor and the bench," said head coach Jonathon Barbaree. "I thought we did a solid job of pushing our tempo defensively that we've been working on since our return. That led to some clutch points when we needed it."
"I truly believe our tough road schedule that we started with has helped us learn that we have to control what we can control and that starts with defense," explained Barbaree. "Shots may not always fall, but if we defend, we will always have a chance."
"We hope to build on this and use it as momentum for conference play," added Barbaree.
The Trojans led by as many as five points in the first quarter of play, before losing the lead with 1:39 remaining, 15-14. Mercer used the 8-2 run to close out the quarter and claim the one-point advantage after one period of action, 17-16.
Mercer's first quarter run stretched into an 18-2 setback for the Black and Gold, before a made free-throw by Senior Jalyn Spurlin at the 5:56 mark to keep the Bears lead at 10 points. Senior Britney Bailey cut the lead to seven with 35 seconds to go in the half, before Mercer's Erin Houpt's third three-point basket of the half pushed its lead back to double-digits, 39-29.
Houpt hit her fourth three-point basket of the game to push Mercer's lead to 11 with 8:35 remaining in the third. Anderson began to slowly chip away completely erasing the deficit after a made jumper by Bailey, 44-44, with one minute to go in the quarter. Mercer responded with a made lay-up to carry a two-point lead heading into the final period of play, 46-44.
Anderson tied the game, 50-50, after a putback by senior Nelliah Wilson and pushed its lead to four points after two made foul shots by freshman Ashlyn Sheridan and a steal and quick layup by Spurlin. The lead was short lived with the SoCon's preseason player of the year, Amoria Neal-Tysor responding with back-to-back buckets to knot the game up at 54 apiece with 4:47 remaining.
AU remained poised with Sheridan draining a three-point basket with 4:28 to play to give Anderson its final lead of the game. Mercer cut the lead to one, before a made layup by Bailey and a made jumper by senior Brittney Stafford extended the lead to five points with 54 seconds to play.
Mercer's Houpt finished off a driving layup to pull the Bears to withing three points. However, AU's Bailey followed her missed jumper with a layup to put the game out of reach and set the final score at 67-62.
Anderson placed four players in double-digit scoring with Bailey scoring a game-high 17 points. Sophomore Diamond McDowell netted 16 points and grabbed five rebounds, despite being hampered by foul trouble in the first half. Stafford dropped in 12 points, while dishing out three assists and recorded zero turnovers in 40 minutes of action. Spurlin chipped in 11 points and grabbed eight rebounds. Spurlin's high energy defensive play led to senior guard being credited with five steals on the afternoon.
Mercer's Houpt scored a team-high 16 points, while Neal-Tysor contributed 14 points for the Bears. Coming in off the bench, Brittan Reeves netted 10 points and pulled in seven rebounds in just 22 minutes of play.
Anderson will remain on the road to face South Atlantic Conference opponent Coker on Saturday. Tip-off inside the DeLoach Center is slated for 2 pm.
