CHATTANOOGA – The Chattanooga Mocs men's basketball team used an extremely strong defensive effort in the second half while freshmen Sam Alexis and Brody Robinson combined for 36 points to help capture a crucial 73-56 victory over Mercer in Southern Conference action on Saturday afternoon in McKenzie Arena.

Following the nationally televised victory, Chattanooga improves to 14-13 overall and 6-8 inside SoCon action. Mercer falls to 12-15 overall and 5-9 inside league action after the defeat.
 
Locked up 54-54, Chattanooga ended the game on a 19-2 run while holding Mercer to a 1-of-11 finish from the floor including zero points in the final 7:54 of game time. Once trailing by 10 late in the first half, the Mocs erased a double-digit deficit against the Bears for the second time in the last three seasons with the last coming on January 13, 2021.
 
"It was good to get a win. It was not our best basketball in the first half and early in the second half. We had a little bit of a spirited timeout, and I thought our guys responded really well," said head coach Dan Earl after the game.
 
"I think we got 13 stops down the stretch which really helped us. Proud of the guys and it's nice to get two in-a-row. We'll see if we can keep it rolling."
 
Alexis finished with a game-high 26 points on 10-of-14 shooting including a 4-of-6 mark from three while also grabbing six rebounds. Jamal Johnson posted 17 points and hauled in a career-high 11 rebounds. Robinson added 10 points on 4-of-5 shooting (2-of-3 3PT) and finished +15 in the +/- category.

HOW IT HAPPENED
Chattanooga struggled to open the game with an 0-of-4 start from the field which lead to a 9-1 deficit at the first media timeout (15:46). Freshman Brody Robinson converted a layup and three ball before fellow rookie Sam Alexis found the net from deep to provide a spark and pull UTC within six, 16-10 (10:32).
 
Robinson and Alexis continued to provide the offensive output for the Mocs, combining for 17 of the team's 23 points as the team cut the early deficit to two, 25-23 (6:03). Jamal Johnson connected on his first three of the game ahead of the first half buzzer to make it 38-33 in favor of the visitors at the break.
 
Mercer went 4-of-6 from the floor to start the second half which opened a nine-point lead, 46-37, at the 17:46 mark. Dalvin White knocked down a second-chance three-pointer before a defensive stop and KC Hankton basket forced a Mercer timeout and brought the hosts within four, 46-42 (16:15).
 
The run continued to total 12-straight points and was capped off on a Johnson three to give UTC its second lead of the game, 49-46, with 14:55 left in the game. The Mocs saw its largest lead of the game, 54-48, after an Alexis layup before Mercer responded with a quick three to make it 54-51 with 11:24 on the board.
 
After a 54-54 tie, Chattanooga ended the game on a 19-2 run and held the Bears scoreless for the final 7:54 to pull away for a crucial 73-56 victory. Mercer went just 7-of-26 (26.9%) from the field in the second half including a 1-of-11 mark (9.1%) from three.

RECORDS/SERIES – Chattanooga 14-13, 6-8 SoCon · Mercer 12-15, 5-9 SoCon · Series: Chattanooga now leads the series 46-41.

NOTES TO KNOW
- Chattanooga outscored Mercer 32-14 in points in the paint… the +18 difference is the most against an opponent this season… UTC shot 54.5% (18-of-33) from inside the arc during the victory.

 - Chattanooga held Mercer scoreless for the final 7:54… 13-straight defensive stops… held the Bears to a 1-of-11 finish from the floor… 7-of-26 (26.9%) mark over the final 20 minutes.

- The Mocs improved to 10-0 this season when shooting 40.0% or better from three…6-0 in SoCon games… finished the game 9-of-22 (40.9%) from deep… 5-of-10 (50.0%) in the second half.

QUOTES
Dan Earl on the play of Brody Robinson.
"Brody is an awesome kid. He brings it every day in practice, he's so coachable. We talk about finding that intensity, you never have to get more out of him. He plays hard all the time. At times you almost want to slow him down. He really impacted the game and gave us a lift. I'm really proud of him. He made some big shots and had a major impact on the game."
 
Sam Alexis on the team's defensive intensity.
"It's effort. We play hard. Even in practice we play hard. We're always trying to get stops. We didn't allow Mercer to score for the final seven minutes, that's what we try to do."

NEXT UP – at VMI – Wednesday, Feb. 15 – 7:00 p.m. ET – Lexington, Va. – ESPN+

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