Macon, Ga. – Redshirt junior Mason Faulkner and senior Carlos Dotson both surpassed the 20-point mark, but Western Carolina was unable to complete a second half rally in an 85-79 setback at Mercer on Wednesday night.

Mercer improves to 9-11 overall and 3-4 in the Southern Conference while Western Carolina drops to 12-6 and 4-3. The loss is the third straight for the Catamounts after winning five straight games.
Faulkner finished with 23 points as he eclipsed the 20-point mark for the seventh time this season. Dotson posted his ninth double-double of the season with 22 points and 10 rebounds. It is his fourth 20-plus point game this season and seventh of his career. He also dished out a career-best six assists. Freshman Travion McCray scored a career-high 13 points and tied a career-high with five rebounds in his first career start. McCray's previous offensive career-best was eight points against North Carolina A&T and Tennessee Tech. Senior Onno Steger also finished in double figures with 11 points.

Reigning SoCon Player of the Week Djordje Dimitrijevic tallied a game-high 24 points to lead Mercer. Jeff Gary tallied 20 points followed by Ethan Stair with 17.  Stair posted a double-double with a game-high 13 points.

Dotson opened the scoring with a layup 63 seconds into the contest before the Bears tallied six straight points for a 6-2 advantage following a Bender jumper at the 17:38 mark. The Catamounts answered with nine of the next 12 points, taking an 11-9 lead with a Faulkner 3-pointer with 15:39 to play and extending the advantage to 16-11 thanks to a pair of Faulkner free throws.

Mercer answered with an 11-2 run capped by a Bender dunk for a 22-18 advantage just past the midpoint of the first half. WCU regained the lead, 27-25, with a Faulkner layup with 5:51 remaining before the Bears scored seven straight points for a 32-27 lead at the 4:10 mark. WCU trimmed the deficit to three points on two occasions before a Stair 3-pointer with seven seconds left sent Mercer into halftime with a 39-33 lead.

Dotson opened the second half scoring with a three-point play with the teams trading baskets on the next two possessions for a 41-38 Mercer lead. The Bears tallied seven straight points for a game-high 10-point lead, 48-38, after a Victor Bafutto layup with 17:07 to play. WCU responded with a 12-3 run as a Dotson layup at the 13:46 mark made the score 51-50 in favor of the hosts. After Steger jumper trimmed the Mercer lead to 57-56, the Bears went on a 12-2 run capped by a three-point play by Stair to lead 69-58 at the 7:23 mark.

The Catamounts cut the deficit to six points on two occasions, the second being after two Dotson free throws with 3:08 left. Mercer extended its lead back to 10 points before Faulkner sank a 3-pointer to bring the Catamounts within five, 78-73, with just under a minute to play. Gary put the Bears on top by eight, 82-74, before the Catamounts scored five of the next seven points after a Faulkner triple with five seconds to play. Stair was fouled with just over one second remaining and made his free throws to secure the victory for Mercer.

Western Carolina was 28-for-59 (50 percent) from the field and 11-for-30 (36.7 percent) behind the arc. Mercer finished 29-for-60 (48.3 percent) from the field and 9-for-22 (40.9 percent) in 3-point attempts. The Bears missed two free throws on the night as they made 18 of 20 (90.0 percent) shots at the charity stripe while the Catamounts converted 10 of 14 (71.4 percent) free throw attempts. Mercer outrebounded WCU 33-31.

WCU returns home on Saturday, hosting Wofford at 7 p.m. The first 400 WCU students will receive a "Black Out" shirt as the Catamounts will break out their black uniforms at home against the Terriers. Fans are encouraged to wear black to the game and purchase tickets in advance in order to secure the best seats and avoid lines on game day. The Catamount Ticket Office and Ramsey Center doors will open at 6 pm.

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