UTC hosts Mercer in showdown
The numbers suggest that the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga and Mercer are the two best men’s basketball teams in the Southern Conference so far this season.
UTC has wins over Georgia, Illinois and Dayton, while Mercer owns a victory over Arkansas, and they carry a combined 23- 5 record into tonight’s meeting at McKenzie Arena at 7.
The Mocs (12-2) and Mercer’s Bears (11-3) finished second and third in the conference race a season ago, splitting the season series with wins on each other’s home court. The Macon, Ga., school has a big fan following that travels to games, and with the close proximity between the two schools, that likely will be the case tonight.
“They’re a great team, so we know we have to be ready for the game,” UTC center Justin Tuoyo said. “We look forward
“(MERCER IS) A GREAT TEAM, SO WE KNOW WE HAVE TO BE READY FOR THE GAME. WE LOOK FORWARD TO IT; WE KNOW WE’RE GOING TO BRING EVERYTHING WE’VE GOT TO PULL
THIS ONE OUT.”
to it; we know we’re going to bring everything we’ve got to pull this one out.”
With students not set to return until next Monday, UTC distributed $2 tickets to alumni for tonight’s game in
hopes of building additional fan support.
The Mocs rank first in the SoCon in offensive efficiency, which measures the number of points that would be scored if a team had 100 possessions. Ten UTC players have scored in double figures in at least one game this season, with nine averaging at least 5.6 points per game.
“Coach (Matt) McCall gave us a lot of freedom when he got here,” point guard Greg Pryor said. “He has a lot of confidence in everybody on the floor, and that helps us not overthink the situation when we’re playing.”
The Mocs will be going against a Mercer team that ranks first in defensive efficiency, allowing 99.6 points per 100 possessions. The Bears lead the conference in scoring defense, field- goal- percentage defense, rebound margin and defensive- rebound percentage.
The Mocs rank right behind the Bears in defensive efficiency, allowing 99.8.
Stretching its win streak to eight games would give UTC its best start in 30 years.
“Mercer is a great team,” Tuoyo said. “We want to get a win to make a statement.”
Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfree press.com. Follow him at twitter.com/gene henleytfp.