2016–17 Mercer Bears men's basketball team American college basketball season
The 2016–17 Mercer Bears men's basketball team represented Mercer University during the 2016–17 NCAA Division I men's basketball season . The Bears, led by ninth-year head coach Bob Hoffman , played their home games at Hawkins Arena on the university's Macon, Georgia campus as third-year members of the Southern Conference . They finished the season 15–17, 9–9 in SoCon play to finish in sixth place. They lost in the quarterfinals of the SoCon tournament to East Tennessee State .
Previous season
The Bears finished the 2015–16 season 19–15, 8–10 in SoCon play to finish in seventh place. They defeated The Citadel in the first round of the SoCon tournament to advance to the quarterfinals where they lost to East Tennessee State . They were invited to the CollegeInsider.com Tournament where they lost in the first round to Coastal Carolina .
Murder of Jibri Bryan
Jibri Bryan, a sixth-year senior, was shot and killed on February 2, 2016. He was found with a gunshot wound to the head in the driver's seat of a Chevy Monte Carlo parked in a convenience store in Macon, Georgia. Bryan played in six games in the 2015–16 season due to a knee injury, averaging 7.8 points per game. Jarvis Clinton Miller has been charged in the murder of Bryan after attempting to flee from the crime scene. In a statement, Mercer coach Bob Hoffman said, "Jibri Bryan was a special young man who was a great contributor to our team and did everything that was asked of him.[ 1]
Roster
2016–17 Mercer Bears men's basketball team
Players
Coaches
Pos.
#
Name
Height
Weight
Year
Hometown
F 0
Desmond Ringer 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 255 lb (116 kg)
RS Jr
McDonough, Georgia
F 1
Cory Kilby 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 195 lb (88 kg)
So
Ada, Oklahoma
G 2
Jaylen Stowe 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 200 lb (91 kg)
RS So
Harrisburg, North Carolina
G 3
Stephen Gavin 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 190 lb (86 kg)
So
Savannah, Georgia
G 5
Jordan Strawberry 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 175 lb (79 kg)
Jr
Anaheim, California
G 10
Ria'n Holland 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 152 lb (69 kg)
Jr
Fayetteville, North Carolina
G 13
Ryan Johnson 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 192 lb (87 kg)
RS So
Greensboro, North Carolina
G 14
Ethan Stair 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 205 lb (93 kg)
So
Hazel Green, Alabama
F 15
Stephon Jelks 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 225 lb (102 kg)
Jr
Marietta, Georgia
G 20
Darius Roy 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 170 lb (77 kg)
Fr
Lawton, Oklahoma
F 23
Demetre Rivers 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 180 lb (82 kg)
Jr
Ladson, South Carolina
F 23
Ross Cummings 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 165 lb (75 kg)
Fr
Dickson, Tennessee
G 25
Rashad Lewis 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) 156 lb (71 kg)
Jr
Valdosta, Georgia
C 33
Mac Brydon 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 280 lb (127 kg)
Fr
Charlotte, North Carolina
C 44
JJ N'Ganga 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 250 lb (113 kg)
RS Sr
