2023–24 Mercer Bears men's basketball team

The 2023–24 Mercer Bears men's basketball team represents Mercer University in the 2023–24 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Bears, led by fifth-year head coach Greg Gary, play their home games at Hawkins Arena in Macon, Georgia as a member of the Southern Conference.

2023–24 Mercer Bears men's basketball
Conference	Southern Conference
Record	3–6 (0–0 SoCon)
Head coach	Greg Gary (5th season)
Assistant coaches	Bobby Kummer Kim Lewis D.J. Byrd
Home arena	Hawkins Arena
Seasons ← 2022–23 2024–25 →

2023–24 Southern Conference men's basketball standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		PCT			W		L		PCT
UNC Greensboro	0	–	0		–			8	–	1		.889
Samford	0	–	0		–			8	–	2		.800
Western Carolina	0	–	0		–			7	–	2		.778
Chattanooga	0	–	0		–			6	–	3		.667
East Tennessee State	0	–	0		–			5	–	4		.556
The Citadel	0	–	0		–			6	–	5		.545
Wofford	0	–	0		–			5	–	5		.500
Furman	0	–	0		–			5	–	6		.455
Mercer	0	–	0		–			3	–	6		.333
VMI	0	–	0		–			2	–	9		.182
† 2024 SoCon tournament winner As of December 15, 2023 Rankings from AP Poll

Previous season

The Bears finished the 2022–23 season 14–19, 6–12 in SoCon play to finish in eighth place. They defeated The Citadel in the first round of the SoCon tournament,^[1] before losing to Furman in the quarterfinals.^[2]

Roster

2023–24 Mercer Bears men's basketball team
Players	Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Hometown G 0 Jah Quinones 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 225 lb (102 kg) So Orlando, FL G 1 Anthony Benard 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) 170 lb (77 kg) Fr Detroit, MI G 2 Michael Zanoni 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 195 lb (88 kg) So Charlotte, NC G 3 Jalen Cobb 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 170 lb (77 kg) GS Decatur, GA F 5 Jalyn McCreary 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 225 lb (102 kg) RS Sr Marietta, GA F 6 Alex Holt 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Jr Lexington, NC F 8 Amanze Ngumezi 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 245 lb (111 kg) GS Savannah, GA F 9 Earnest Ofremu 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Fr Powder Springs, GA G 10 Caleb Hunter 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Jr Detroit, MI G 11 Robby Carmody 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 195 lb (88 kg) GS Mars, PA G 12 David Thomas 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Fr McDonough, GA F 14 TJ Grant 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 210 lb (95 kg) So Warner Robins, GA F 15 Jake Davis 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Fr McCordsville, IN G 22 Lukas Platauna 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Fr Savannah, GA C 23 Sidy Diallo 7 ft 2 in (2.18 m) 210 lb (95 kg) So Dakar, Senegal	Head coach Greg Gary (Tulane) Assistant coach(es) Bobby Kummer (Charlotte) Kim Lewis (Tulane) D.J. Byrd (Purdue) Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible (W) Walk-on   Injured   Current redshirt Roster Last update: November 25, 2023

