SPARTANBURG, S.C. - The Wofford men's basketball team clawed back and held on against the Mercer Bears on Saturday morning, 80-77, in Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium. Having trailed by seven points at halftime and led by as much as 11 points down the stretch, Wofford avenged their loss to the Bears earlier this season in Macon.
The Terriers (14-7, 6-2) were led by
Kahmare Holmes who had a team-high in points (27), rebounds (9), assists (7), and steals (1).
Nils Machowski (18),
Chace Watley (14), and
Brian Sumpter (10) reached double figures. Sumpter had two blocks.
"We had some spectacular plays from a lot of guys," said head coach
Kevin Giltner. "It was really good to see us play well in crunch time, when against Chattanooga, that's when we fell apart. Hopefully, it's our team maturing."
How It Happened
Kahmare Holmes opened the scoring with a mid-range jumper. The Terriers were able to get defensive stops early, snatching a 7-0 run to start the game. It took the Bears until the 17:30 minute mark to score their first bucket. Holmes was hot early, grabbing seven of Wofford's first 12 points. The Bears were able to scrap back into the game with an 11-5 advantage in scoring after their first make. Wofford still maintained a one-point lead heading into the under-12 media timeout, 12-11.
Mercer grabbed their first lead after a fast break dunk.
Brendan Rigsbee ended a four-minute drought for the Terriers with a driving layup. This sparked the Wofford offense back to life, finding scores on nine of their next ten possessions to head into the final four minutes of the half with the game tied 31-31. Mercer came out of the stoppage hot, grabbing a 12-5 run, forcing the Terriers to head into the locker room with the deficit, 36-43.
Holmes opened the second half with a mid-range jumper, a defensive rebound, and an assist within one minute. The Terriers started this half with a 7-0 run as well, tying the game up, before the Bears found a three-pointer to open their account.
Brian Sumpter cashed a floater over Mercer's center to grab the lead, 47-46, just before the first media timeout.
The teams went back-and-forth with scoring, as neither team was able to pull away by more than three points over the next four minutes.
Kahmare Holmes and
Cayden Vasko converted crucial buckets, leading to a timeout from the Mercer bench after Wofford mounted a 63-57 lead. The Bears came out of the stoppage with a 6-0 run before
Chace Watley drained a three to stop their momentum. Holmes added a contested second-chance layup to give Wofford a seven-point lead heading into the final eight minutes of the game, 70-63.
The Terrier offense continued after the stop, as Holmes converted an and one play to give the Terriers an 8-0 run and a double-digit lead. Mercer was held to only points from the line for six minutes as the Bears had eight for eight while Wofford scored 11 points in that time. In a matter of three possessions, the Terrier lead shrank to four as Mercer went on a 7-0 run. The Wofford bench called for a timeout with 3:25 left on the clock, the Terriers still in control, 76-72.
Wofford's lead dwindled to one point as the Bears were able to force multiple turnovers, grabbing three more points for their scoring run.
Kahmare Holmes went two for two from the line, but Mercer was able to score on the other end, leaving 31 seconds on the clock. Both teams were in the bonus, as Watley was fouled and converted both free throws to hold off the Bears, 80-77.
Inside the Numbers
Up Next
The Terriers travel to Tennessee for their match against Chattanooga on Thursday, January 29. Wofford is set to tip off against the Mocs at 7 p.m. Listen along on the Wofford Digital Network or watch on ESPN+ and Nexstar/CW62.
