STATESBORO - Georgia Southern women's basketball broke open a one-point game at halftime with 53 second-half points to run past Mercer, 93-72, on Saturday evening at the Jack and Ruth Ann Hill Convocation Center.

The win by the Eagles (2-3) halted a six-game win streak in the series for the Bears (3-3), while also representing the first win against Mercer at home since 2009.

The first half between the two teams was quite even as both teams shot 50 percent or better from the field. The Eagles hit 16-of-28 shots (57.1%) while the Bears hit 17-of-34 shots (50%) as Georgia Southern led, 40-39, at the break. 

A three-point play by Mercer gave the Bears a brief 42-40 lead coming out of halftime, but the Eagles responded with a 14-2 run over the next four minutes to take a 54-44 lead midway through the third quarter and Georgia Southern maintained a double-digit lead the rest of the way. The Eagles outscored Mercer 53-33 in the second half and shot 20-of-31 from the floor (64.5%) after the break.

Five Eagles reached double figures on the night, led by 18 points by Shanti Simmons. Kishyah Anderson and Destiny Garrett added 15 points apiece, while McKenna Eddings chipped in 12 points and Kyla Bryant added 10.

Mercer had a trio of players in double figures, led by Ariana Bennett's 20 points - 16 of which came in the first half. Talia Kemp added 14 pints and Nahawa Diarra notched 11.

Eagle of the Game
Simmons hit 6-of-7 shots from the floor, including one three, and added 5-of-6 free throws en route to her team-high 18 points, her fourth double digit scoring performance in five games this season. She was one rebound shy of a double-double as she added nine boards, while also collecting two steals and notching an assist. 

Stat of the Game
Georgia Southern's 61% shooting from the floor was the first time the Eagles have shot 60 percent or better from the field against an NCAA Division I opponent since the Eagles shot 62.3 percent against Memphis on December 4, 1998.

Quotables
Head coach Hana Haden on the win over the Bears
"I thought it was just a great team effort tonight. We had five people in double figures, and I thought we shared the ball very well. We had such a huge emphasis on rebounding going into the game, so to outrebound them by a 41-23 margin, I'm really proud of the effort there and the attention to detail. I know that our team is proud to see that come to fruition."

Graduate student Shanti Simmons on the mindset of the team going into the game against Mercer
"We were really focused in practice on what we needed to do. Last game, we didn't execute and rebound well, so we came out determined that we were going to do better and execute better as a team."

Next Up
Georgia Southern begins a mini road swing on Tuesday, November 25, making the short trip to Charleston, S.C., to take on Charleston Southern in a 5 p.m. contest for the first of two away from home on Thanksgiving week.