December 17, 2011

Bears Travel to Seton Hall on Sunday

NEWARK, N.J. – Mercer University’s men’s basketball team will step off an ambitious five-game road series on Sunday (Dec. 18) afternoon when it faces Seton Hall University. Tipoff at the 10,862-seat Prudential Center is slated for noon (ET).

The Bears (7-3) have won two-straight games, but the Big East Conference representative Pirates (8-1) are on a five-game win skein. Mercer has not played since its Dec. 10 home win over Chattanooga due to finals. MU will also be facing Georgia (Dec. 20), Georgia Tech (Dec. 22), Tulsa (Dec. 28) and Navy (Dec. 20) to close out the 2011 calendar year and before returning home on January 2.

The game at Seton Hall will be both a physical and mental test for the Mercer squad. With its flight and hotel reservations to Newark, N.J. made long in advance, the game time was switched from an original start time of 7 p.m. to noon. The Bears were not expected to check into their hotel until just before midnight on Saturday evening.

But the resilient Bears have taken on all circumstances this season and have emerged with the program’s best start to a season since 2004-05. Mercer has relied on a balanced team effort in 2011-12 and posted the numbers to back up that fact.

The Bears have no less than six individuals scoring at an average of 8.0 points per game or better, led by sophomore Langston Hall at 13.3 points per game. Hall also tops the team in assists (3.6 a.p.g.) and grabs 3.5 rebounds per contest, as well.

Senior Justin Cecil scores at a 10.8 p.p.g. clip and grabs 3.4 caroms per game. Cecil has made a team-leading 22 three-point baskets and shoots better than 39 percent from beyond the arc.

Redshirt sophomore Jakob Gollon – last week’s Atlantic Sun Conference “Player of the Week” – averages a workman-like 10.7 points, 5.6 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 1.2 steals per game.

The Mercer men’s basketball team was well-represented in the third weekly NCAA Division I statistical report released Monday (Dec.  12). The Bears were ranked 27th in the nation for field goal percentage defense with opponents managing to hit just 37.3 percent from the floor through games of Dec. 11. MU was also 80th in rebound margin at a plus-4.3 boards per game. Mercer’s squad was also No. 60 in steals per game (8.4) and No. 64 in blocked shots per game (4.8).

MU was the 42nd-best free throw shooting team in Division I, hitting charity tosses at a clip of 73.6 percent. That number is buoyed by Gollon, who had moved up to No. 7 for individual free throw percentage. Gollon has hit 93.9 percent of his shots (31-33) from the line (Mike Venezia of Colgate led the nation at 96.0 percent).

Sophomore center Daniel Coursey was No. 59 in blocked shots, averaging 2.0 per game. Coursey has amassed a total of 20 rejections through MU’s first 10 contests.

THE SERIES:

This will be the first-ever meeting between the Bears and Pirates. SHU has not played a team from the Atlantic Sun Conference since a 1973 meeting versus Stetson.

SCOUTING SETON HALL:

Seton Hall is off to a blazing 8-1 start for the 2011-12 season and is on a five-game winning streak. The Pirates’ lone loss was in their third game of the season, dropping an 80-73 decision to Northwestern.

SHU’s home floor - The Prudential Center - has been good to the Pirates this season. Seton Hall has a perfect 6-0 record in its own house. SHU is 2-1 on neutral floors and has yet to play an “away” game in 2011-12.

Senior Herb Pope is currently leading the Pirates - and the Big East - with a 21.9 points per game average. Pope averages a double-double by also corralling 11.3 rebounds per game. He is shooting 55.4% from the field and has 13 blocked shots.

Senior Jordan Theodore leads his team, as well as the conference, assist list with 7.2 per game.

Theodore also averages in double-figure scoring at 14.8 p.p.g., followed closely by teammate Fuquan Edwin at 14.0 p.p.g.

Kevin Willard (21-19) is in his second season at the helm of the Pirates.

Seton Hall is coming off a 68-54 victory over ACC opponent Wake Forest last Saturday. Senior Herb Pope led all players with 26 points and 14 rebounds for his nation-leading seventh double-double of the season.

Fuquan Edwin and Jordan Theodore were right on their respective averages against Wake, as each tallied 14 points.

GAME NOTES:

- In the latest RealTime RPI.com ranking, Seton Hall is 9th with an RPI index of .6608 and a strength of schedule which ranks 28th.  Mercer is No. 124 in the RPI (.5257) and #228 in strength of schedule.

- Mercer University’s men’s basketball team earned some recognition for its good beginning to 2011-12 by receiving a vote in the latest CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25 poll. Mercer received a single point to earn a spot among 27 schools in the “Others Receiving Votes” outside the top-25 teams.

- Seton Hall’s home floor - The Prudential Center - will be the second-largest venue, in terms of seating, which the Bears will see in 2011-12. The Prudential Center is configured with seating for 10,862. Missouri’s Mizzou Arena is the largest venue which will be seen by MU this season, with a capacity of 15,061. Georgia’s Stegeman Coliseum - which the Bears will see on Tuesday (Dec. 20) - seats 10,523.

- The Bears swept their three games versus foes from the Southern Conference in 2011-12. MU completed the “brooming” of the SoCon with a win over Chattanooga (67-56 on 12/10/11), after having previously defeated Samford (83-78 in OT on 12/7/11) and Furman (66-46 on 11/17/11).