January 29, 2011

USC Upstate Slips Past Women’s Hoops

SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Freshman guard Rebecca Clanton scored nine of her career-high 12 points in the second half as the Mercer fell to USC Upstate 74-63 in Saturday afternoon’s Atlantic Sun women’s basketball game at the G.B. Hodge Center.

 

USC Upstate erased a four-point halftime deficit to move its record to 11-9 (7-4 A-Sun) while Mercer dropped its 10^th-straight A-Sun game and dropped to 1-19 (1-10 A-Sun).

Clanton’s 12 points came on four-of-five shooting from three-point range.  Briana Williams led Mercer with 17 points while Brittnee Hazel chipped in 13 of her own.

Freshman Sharnea Boykin dished a career-high 11 assists in the loss, pushing her conference-leading total to 121.  Boykin has now tallied double-digit assists on four occasions.

 

After taking a 30-26 lead into intermission, Hazel dished to Alex Phillips for the first bucket of the second half.  Phillips’ layup gave Mercer its largest lead of the game (32-36) with 19:24 to go.

USC Upstate responded with a 5-0 surge and later tied the contest at 36 apiece with 16:45 remaining.

Later in the half, Upstate had moved its advantage to 42-38 before Boykin found Phillips for a layup on the back end of a pick and roll.  Next, a missed field goal for Upstate sent Boykin racing towards the offensive end, resulting in a Hazel layup and 42-42 tie.

The start of the half was a see-saw battle, with the opening 8:15 of the period featuring six tie scores and five lead changes.

At the 13:09 mark, the Spartans held a 45-43 advantage when Phillips kicked the ball to Clanton for her second triple of the afternoon.  Clanton’s trey would mark Mercer’s final lead of the afternoon.

USC Upstate responded with an 8-0 charge and never looked back en route to its seventh conference win.  Mercer cut the lead to one (60-59) with just over six minutes to play, but could not regain the advantage.

USC Upstate’s duo of Tee’Ara Copney and Chelsea McMillan combined for 35 of the Spartan’s 74 points. 

Mercer was out-rebounded 55-32 and mustered only six offensive rebounds in the losing effort.

Hazel’s 13 points came in conjunction with eight rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block.

In the first half, Mercer forced Upstate into 18 turnovers and converted those turnovers in 18 points.  The Bears finished with a 23-11 edge in points off turnovers.

Phillips played all 20 minutes of the opening period, stuffing the stat book with four rebounds, two points, two assists, two steals and a block.  Phillips’ final stat line read eight points, five rebounds, three assists, three blocks and two steals.

Mercer returns to action with its third-straight road game, this time facing ETSU in Johnson City on Monday.  Game time is scheduled for 4:45 p.m.