Ayeni’s career day fuels Mocs back to the top

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (UTC Athletics) — Behind a career-high 18 points from Josh Ayeni and a blistering second half shooting performance, the Chattanooga Mocs men’s basketball team got back to its winning ways with a 77-68 victory over Mercer in Southern Conference action on Saturday afternoon in McKenzie Arena.

Chattanooga improves to 19-5 overall and 9-2 in SoCon action following the win on national TV (ESPNU). The Mocs move back into first place in the league standings following a Furman (9-3) loss to UNCG on Saturday. Mercer falls to 13-11 overall and 6-5 in the conference.

Ayeni, who started in replace of an unavailable Silvio De Sousa, went 8-of-10 from the field including a perfect 2-for-2 performance from three to rack up his career high of 18. The Mocs went 19-of-27 (70.4%) from the floor in the second half to help erase a four-point (36-32) halftime deficit and turn the tides in the Roundhouse.

“The guys competed at a really high level in the second half. Defensively, being able to hold them to 68 in the game… there were a few things we didn’t manage well but I was happy how we played defensively in the second half,” said head coach Lamont Paris.

“Overall, great effort by our guys and I mean that in the truest sense. The effort was really high, and it was fun watching Josh Ayeni have a really good game. Now, we’re on to the next one, back-to-back with Mercer.”

HOW IT HAPPENED
Both teams came out scoring to open the game as Mercer connected on a pair of threes while Josh Ayeni tried to keep pace with two jumpers inside the arc as the Bears took an early 10-8 lead at the first media timeout (15:09). Grant Ledford and A.J. Caldwell knocked down threes in consecutive possessions to put UTC ahead 16-13 a few minutes later.

Mercer responded with a 9-1 run on the help of two threes and a couple defensive stops to build a 22-17 lead with 9:04 remaining in the first half. Ayeni hit from beyond the arc for his seventh point of the day to stop the run before the visitors held a 24-22 lead at the under eight media (6:49).

Chattanooga regained the lead, 31-30 (3:24), on a strong finish at the rim from David Jean-Baptiste before Mercer ended the first half on a 6-1 run to take a 36-32 lead into the break. UTC shot just 37.0% (10-of-27) from the floor in the half while seeing its opposition shoot an even 50.0% (12-of-24) which included a 41.7% (5-of-12) mark from three.

The Mocs quickly erased the halftime deficit with a burst of offense that saw five of the team’s first six attempts from the floor go down. KC Hankton gave the hosts a one-point lead, 42-41, at the first media timeout (15:51). Hankton once again separated the team’s in favor of UTC, connecting on a hook shot in the paint to make it 48-46 (12:33).

Ledford sparked the team in the coming minutes, scoring five-straight points including a three to put the Mocs ahead 58-53 with 8:56 remaining in the contest. The two teams traded buckets as both were highly-efficient on the offensive end, brining the UTC lead to 62-60 with 5:57 on the board.

It was Ledford again, this time snagging a crucial offensive rebound that directly led to a Caldwell three to push the lead to 67-62 with 3:55. Mercer could never cut it to less than five down the stretch as UTC closed it out, going by as much as 11 before finalizing a 77-68 victory.

The difference was a strong shooting display in the second half for Chattanooga. The Mocs shot a blistering 70.4% (19-of-27) from the field that included a 66.7% (4-of-6) tally from beyond the arc. In addition, UTC forced 12 Mercer turnovers that led to 19 points while the former took care of the ball with just six giveaways that produced two points.

Malachi Smith took over in the second half, scoring 18 points on 7-of-8 shooting from the floor to finish with a game-high 22 points. Ayeni’s career day saw 18 points on an 8-of-10 FG performance that included a 2-of-2 mark from three.

RECORDS – Chattanooga (19-5, 9-2 SoCon) – Mercer (13-11, 6-5 SoCon)

SERIES – Chattanooga now leads the all-time series 42-41. The two teams will meet again on Monday night.

NOTES TO KNOW
– Chattanooga is back on top of the SoCon standings at 9-2, a half-game ahead of Furman’s 9-3 mark… Mercer (6-5) and VMI (6-5) are tied for third with UNCG (5-6) and Wofford (5-6) rounding out the top 5… Wofford hosts ETSU today so the fifth-place tie will be broken… UNCG won 58-56 at Furman.

– 83rd all-time meeting with Mercer but just 15th in conference play…odd note, the squads have not met in the SoCon Tournament since the Bears joined the league in 2014-15… the win marked Chattanooga’s 450th all-time SoCon victory.

– Career-high 18 points for Josh Ayeni… 8-10 FG and 2-2 3pt to account for his scoring… added three rebounds… +10 for 23:09 on the floor was second only to Malachi Smith’s +13… Ayeni is six points shy of 600 for his career spanning 111 games at Chattanooga (47), St. Bonaventure (56) and South Alabama (8).

Check out all the notes at the link above.

QUOTABLE
“That guy. After the game he told me, ‘see I want to win, man.’ He is a competitive guy. It was fun to watch him flourish on the offensive side of the ball instead of normally his main role is to defend and rebound. In the last game, we ran a play for josh to take a jump shot, I don’t value those a lot normally, but that’s his deal. He made that and then he was off to the races today. That’s my real enjoyment… seeing a guy flourish like that.” – head coach Lamont Paris on Josh Ayeni.

“I think we were a lot more active setting screens and in the post. We were just trying to make winning plays and get each other open.” – Grant Ledford on the difference in the second half.

Check out all the quotes at the link above.

UP NEXT – Chattanooga at Mercer – Mon., Feb. 7 – 7PM ET – 2021-22 Schedule

SOCON SCOREBOARD
UNCG 58, at Furman 56
at The Citadel 107, Samford 93
at Wofford 62, ETSU 60