Holtman and Mercer host Furman

Furman Paladins (11-8, 3-1 SoCon) at Mercer Bears (12-6, 2-1 SoCon)

Macon, Georgia; Thursday, 7 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: Mercer faces Furman after Abby Holtman scored 22 points in Mercer’s 76-67 win against the Samford Bulldogs.

The Bears are 6-1 on their home court. Mercer is seventh in the SoCon with 21.7 defensive rebounds per game led by Nahawa Diarra Berthe averaging 3.8.

The Paladins are 3-1 against SoCon opponents. Furman has a 3-7 record against teams above .500.

Mercer’s average of 5.4 made 3-pointers per game this season is just 0.5 fewer made shots on average than the 5.9 per game Furman gives up. Furman averages 9.2 more points per game (71.2) than Mercer gives up (62.0).

The matchup Thursday is the first meeting of the season between the two teams in conference play.

TOP PERFORMERS: Holtman averages 2.4 made 3-pointers per game for the Bears, scoring 11.4 points while shooting 39.8% from beyond the arc. Ariana Bennett is averaging 12.4 points over the last 10 games.

Clare Coyle is averaging 14.4 points, 8.4 rebounds and 2.1 steals for the Paladins. Alyssa Ervin is averaging 2.0 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Bears: 7-3, averaging 68.7 points, 34.1 rebounds, 11.9 assists, 10.4 steals and 4.4 blocks per game while shooting 38.0% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 61.8 points per game.

Paladins: 7-3, averaging 76.8 points, 38.2 rebounds, 15.2 assists, 15.1 steals and 4.3 blocks per game while shooting 42.2% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 54.3 points.

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.