BOX SCORE (PDF)

SENIOR TRIBUTE

HIGHLIGHTS

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Mercer's Kahlia Lawrence scored 31 points, with 17 coming in the fourth quarter, as the Bears' women's basketball team earned a 76-68 win at Samford on the Bulldogs' Senior Day Saturday in the Pete Hanna Center.
 
Samford held a 48-42 lead heading into the fourth quarter, but Mercer outscored the Bulldogs, 34-20 in the final period. The Bears made 9-of-10 shots from the floor in the fourth quarter.
 
"I was pleased with the way we guarded for three quarters," Samford head coach Mike Morris said. "From an offensive standpoint, we did a lot of positive things in this game against the two different zones they played, and against their man. But, defensively, we were guarding the best offensive player in our league, and we couldn't make her miss."
 
Samford was led offensively by Hannah Nichols with 19 points and five rebounds. Ellen Riggins had 11 points and a team-high six rebounds. Brittany Stevens had seven points, five rebounds and four assists for the Bulldogs.
 
Prior to the game, seniors Riggins, Stevens and Lydia McGee were honored in Senior Day ceremonies.
 
Behind Lawrence for Mercer, Alex Williams scored 16 points and grabbed five rebounds. Sydni Means had 12 points and six assists.
 
After Samford built an early 4-2 lead, Mercer scored the next six points to take an 8-4 lead with 2:51 left in the period after a jumper by Means. Samford fought back to take a 12-10 lead with 1:07 left in the quarter following a three-pointer by Samantha Fitzgerald. Three late Mercer free throws gave the Bears a 13-12 edge after one quarter.
 
In the second quarter, Samford built a five-point lead at 24-19 with 5:19 to go in the period after a three-pointer by Stevens. Mercer fought back to cut the lead to just two points at 25-23. A layup by Riggins and two free throws by Charity Brown gave Samford a 29-23 lead heading into the locker room at halftime.
 
Samford built as much as a 12-point lead in the third quarter at 46-34 with 3:53 left in the period after a three-pointer by Cassidy Williams. Mercer, however, went on an 8-0 run to cut the lead to four points at 46-42 with 42 seconds left after a layup by Williams. Two late free throws by Nichols gave Samford a 48-42 lead heading into the fourth quarter.
 
Mercer opened the fourth quarter with a 17-4 run to take a 59-52 advantage with 4:46 left in the game following a jumper by Williams. The Bears built their lead to as many as 12 points at 69-57 and 71-59. Samford fought back to cut the lead to six points at 74-68 with 11 seconds left after a three-pointer by Fitzgerald. The Bulldogs, however, could get no closer as Mercer came away with the 76-68 win.
 
As a team, Samford shot 44.2 percent overall and 37.5 percent from three-point range. Mercer shot 54.9 percent overall and 50.0 percent from beyond the arc. Samford made 81.3 percent of its free-throw attempts, while Mercer shot 78.3 percent from the charity stripe. Samford won the rebounding battle, 28-26.
 
With the loss, Samford falls to 11-18 overall and 4-10 in Southern Conference play. Mercer improves to 23-5 overall and 12-2 in league play, earning a share of the SoCon regular-season title with Chattanooga.
 
The Southern Conference Tournament will begin Thursday in Asheville, N.C. The pairings for the tournament will be released later tonight by the league office.