By: by Jason Hanes
Box Score
MACON, Ga. - Gia Lockett scored 11 points but it wasn't enough as the Kennesaw State women's basketball team lost on regional television for the second straight year to Mercer, 60-38, on Saturday afternoon in an Atlantic Sun Conference game.
The Lady Owls struggled shooting the ball all afternoon, going just 12-of-64 from the field for a season-low 18.8 percentage. The poor shooting from the field was compounded by 12-of-26 shooting from the free-throw line for a 46.2 percent clip.
Mercer shot just 7-of-25 in the second half, but the game was decided in the first 20 minutes as the Bears jumped out to a 39-20 lead. With KSU ahead 4-2, a 13-0 run by Mercer translated into a 15-4 lead for the home team eight minutes into the contest. The Lady Owls (5-11, 2-5) kept the lead at 11, 20-9, but the Bears went on an 8-0 spurt to build the lead up to 19, 28-9. Mercer's lead got as high as 23, but the Lady Owls scored the final four points of the half to go into the locker room trailing by 19.
Mercer (9-8, 6-2) only outscored the Lady Owls by three in the second half, but the damage had mostly been done. KSU would rally, cutting the Mercer lead to 12, 49-37, with 8:31 remaining; however, the Lady Owls would score only once in that final period of the game, sending the Lady Owls to their sixth road loss on the season.
Lockett's 11 lead the Lady Owls, while Sametria Gideon had nine points and nine rebounds. KSU out-rebounded Mercer, 51-47, for the contest.
Courtney Ford recorded a double-double for Mercer, scoring 14 points and grabbing 12 rebounds. Kourtney Taylor led all scorers with 18 points for the Bears.
The Lady Owls will be back in action Monday evening at 7 p.m. in Spartanburg, S.C., when they face USC Upstate in an A-Sun contest.
