Final Stats

Macon, Ga. - For the second-straight game the Catamounts faced one of the top-three teams in the Southern Conference and for the second time the Western Carolina men's basketball team came out on top. WCU caught fire from 3-point range in the second half and used a shutdown defense to come away with a 58-54 victory at Mercer. The win is the second this season for the Catamounts over the Bears.

The loss was only the seventh for the Bears at home in the last four years and WCU was the first Southern Conference opponent to knock off the Bears at home this season.

The Catamounts now sit two games back from third in the Southern Conference standings with four conference games to play. WCU improved its overall record to 13-13 and its SoCon mark to 8-6. The Bears fell to 14-12 overall and 9-4 in conference play. WCU now owns the tiebreaker with Mercer if the two teams finish with the same record at the end of the season.

WCU trailed by two at halftime but a 6-8 shooting performance from 3-point range in the second half helped the Catamounts get ahead where they would remain as time expired. Junior Mike Brown led the way as he went scoreless in the first half and then went 5-6 from the field in the second half including 4-4 from three to finish with a team-high 14 points.

Senior James Sinclair and junior Rhett Harrelson each finished with 13 points. Harrelson was 4-7 from long range and hit three triples in the first half to keep the Catamounts in the game. Sinclair nailed three from downtown including one in the second half while he led the team with four assists and a pair of steals.

Junior Torrion Brummitt chipped in nine points and seven rebounds while freshman Tucker Thompson added seven points and a team-high eight rebounds.

Both teams struggled offensively in the first half. WCU shot just 32.0 percent from the field while the Bears connected on 31.0 percent of their shots. The Catamounts were able to knock down 5-of-9 from 3-point range in the opening period but hit just three of nine from the free throw line. The Bears were just one of nine from three but were able to score seven of 13 from the charity stripe.

The two teams traded the lead 10 times during the opening period and a jumper by Mercer with 20 seconds left in the half proved to be the difference as the Bears led 26-24 at the break.

The second half was much like the first but the teams were able to knock down shots. The lead was exchanged 11 times in the period. WCU shot 55.0 percent from the field while the Bears knocked down 50.0 percent of its shots. The Catamounts went 6-8 from both the free throw line and from 3-point range in the second half. Mercer connected on just two of seven from 3-point range in the second half and eight of 13 from the free throw line.

A Harrelson 3-pointer 2:30 into the second half gave WCU its first lead of the period at 29-28. Mercer used a 6-1 run to take its largest lead of the period at 34-30 with 14:46 to play. A pair of Sinclair free throws and a Mike Brown jumper quickly tied the game up just one minute later. Both teams traded baskets and free throws over the next several minutes until a 3-pointer by Mercer gave the Bears a 40-38 lead with 7:41 to play.

Brown answered on the offensive end with a 3-pointer of his own off an assist by Sinclair. Mercer countered with a jumper but once again Brown found his range and buried another 3-pointer off a Sinclair assist to give WCU a 44-42 lead with 6:25 left. Mercer again answered with a basket which tied the game.

The Mercer defense forced the shot clock down to single digits but freshman Devin Peterson was able to sink a floater in the middle of the lane with a few ticks left on the clock to retake the lead. The Bears immediately responded with a 3-pointer giving themselves a 47-46 lead. After empty possessions by both teams, Brown once again hit from downtown after a Peterson assist to retake the lead for the Catamounts, 49-47. WCU would not trail again the rest of the game as another Brown 3-pointer off an assist from Sinclair with 3:02 left on the clock pushed WCU's advantage to four.

Sinclair stole the ball on the next Mercer possession and after a foul he hit his lone triple of the half to move WCU's advantage to seven. Mercer used a full court press to go on a 6-1 run which cut the Catamount lead to just two with 15 seconds left on the clock. WCU was able to inbound the ball and find Sinclair who was quickly fouled. He hit a pair of free throws to push the lead back to four. WCU's defense forced an errant pass on Mercer's final possession and the Bears chose not to foul with three seconds remaining as the Catamounts hung on to win 58-54.

Mercer was led by T.J. Hallice who finished with 11 points and seven rebounds, all of which came in the first half. Jibri Bryan ended the game with 12 points and four boards.

The Catamounts will face another tough test on Saturday as they return to the Ramsey Center to face Wofford who is sitting atop the Southern Conference standings and suffered just its second conference loss of the season tonight against Chattanooga. The game is set for a 5 pm tip.