MACON, Ga. – The UNCG men's basketball team rallied from a 15-point second half effort and made it a one possession game with 1:55 left in the game, but the Spartans fell just short against Mercer 55-50 Saturday afternoon at Hawkins Arena. The Spartans return to action Thursday night as they play their final road game of the regular season, travelling to Southern Conference leader Wofford.

Redshirt sophomore center R.J. White (Frisco, Texas/Frisco) came off the bench and dominated in the game, scoring a game-high 19 points in 24 minutes. White connected on 8-of-9 from the field, including his first seven shots, while hitting 3-of-4 from the free throw line. He scored 13 points in the second half as the Spartans mounted their comeback attempt. Senior guard Nicholas Paulos (Salt Lake City, Utah/New Hampton School) added 12 points and five assists as he was 4-of-7 from 3-point land in the loss.

The Spartans finished the game shooting 37.7 percent (20-of-53) from the field but only 26.9 percent in the first half as they fell behind by 11 points at the break. Mercer was able to hold the Spartans, other than White and Paulos, to just 6-of-36 (16.6%) from the field in the victory. The Bears connected on 44.7 percent (21-of-47) from the field and hit just 3-of-11 (27.3%) from distance. Darious Moten led Mercer with 13 points while Phillip Leonard had 10 points, six rebounds and four assists.

The two teams came out and traded hard fought points for the first eight minutes of the game with Mercer holding a 10-9 lead. Paulos hit an early 3-pointer while White came off the bench and scored two early baskets.

After freshman Marvin Smith (Richmond, Va./Fork Union Military Academy) hit a 3-pointer to make it a 17-15 Mercer lead, the Bears scored seven straight points to take a 24-15 lead. Jibri Bryan capped the run as he hit a 3-pointer from the corner. The Spartans scored five straight points to pull within four at 24-20 when Paulos hit his third 3-pointer but the Bears ended the half with seven straight points to take a 31-20 lead at halftime.

The Spartans were held to just 26.9 percent (7-of-26) shooting from the field but hit 4-of-10 (40%) from long range. Paulos led UNCG with nine first half points as he hit 3-of-4 from distance while White added six points off the bench. Mercer connected on 50 percent (13-of-26) from the field and hit 3-of-7 (42.9%) from long range in the half. Bryan led the Bears with nine points while Darious Moten chipped in seven points.  

Mercer came out of the break and quickly extended the lead to 37-22 with a 6-1 start. Ike Nwamu scored four points in the early going of the second half to raise the lead to 15 points. The Bears maintained their double digit for a majority of the second half until holding a 49-35 lead with 8:54 left as Bryan scored in the paint.

The Spartans put the Bears on their heals and scored seven straight to pull within seven at 49-42. Paulos started the run with a 3-pointer before White went to work in the paint on back-to-back possessions. After the Bears extended the lead back to nine at 53-44, the Spartans scored six straight to make it a one-possession game with 1:55 left at 53-50. Junior guard Asad Lamot (Mebane, N.C./Lees-McRae) hit a 3-pointer while White converted an old-fashioned 3-point play during the run.

The Spartans needed to play defense and held the Bears in check but allowed back-to-back offensive rebounds, which allowed Mercer to run the clock down. UNCG forced Nwamu into a bad shot and White secured the defensive rebound giving the Spartans a chance to set up a look at a game-tying 3-pointer with 15 seconds left. The Spartans got the ball into Paulos' hands and he was able to get a contested look off, but it was off the mark and Mercer corralled the rebound. The Bears iced the game by hitting a pair of free throws to secure the victory.

Lamot came off the bench and provided a spark in the second half, scoring five points in 15 minutes. Saddler added a team-high six assists and five rebounds but was held to two points.

The Spartans wrap up their road schedule Thursday night as they travel to Spartanburg, S.C., to face SoCon leader Wofford. Game time is set for 7 p.m.

-UNCG-