Women’s basketball (1-0) defeated the University of North Carolina–Asheville (0-1) in their season opener on the road on Monday, 48-39. The Bears’ defense shone in a game where they forced 28 turnovers, leading to their fourth straight win over the Bulldogs, who play in the Big South Conference.
With the win, the Bears now improve to 2-0 in season openers under Head Coach Michelle Clark-Heard. Forward Ariana Bennett ‘26 led the team in scoring with 10 points, followed by guards Micah O’Dell ‘27 with eight and Abigail Holtman '27 with six. Guard Talia Harris ‘28 added eight points in 20 minutes off the bench.
In the first game of the season, both teams struggled with taking care of the ball and converting shots. Throughout the game, there were 50 combined turnovers, a rare occurrence, but one that Mercer has struggled with under Clark-Heard. Last year, the team was last in the Southern Conference in assist/turnover ratio, struggling with mistakes especially during the latter half of the season, when they faltered in a five-game conference losing skid.
The Bears capitalized on the Bulldogs' mistakes in the game, though, scoring nearly half of their points off of Asheville turnovers and holding the team to an almost nine-minute scoring drought in the middle two quarters. Mercer was strong defensively as well, racking up 12 steals and 20 defensive rebounds.
While they got off to a strong start in the first quarter, leading 19-9 after 10 minutes, the Bears struggled in the second quarter. Mercer was outscored 12-6 while going 0-14 from the field, relying on free throws to maintain their lead. Mercer's defense continued to cause Asheville problems, producing eight turnovers, and making the home team go 2-12 from the field before halftime.
The Bears came roaring back after the break with their most efficient quarter of the game, shooting 4-11 while giving up just two points. Even as the Bulldogs outscored Mercer in the fourth quarter and cut the deficit, the Bears held strong to secure the victory while all but one player racked up double-digit minutes in the win.
The team will have their home opener on Thursday in a tough matchup against Clemson University. Mercer is 1-2 against the Tigers in Hawkins Arena, and last faced off against them in a 2023 loss, 90-66. Tipoff is at 7 p.m.
Nevaeh Wilson '28 is majoring in Journalism and minoring in Film Studies. She has been writing for The Cluster since her freshman year, and has worked for Mercer's ESPN studio. She enjoys watching college and professional sporting events.