Aubervilliers , France
C 55
Andrew Fishler 7 ft 1 in (2.16 m) 218 lb (99 kg)
RS Sr
Cumming, Georgia
Head coach Assistant coach(es) Legend (C) Team captain(S) Suspended(I) Ineligible(W) Walk-on
Schedule and results
[ 2]
Date
Rank#
Opponent#
Result
Record
Site (attendance)
Non-conference regular season
11/11/2016 *8:30 pm, ESPN3
Brewton–Parker W 87–53 1–0
Hawkins Arena Macon, GA
11/13/2016 *8:00 pm, ESPNU
vs. Florida
L 54–76 1–1
Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena Jacksonville, FL
11/20/2016 *2:00 pm
Georgia Southern Savannah Invitational W 80–67 2–1
Hawkins Arena (3,508)Macon, GA
11/22/2016 *7:00 pm, ASN
Radford Savannah Invitational W 58–47 3–1
Hawkins Arena (2,572)Macon, GA
11/25/2016 *5:00 pm, ESPN3
vs. East Carolina Savannah Invitational semifinals W 70–66 4–1
Savannah Civic Center Savannah, GA
11/26/2016 *7:30 pm
vs. Akron Savannah Invitational finals L 63–65 4–2
Savannah Civic Center (2,391)Savannah, GA
11/29/2016 *7:00 pm
Davidson L 57–78 4–3
Hawkins Arena (3,228)Macon, GA
12/03/2016 *4:00 pm
at George Mason
L 68–79 4–4
EagleBank Arena Fairfax, VA
12/07/2016 *7:00 pm, ESPN3
Oglethorpe W 98–41 5–4
Hawkins Arena (2,625)Macon, GA
12/10/2016 *4:00 pm, ACCN Extra
at Clemson
L 47–90 5–5
Littlejohn Coliseum Clemson, SC
12/18/2016 *1:00 pm, SECN
at Auburn
L 74–76 5–6
Auburn Arena Auburn, AL
12/22/2016 *7:00 pm, ASN
La Salle L 96–98 3OT
5–7
Hawkins Arena (3,272)Macon, GA
12/28/2016 *7:00 pm, ESPN3
at Kennesaw State
W 80–76 6–7
KSU Convocation Center Kennesaw, GA
SoCon regular season
12/31/2016 1:00 pm, ESPN3
at Wofford
L 71–88 6–8
Benjamin Johnson Arena Spartanburg, SC
01/02/2017 7:00 pm, ESPN3
at Furman
L 69–71 6–9
Timmons Arena Greenville, SC
01/05/2017 7:30 pm, ESPN3
VMI W 68–50 7–9
Hawkins Arena (2,754)Macon, GA
01/07/2017 4:30 pm, ESPN3
East Tennessee State L 58–67 7–10
Hawkins Arena (3,739)Macon, GA
01/11/2017 8:00 pm, ESPN3
at Samford
W 68–65 8–10
Pete Hanna Center Homewood, AL
01/14/2017 4:30 pm, ASN
Chattanooga L 68–70 8–11
Hawkins Arena (3,672)Macon, GA
01/19/2017 7:00 pm, ESPN3
at UNC Greensboro
L 66–68 8–12
Greensboro Coliseum Greensboro, NC
01/21/2017 2:00 pm, ESPN3
at Western Carolina
W 70–50 9–12
Ramsey Center Cullowhee, NC
01/28/2017 4:30 pm, ESPN3
The Citadel W 82–66 10–12
Hawkins Arena (4,328)Macon, GA
01/30/2017 7:00 pm, ASN
Western Carolina W 62–47 11–12
Hawkins Arena (2,789)Macon, GA
02/02/2017 7:00 pm, ESPN3
Furman L 68–70 11–13
Hawkins Arena (3,383)Macon, GA
02/04/2017 4:30 pm, ESPN3
Wofford L 62–65 11–14
Hawkins Arena (4,386)Macon, GA
02/09/2017 7:00 pm, ESPN3
at VMI
W 81–51 12–14
Cameron Hall Lexington, VA
02/11/2017 4:00 pm, ESPN3
at East Tennessee State
L 71–88 12–15
Freedom Hall Civic Center Johnson City, TN
02/18/2017 1:00 pm, ESPN3
at The Citadel
W 89–78 13–15
McAlister Field House Charleston, SC
02/22/2017 7:00 pm, ESPN3
UNC Greensboro L 66–72 13–16
Hawkins Arena (2,877)Macon, GA
02/25/2017 5:00 pm, ESPN3
at Chattanooga
W 64–54 14–16
McKenzie Arena Chattanooga, TN
02/27/2017 7:00 pm, ESPN3
Samford W 88–79 15–16
Hawkins Arena (3,021)Macon, GA
SoCon tournament
03/04/2017 8:30 pm, ESPN3
(6)
vs. (3) East Tennessee State Quarterfinals L 66–73 15–17
U.S. Cellular Center Asheville, NC
*Non-conference game.
# Rankings from
AP Poll . (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in
Eastern Time .
References
