Bears drop another one in final seconds

For the second time in a week, the Mercer men’s basketball team fell short in the final seconds, dropping a 68-66 contest Thursday night at UNC-Greensboro.

A 3-pointer by Diante Baldwin with five seconds remaining gave UNC-Greensboro its first lead since the 13:48 mark of the second half. Mercer was unable to get a good look at the basket after that, with Mercer making two free throws and UNC-Greensboro making one.

Saturday, Mercer lost 70-68 to Chattanooga.

Jordan Strawberry paced Mercer with 20 points, while Ria’n Holland added 14. Francis Alonso scored 26 for UNC-Greensboro, which overcame a nine-point deficit in the final minutes.

Mercer (8-12, 2-5 Southern Conference) is at Western Carolina at 2 p.m. on Saturday before returning home Jan. 28 against The Citadel.