Schedule and results

Date time, TV	Rank^#	Opponent^#	Result	Record	Site (attendance) city, state
Non-conference regular season
November 6, 2023* 7:00 pm, ESPN+		Clark Atlanta	L 64–71	0–1	Hawkins Arena (1,272) Macon, GA
November 9, 2023* 8:00 pm		at Chicago State	W 66–61	1–1	Jones Convocation Center (233) Chicago, IL
November 14, 2023* 7:00 pm, ESPN+		at Morehead State	L 66–74	1–2	Ellis Johnson Arena (1,455) Morehead, KY
November 17, 2023* 8:00 pm, SECN+/ESPN+		at No. 22 Alabama Emerald Coast Classic campus site game	L 67–98	1–3	Coleman Coliseum (10,300) Tuscaloosa, AL
November 24, 2023* 12:00 pm		vs. Tennessee State Emerald Coast Classic semifinals	W 60–59	2–3	The Arena at NFSC (100) Niceville, FL
November 25, 2023* 1:30 pm		vs. Western Michigan Emerald Coast Classic championship	L 66–72	2–4	The Arena at NFSC (150) Niceville, FL
December 1, 2023* 7:00 pm, SECN+/ESPN+		at Georgia	L 69–80	2–5	Stegeman Coliseum (5,694) Athens, GA
December 6, 2023* 11:00 am, ESPN+		South Alabama	L 62–83	2–6	Hawkins Arena (3,207) Macon, GA
December 9, 2023* 2:00 pm, ESPN+		Georgia State	W 64–60	3–6	Hawkins Arena (1,527) Macon, GA
December 16, 2023* 2:00 pm, ESPN+		Florida Gulf Coast			Hawkins Arena  Macon, GA
December 19, 2023* 7:00 pm, ESPN+		Queens			Hawkins Arena  Macon, GA
December 21, 2023* 1:00 pm, ESPN+		Thomas			Hawkins Arena  Macon, GA
December 29, 2023* 7:00 pm, ESPN+		Talladega			Hawkins Arena  Macon, GA
SoCon regular season
January 3, 2024 7:00 pm, ESPN+		at East Tennessee State			Freedom Hall Civic Center  Johnson City, TN
January 6, 2024 1:00 pm, ESPN+		at VMI			Cameron Hall  Lexington, Virginia
January 10, 2024 12:00 pm, ESPN+		Wofford			Hawkins Arena  Macon, GA
January 13, 2024 2:00 pm, ESPN+		Western Carolina			Hawkins Arena  Macon, GA
January 17, 2024 7:00 pm, ESPN+		Chattanooga			Hawkins Arena  Macon, GA
January 20, 2024 12:00 pm, ESPN+		at Samford			Pete Hanna Center  Homewood, AL
January 24, 2024 7:00 pm, ESPN+		at The Citadel			McAlister Field House  Charleston, SC
January 27, 2024 7:00 pm, ESPN+		at UNC Greensboro			Greensboro Coliseum  Greensboro, NC
January 31, 2024 7:00 pm, ESPN+		East Tennessee State			Hawkins Arena  Macon, GA
February 3, 2024 2:00 pm, ESPN+		VMI			Hawkins Arena  Macon, GA
February 7, 2024 7:00 pm, ESPN+		Furman			Hawkins Arena  Macon, GA
February 10, 2024 4:00 pm, ESPN+		at West Carolina			Ramsey Center  Cullowhee, NC
February 14, 2023 7:00 pm, ESPN+		at Wofford			Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium  Spartanburg, SC
February 17, 2024 2:00 pm, ESPN+		Samford			Hawkins Arena  Macon, GA
February 21, 2024 7:00 pm, ESPN+		The Citadel			Hawkins Arena  Macon, GA
February 24, 2024 4:30 pm, ESPN+		UNC Greensboro			Hawkins Arena  Macon, GA
February 28, 2024 7:00 pm, ESPN+		at Chattanooga			McKenzie Arena  Chattanooga, TN
March 2, 2024 5:00 pm, ESPN+		at Furman			Timmons Arena  Greenville, SC
*Non-conference game. ^#Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern.

Sources^[3][4]

References

1. "Bears Roll Past The Citadel in Tournament Opener". Mercer University Athletics. 2023-03-03. Retrieved 2023-11-25.
2. "Mercer Succumbs to Furman Second-Half Comeback". Mercer University Athletics. 2023-03-04. Retrieved 2023-11-25.
3. "2023-24 Men's Basketball Schedule". Mercer University Athletics. Retrieved November 25, 2023.
4. "2023-24 Mercer Bears Schedule". ESPN. Retrieved November 25, 2023.