MACON, Ga. – With 5:43 left in regulation, Tyson Batiste hit his lone 3-pointer of the game to put The Citadel basketball team up by one, 57-56. The Bulldogs had battled back from being down by as many as 11 in the first half, but Mercer retook the lead and went on to defeat the Bulldogs 76-71.

Game Information
Final Score: Mercer 76, The Citadel 71
Records: Mercer (12-11, 6-4 SoCon), The Citadel (6-15, 0-10 SoCon)
Location: Macon, Ga. (Hawkins Arena)
Series: Mercer leads, 17-7

KEY STATS

• The Bulldogs slowed things way down in the first half, scoring just 22 points as the 'Dogs worked each possession down to the waning seconds of each shot clock possession.
• The Bulldogs managed to establish an early lead, going up 8-2 nearly five minutes in with a Derek Webster, Jr. dunk forcing Mercer to burn the first timeout of the game.
• Mercer was able to get things going a little bit out of the TO, but with 12:00 left in the opening half, Kaiden Rice hit the Bulldogs' first 3-pointer of the game to make it a nine-point, 14-5 game in favor of The Citadel.
• Mercer battled back and tied the game at 14-all with 7:30 left in the period, using a 9-0 run to close the gap, and with 5:55 left in the period, Kamar Robertson gave the Bears a three-point lead with a 3-pointer.
• An Ethan Stair layup with just under four minutes left in the first half capped a 13-0 run by Mercer that put the Bears up by 11, 27-16, but the Bulldogs continued to battle and got the deficit down to nine, 31-22 by the intermission.
• The Bulldogs came out in the second half ready to play and four quick points from freshman Stephen Clark, including a half-opening alleyoop dunk, spurred some life into the 'Dogs.
• With 14:22 left in regulation, Fletcher Abee hit one of his three treys to draw The Citadel to within one, 37-36 of the Bears.
• Down the stretch, every time Mercer managed to establish a lead, the Bulldogs had an answer, and with 6:15 left to play, Rice hit another of his game-high four 3-pointers to tie the game at 54-all.
• After Batiste gave the Bulldogs the one-point lead a few possessions later, Mercer produced a 6-0 spurt to retake the lead for good.
• With 56 seconds remaining, the Bulldogs seemed to be within striking distance as Kaelon Harris scored off a layup, but the Bears converted five of six free throws down the stretch to secure the win.
• After shooting 33.3% (8-of-24) in the first half, the Bulldogs started the second half by connecting on 12 of their first 13 shots (.923). The 'Dogs ended the game shooting 54.2% (26-of-48), including 75.0% (18-of-24) in the second period.
• Mercer ended the game shooting 50.9% (28-of-55) from the field, but the Bears shot 85.7% (12-of-14) from the free throw line compared to 50.0%( 10-of-20) for the 'Dogs.
• The Bears out-rebounded the Bulldogs 31-24.
• Rice led all scorers with 17 points, including a game-high four 3-pointers. Rice matched his season high with six rebounds.
• Clark scored a season-high 14 points off 7-of-11 shooting (.636). Clark also had season highs in assists (4) and steals (3).
• Abee and Harris each scored 12 points with Abee converted a trio of 3-pointers, while Harris went 4-for-7 (.571) from the field.
• Daniel Love led five Bears in double figures with 14 points.

NOTES

• Harris eclipsed the 800-point mark for his career, ending the night with 809 career points.
• Abee moved up into sole possession of eighth in program history for 3-pointers made by a freshman. With 3 made 3-pointers Saturday, Abee now boasts 54. He is one away from seventh and four away from sixth.
• Abee has scored 245 points so far this season. He is 12 points away from cracking the top 15 in program history for points scored by a freshman.
• With two assists at Mercer, Batiste now boasts 122 on the season, moving him up into 12^th in program history for assists in season.
• Freshman Brady Spence recorded his 18^th blocked shot of the season Saturday afternoon, moving him into sole possession of 10^th in program history for blocks by a freshman.
• Rice boasts 64 made 3-pointers on the year, which has him eight away from cracking the top 15 in program history for 3-pointers made in a season.

COMING UP
The Bulldogs will next travel to Greensboro, North Carolina to take on UNC Greensboro at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 5 before returning home to host VMI for the Bulldogs' annual Pack the Mac game on Saturday, Feb. 8.

CLEAR BAG POLICY
Fans attending ticketed athletic events at The Citadel this year are reminded of the new clear bag policy that has been implemented. Under the policy, fans will be allowed to bring with them a clear plastic, vinyl or PVC bag that does not exceed 12 inches by 6 inches by 12 inches, or a one-gallon plastic bag (such as Ziploc or Hefty bags). The bags may have a logo on one side that is no larger than 4.5 inches by 3.4 inches. Bags carrying a properly sized logo of other teams or venues are permitted. For more information, please click HERE.

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