Mercer hoops on track as SoCon play intensifies

The Mercer men’s and women’s basketball teams have both made marked improvements since last season and will head into the second half of Southern Conference play optimistic after offensive success in recent games.

The men’s team is particularly hot at the moment. The Bears won five straight conference games — they scored more than 100 points in four of them — before a three-point loss to Wofford ended that streak Saturday. Head coach Ryan Ridder still thinks the team is the strongest it’s been all season.

“We’re playing with confidence on offense. We feed off each other. We’re a really fun offensive unit to watch,” Ridder said at Mercer’s press conference Monday. “We think we’ve got a chance to finish in that upper echelon and compete for a conference championship.”

The offensive effort has been keyed in part by Zaire Williams, who scored 23 points against Western Carolina and 17 against UNC-Greensboro in two recent contests. The fifth-year player, a New York native who transferred to Mercer from Wagner, has also been a crucial defender for the Bears.

“We count on Zaire in a big way on both sides of the ball. He’s gonna lick his chops for that matchup, he wants to guard the best guy,” Ridder said. “He’s one of the most consistent guys I’ve ever coached.”

Armani Mighty (averaging a double-double with points and rebounds) and Baraka Okojie (averaging 18.6 PPG) also lead the charge for Mercer this year. The team once again features many transfers, but the team chemistry has led to an impressive run thus far, especially after the Bears lost their first two SoCon games.

Ridder recalled one of his concerns in the preseason with a wry smile Monday afternoon.

“We couldn’t put the ball in the bucket this summer, right? I said in August, ‘I don’t know if we’re gonna be able to score, but we’re gonna be able to guard.’ Man, I don’t know if someone should pay me to be the coach anymore,” Ridder joked. “Was I wrong, or what?”

The scoring has driven Mercer to a 13-8 overall mark and a 5-3 SoCon record, good for fourth in the conference. Its defense looks solid as well, if a bit more inconsistent. Ridder said there have been a few halves this season — at UNCG, the second half against VMI and others — where he’s seen everything click at once.

“We’re putting together really good stretches, but can we put it together for 24 minutes, 28, and ultimately 40? I know we will, it’s just about continuing to punch the clock and figure it out,” Ridder said. 

The loss against Wofford last week showed some of the improvements Ridder wants to make before the conference tournament arrives next month. Okojie scored an impressive 27 points, but Wofford battled back from a 7-point deficit at the half to beat the Bears by 3.

“We knew it would be tough to sweep those guys,” Ridder said of the Wofford team Mercer scored 109 points against earlier this year. “Give them credit, they made adjustments on their home court.”

Now Mercer gets two more home games to get back on track. The Bears will face UNCG on Thursday for the second time after scoring 102 points against the Spartans on the road earlier this season, then take on VMI at home in another attempt to sweep a conference foe.

Mercer women ready for road test

While the women’s team does not boast a five-game winning streak, head coach Michelle Clark-Heard has her squad scoring at a much higher rate than last season.

The Bears are 12-8 overall and 2-3 in SoCon play after losing their last two contests against Furman and Wofford, two of the top three teams in the conference. Heard still likes the strides her team has made.

“We didn’t get the wins we wanted, but we’re still growing and getting better. These two games at home, we didn’t start out as well as we wanted to. We kind of had to play comeback a little bit,” Heard said of the SoCon defeats.

And come back they did — the Bears overcame a 13-point deficit in the second half against Wofford and even took the lead with about 2 ½ minutes left, but the Terriers regained the lead with free throws and eventually defeated Mercer 67-64.

Nonetheless, the Bears have the luxury of three players averaging more than 11 points per game — lineup staples Ariana Bennett and Nahawa Diarra returned after Heard’s first season, while newcomer Abigail Holtman gave Mercer another jolt of energy — and have reaped the benefits of a balanced roster.

“Abby’s contributions come from all the other players, too — having guards where everybody on the floor, they [opposing defenders] have to make sure they know where Nahawa is,” Heard said. “It’s so many different avenues and different ways we can go. I think that’s helped Abby out a lot. … This is just a close-knit group of ladies. The credit goes to everyone on the team.”

Diarra and Bennett are two of the closest teammates, and two of the most important leaders returning from last season’s lackluster 8-22 finish. The two Bears are only one win shy of their conference win total from last season with nine SoCon games still on deck. Mercer is currently in fifth place in the SoCon.

The schedule gets more challenging from here. The Bears’ two wins are over the bottom two teams in the league, and Mercer will have to face the top team in the SoCon when it travels to Chattanooga on Friday.

“The biggest thing, they have a lot of returners on their team. They were runners up last year in the league and they do what they do. They shoot the three, they get the ball down the floor really fast. Defensive transition is gonna be crucial for us,” Heard said. “Their point guard is really crafty. She can get downhill, so she’s sort of the engine that makes them run.”

The Bears will take on the Mocs at 5:30 p.m. Friday in Chattanooga.