The ETSU Lady Bucs closed a five-game home stand against their Atlantic Sun rival, Mercer Bears.ETSU looked to stay perfect in the final game of their home stretch before hitting the road for a tough swing through Florida. ETSU came off a little slow, but warmed up to put a bruising 100-62 ETSU victory over the Bears.

ETSU struggled to make shots early in the game, allowing Mercer to take an early lead but a layup by Tara Davis got the Lady Bucs offense rolling. The Bears tried to stop ETSU from stretching the lead by too much, but the Bears’ defense was unable to stop a dominating 52-27 ETSU lead at halftime. ETSU excelled from the field shooting over 50 percent from the field and 100 percent from the free-throw line.

“We were able to get the ball moving,” said Natalie Pickwell. “This meant we were able to get open looks and we were making those shots.”

The Lady Bucs come out strong in the second half, picking up from where they left off. They outscored Mercer 10-6 in the first four minutes of the half. The Lady Bucs led by as much as 48 as they cruised in for a crushing 100-62 victory over the Bears.

“I asked for 35-minutes and they gave me a strong 35-minutes,” said head coach Karen Kemp.

ETSU had six players in double-figures. They were led by junior Natalie Pickwell with 20. Tara Davis got in on the action, finishing with 14. Destiny Mitchell got her ninth double-double with 16 points and 11 rebounds. Latisha Belcher continued her dominant showing with 13 points. The ETSU bench contributed with 15 points from Iesha Robinson. and 14 from Gwen Washington. ETSU also broke their season-high in assists with 22, steals with 15 and shot a perfect 100 percent from the free-throw line.

Kemp also set a milestone – this was her 250th victory.

“We feel like we can be strong like coach Kemp,” Davis said. “She has worked hard for this program so we work hard for her.”

ETSU now hits the road for a two-game road swing against Stetson and A-Sun leader Florida Gulf Coast before returning home to face off against North Florida on Feb. 12 at 1:30 p.m.

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