- Saturday, February 25 1922 -
SIAA Tournament (at Atlanta, GA)
Kentucky
-
22
(Head
Coach:
George
C.
Buchheit)
-
[Final
Rank
]
| Player | FG | FT | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|
| William King | 0 | 4 | 4 |
| Bob Lavin | 0 | 6 | 6 |
| Paul Adkins | 4 | 0 | 8 |
| Gilbert Smith | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Lawrence Burnham | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Basil Hayden | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| Fred Fest | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| A. T. Rice | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Totals | 6 | 10 | 22 |
Mercer - 35 (Head Coach: Josh Cody)
| Player | FG | FT | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|
| Emmett "Bubber" Pope | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Consuello Smith | 3 | 0 | 6 |
| Robert Gamble | 4 | 0 | 8 |
| George Harmon | 5 | 11 | 21 |
| Ed "Smoky" Harper | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Manly McWilliams | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| I. Giddens Wilkes | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Totals | 12 | 11 | 35 |
| Prior Game | | | Next Game |
| Georgetown College 41 - 21 | | | Georgetown College 24 - 13 |
Three Great Battles Thrill Big Audience at the Auditorium
The Mercer Baptist pulled the biggest surprise of the tournament when they defeated the University of Kentucky, champions of 1921, by the score of 35 to 22. The game was spectacular from beginning to end and was so hotly fought at times that the play necessarily became too rough. For this reason several players were ejected on account of too many personal fouls.
Both teams were ready and waiting at the opening whistle and a field goal was rung up by both sides to start things off with. Then the Baptists shoved it into high and pulled away from the Kentuckians until the score was 12 to 2. They were never headed again. The score at the end of the first half was 18 to 10 in their favor.
In the second period Mercer never let up one whit and increased their lead even more. The play in this period was especially fierce and the players were sprawling all over the floor a large part of the time.
George Harmon, the flashy little guard of the Mercer team, goes the majority of the credit for his team's victory. Too much cannot be said in praise of his work. He was literally all over the floor at once and his long distance shooting was nothing short of uncanny. Several times he tossed the ball through the basket from over half the length of the court. In all he scored 21 points for the Baptist. Gamble, at center, was also a thorn in the side of the Kentuckians. For the losers, the playing of Atkins at center was best. He tried hard to stave off defeat, but Mercer was not to be stopped in this game. Lavin, at forward, was also a star.
Game Writeup - Atlanta Constitution
MERCER
35,
KENTUCKY
22 Kentucky
University,
champions
of
the
South,
a
title
earned
in
the
basketball
tournament
held
here
last
year,
were
tossed
from
their
throne
in
the
second
game
of
the
evening
program.
The
Mercer
Baptists,
coached
by
Joshua
Cody,
former
Vanderbilt
gridiron
hero
turning
the
trick,
35
to
22. George
Harmon,
running
guard
for
the
Immersionists,
played
the
greatest
game
of
his
career,
and
was
given
the
generous
assistance
of
his
comrades
in
separating
the
Kentuckians
from
their
crown.
Harmon's
work
was
perhaps
the
most
outstanding
exhibition
of
individual
effort
shown
during
the
tournament,
the
crowd
being
electrified
time
after
time
by
the
brilliancy
of
his
play. The
lads
from
Dark
and
Bloody
Ground
fought
hard
to
stay
in
the
tournament,
but
their
desperate
fight
was
to
no
avail.
Mercer,
playing
at
the
top
of
their
game
looked
good
enough
to
lick
the
best
in
the
business
and
the
Kentuckians
never
had
a
chance. There
was
nothing
sudden
about
the
Baptists'
victory.
Apparently
it
came
as
a
result
of
a
carefully
planned
campaign.
Mercer
jumped
off
to
a
lead
and
before
Kentucky
was
aware
of
just
what
was
going
on,
the
Bibb
county
quintet
had
a
margin
that
was
safely
maintained. The
end
of
the
first
half
found
the
count
at
18-10
with
Mercer
on
the
big
end
and
approximately
the
same
margin
was
maintained
to
the
close.
In
the
last
stages
of
the
struggle,
when
Kentucky
was
nearly
frantic
over
the
press
of
time,
Mercer
matched
the
Wildcats
every
field
goal
with
one
that
carried
just
as
many
points. In
the
end,
Mercer's
persistency
wrecked
the
morale
of
the
Kentuckians,
and
the
end
found
the
Baptists
clicking
away
merrily
at
the
baskets. Lavin,
at
forward,
was
one
of
the
big
stars
for
Kentucky.
Hayden,
badly
injured
in
a
scrimmage
Friday
afternoon,
was
rushed
into
the
game
as
a
final
resort
to
avert
the
impending
disaster,
but
he
was
powerless
to
stem
the
steady
charge
of
the
Baptists.
