Brandon Moore had no doubt the Georgia Bulldogs were going to have to give a great effort to come out with a win Thursday night at the University Center.

And while the Mercer star was disappointed with the final outcome (a 56-53 Georgia win), Moore saw many positives he feels will help his team for the rest of the year.

“We had a great few weeks of practice, and we knew exactly what they were going to do,” said Moore, who had missed Mercer’s previous game with a concussion. “They hit us with a big run at the beginning, but I felt like we never lost our focus. You have to give them credit, though, because they found a way to win the ballgame. “

Moore, a senior, did not start the game, but it took head coach Bob Hoffman only about a minute to call his name.

“I didn’t mind not starting, but I was hoping it wouldn’t take long to get in,” said Moore, who finished with 10 points. “The crowd was so great (Thursday) that it would have driven me crazy if I couldn’t have played. I had missed a lot of practice, and I am not in perfect shape, but the adrenaline took over pretty quickly.

“I don’t want to say it was a moral win for us, but I think we will be a much tougher team for the rest of the year.”

It was freshman Langston Hall’s first game playing in front of a packed home crowd.

“It was really exciting, and I wish we could have finished the game with a win,” Hall said. “I was here during the A-Sun tournament last year, and I saw how the crowd was then, and it was a big reason why I ended up coming here. I’m from Stone Mountain, so it was a big thrill to come out and play against Georgia.

“I thought I could have played a little better, but I know that it’s a learning process. Coach Hoffman is working us hard, and we will be ready for the rest of the season.”

Georgia’s Chris Barnes says his team knew what to expect when it came to Macon.

“We weren’t really surprised by how well they played,” said Barnes, who played 29 minutes and scored four points. “Even though we don’t play Mercer very often, it’s always a big game when you are playing another in state team. They brought in a great crowd and gave us all we could handle.

“(Head coach Mark) Fox told us when we were down 11 that we were not going to lose this game and that was all there was to it. It was nice to be able to turn it up in the last part of the game. This was our third game in the last six days, but give Mercer all the credit. They were ready for us.”