SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Mercer junior guard Kahlia Lawrence has been named the Southern Conference Women’s Basketball Player of the Week for games played Jan. 10-16, the conference announced Tuesday.
Lawrence averaged 27.0 points, 8.0 rebounds and 2.0 assists in a pair of conference road wins over UNCG and Western Carolina last week. The Columbus, Ga., native shot nearly 53 percent from the field and hit 14-of-her-19 attempts from the charity stripe.
At UNCG on Thursday, Lawrence poured in a game-high 24 points and grabbed nine rebounds in the Bears’ 77-64 victory. Lawrence shot 8-for-16 from the field and 8-for-10 from the free-throw line. With her 24 points, Lawrence moved into 11th place on Mercer’s all-time scoring list after scoring her 1,378th career point.
In a thrilling finish for the Bears at Western Carolina on Saturday, Lawrence recorded her second 30-point performance of the season after scoring a game-high 30 points and grabbed seven rebounds. The junior guard continued to shoot the ball efficiently, sinking 12 of her 22 field goal attempts against the Catamounts. Lawrence is just one-of-three SoCon players to record a 30-point game and one-of-two players to post multiple 30-point performances.
Through four conference games played, Lawrence leads the league in scoring (25.8 ppg) and ranks second in scoring overall (19.2).
Mercer (14-4, 3-1 SoCon) will look to extend its two-game winning streak as the Bears host Furman (10-9, 3-0 SoCon), who is currently riding a six-game winning streak, on Thursday, Jan. 19 at 7 p.m. The matchup between the second-place Bears and the first-place Paladins will air on ESPN3.
Other top performers in the Southern Conference included: Raven Dean (ETSU), Whitney Bunn (Furman), Nadine Soliman (UNCG), Katie Allen (Samford), Lakelyn Bouldin (Chattanooga) and Chloe Wanink (Wofford).
SoCon Women’s Basketball Players of the Week
Nov. 15 – Sherae Bonner, Western Carolina
Nov. 22 – Kahlia Lawrence, Mercer
Nov. 29 – Tianna Tarter, ETSU
Dec. 6 – Tianna Tarter, ETSU
Dec. 13 – Tianna Tarter, ETSU
Dec. 20 – Chloe Wanink, Wofford
Jan. 3 – Tianna Tarter, ETSU
Jan. 10 – Jasmine Joyner, Chattanooga
Jan. 17 – Kahlia Lawrence, Mercer
- www.SoConSports.com -