ASHEVILLE, N.C. — With senior forward Frank Champion going down earlier in the week with a lower-body injury, the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga needed the next man to step up as the Mocs tipped off postseason play.
On a veteran-laden basketball team that has touted its depth throughout the season, it was Makai Richards’ turn Saturday.
Richards finished with 10 points and five rebounds in 20 minutes of game action in the quarterfinals of the Southern Conference tournament, and the 6-foot-10, 225-pound redshirt junior was one of five UTC scorers in double figures as the top-seeded Mocs used a dominant second-half performance to defeat eighth-seeded Mercer 76-61.
The regular-season champions improved to 24-8 overall and advanced to Sunday’s semifinal round seeking a spot in Monday’s title game, where the winner secures the SoCon’s automatic bid in the 68-team field for the NCAA Division I tournament. ESPNU will televise both men’s semifinals, along with the SoCon women’s final between top-seeded UNC Greensboro and second-seeded UTC, which has a noon tipoff.
Champion, a fifth-year senior who played four seasons at Division II’s North Georgia, was named the SoCon newcomer of the year in league awards announced earlier in the week after the 6-7, 220-pounder averaged 11.4 points, 4.7 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game. UTC, which did not announce his injury before Saturday, has listed Champion — also an All-SoCon second-team pick — as “day to day” and said he could return this postseason, with the Mocs locked into an NIT berth if they don’t make the NCAA bracket.
He wasn’t available Saturday, though. Richards was, and the University of the Pacific transfer made his first start for UTC in his 23rd appearance. He played 21 minutes, his most since 20 in the season opener against the University of Southern California, and reached double digits in points for the first time since scoring 17 against Bryant in late November.
“Every day I stay mentally ready, getting my mind right. Locking in on the scout, knowing the game plan,” Richards said. “I’m just always trying to be ready for the next move, getting ready for whatever’s to come.”
The Mocs shot 58% from the field in the second half of the midday matchup to rally after falling behind 34-28 to the Bears (14-19), who split with UTC during the regular season and were on the high of beating ninth-seeded Western Carolina 67-66 less than 24 hours before — Alex Holt layup had the winning layup with less than five seconds to play — in one of Friday’s two first-round games for the 10-team bracket.
Richards wasn’t the only UTC player who stepped up as Garrison Keeslar led the Mocs with a season-high 19 points while adding six rebounds and three assists. Keeslar and Richards got help from a trio of players who been among UTC’s best all season: All-SoCon first-team pick Honor Huff had 16 points (all in the second half), six rebounds and three steals, with 11 points each from second-team selections Trey Bonham (who also had six rebounds) and Bash Wieland (who also had five steals).
“Truth be told, we looked a little unsure of ourselves (in the first half),” said UTC’s Dan Earl, who in his third season with the Mocs was honored as the SoCon’s coach of the year. “I had a couple of choice words at halftime, and super proud of the guys’ response in the second half. I challenged some guys individually, challenged us collectively.”
The Mocs started the second half on a 20-4 run that was actually led by their defensive performance, which has often been a hit-or-miss aspect of the team this season. The run helped them build a 10-point lead, and it swelled to as much as 18 before the final buzzer.
Mercer shot 37% in the second half and turned the ball over 12 times, which led to 13 UTC points. The Mocs finished the game with 13 steals.
“Before the coaches got in the locker room, we had our own talk as players and we knew what we needed to do,” Keeslar said of regrouping at halftime. “We didn’t look like ourselves in the first half; we weren’t moving the ball well and our defense was solid, but honestly, loose balls and stuff like that that we usually get to, we weren’t getting to, so we talked about that and then Coach came in and let us hear it just a little bit and it woke us up. It lit a fire inside of us, but we shouldn’t need that.
“It should start in the first half. Right when the ball hits we should be ready to go, so next game we’ve got to be better.”
Jah Quinones had 17 points, Ahmad Robinson added 12 with with eight rebounds and four assists, and Tyler Johnson and Holt scored 11 apiece for Mercer, which ultimately missed on the upset.
Had the Bears pulled it off, they would have been seen as trend-setters: No. 7 seed Virginia Military Institute took down No. 2 seed UNC Greensboro in the day’s second quarterfinal, 64-57, while Wofford defied its No. 6 seed in the third game, winning 72-60 against No. 3 seed East Tennessee State and SoCon player of the year Quimari Peterson.
VMI (15-18) and Wofford (17-15) will meet in Sunday’s second semifinal, tentatively set for 6:30 p.m. after UTC’s 4 p.m. matchup against fifth-seeded Furman (24-8) — which completed the run of upsets with its 92-78 win against fourth-seeded Samford in the nightcap.
Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfreepress.com.