TAAC report

SportsLine.com Report
April 15, 2000

Mercer started the season slowly, but the promise provided by the Bears to end the season should have people excited in Macon for the first time in quite a while.

Riding a big freshman from tiny St. Mary's in the Peach State, the Bears advanced to the TAAC semifinals, a five-point loss away from a spot opposite Samford in the conference championship game.

Scott Emerson, the aforementioned freshman, opened a number of eyes during his debut season, particularly during the conference tournament, where he was the most dominant player on any team and was the only member of the All-Tournament team not to play in the final.

Mark Slonaker's team saved their best for last, winning six of the final nine contests, including a pair of victories against regular season champ and tourney top seed Troy State.

The end of the season was definitely better than the beginning, when the team lost top rebounder Mark Adamson, top scorer Earnest Brown, and center Terry Lawyer.

However, Mercer persevered behind unlikely additions like Emerson, Torris Woolfolk, and Justin Howard. Woolfolk came over as a gradate student and gave his all in his only season of eligibility as an underweight power forward.

Howard, a 6-foot-10, 300-pounder who moved Emerson to power forward also made great strides, and coincidentally stepped into the starting lineup as the team made its late surge.

There is plenty of hope and reasons for it in Macon.

A glance at 2001

Emerson holds the program's future squarely on his shoulders. His improvement and Howard's ability to continue to round into shape will loom large when discussing the team's chances. Point guards Josh Sagester and Korey McCray are both back, which is good news considering Sagester took over at the point to spark the team's resurgence.

At the wing, scorers Rodney Kirtz and Chris Hill also return, backed up by Noel West, Aleem Muhammad and Vladimir Zujovic. All will be seniors and form a solid supporting cast for Emerson to lead.

The Coach

Slonaker has done a good job in helping rebuild a Mercer program that had become accustomed to figuring at the bottom of the conference standings. Although the team finished as the TAAC's eighth seed last year, the talent Slonaker has recruited is still maturing and provides room for expectations to grow.

Who'll Be Back

West, Sagester, Muhammad, and McCray are interchangeable at the point and two guard, giving Slonaker an array of versatile performers. Hill and Kirtz are the likely starters on the wing, with Zujovic, who saw more and more time as the season progressed, providing depth. Emerson and Howard will man the post, and will be backed up by a trio of incoming freshmen. Also back are little used Jay Vickers, Wesley Duke, John Pat Pickles, and Eddie Holland.

Who's Gone

Woolfolk was a great stopgap in Adamson's absence, invigorating the team with his desire to get things done. Brown, an Auburn transfer, left the school, while center Jesse McMillan should be easily replaced.

Key Newcomers

Slonaker was able to recruit a trio of forwards which should provide depth behind the Emerson/Howard combination. Ryan Boles (6-7, 185) and Bobby Hansen (6-9, 210) will likely need to put on some weight, but Lawrenceville, Ga.'s Andrew Walker (6-9, 225) could be physically ready for the TAAC wars in the paint.