Frierson, Najdawi help The Citadel hold off Mercer, 76-76

Jan 27, 2018, 11:39 pm

MACON, Ga. -- Matt Frierson hit four 3-pointers and finished with 14 points and Zane Najdawi scored 11 of his 13 in the second half as The Citadel held on for a 76-74 win over Mercer on Saturday.

Najdawi made a 3 to give The Citadel a 16-point lead with eight minutes left and his layup about three minutes later made it 65-53. Ross Cummings scored five points and Jordan Strawberry had four during a 9-0 run that trimmed Mercer's deficit to three points with two minutes to go, but the Bulldogs responded with a 9-2 spurt to make it 74-64 with 18 seconds left.

The Bears scored 10 of the last 12 points, capped by Strawberry's 3 just before the buzzer.

The Citadel hit six of their 14 3-pointers during a 26-3 run over nine-plus minutes to take a 56-43 lead with nine minutes left. Mercer missed eight consecutive field-goal attempts and went scoreless for seven-plus minutes over that span.

Kaelon Harris and Quayson Williams had 13 points apiece for The Citadel (7-13, 2-6 Southern Conference). The Bulldogs snapped a 13-game skid against Mercer and beat the Bears in Macon for the first time since a 50-15 win on Feb. 10, 1927.

Strawberry scored a season-high 22 points for Mercer (10-12, 3-6), which has lost three in a row. Cummings added 16 points, including four 3-pointers -- both career highs.