MACON, GA. -- Briana Peguero converted a layup with 14 seconds remaining to give Mercer a three-point lead and then blocked a potential game tying 3-point attempt with three seconds remaining to help the Bears hold off Furman, 55-50, in Southern Conference women's basketball action Thursday evening at Hawkins Arena.

After Furman's Sydney James' three-point play with 45 seconds remaining pulled Furman to within 51-50, the Bears were awarded a timeout with 26 seconds to go following a loose ball, though nine seconds were allowed to expire off the game clock following the whistle.  The Paladins' were whistled for a foul on an inbounds lob pass under the basket, and Mercer's DeJa Williams followed by inbounding the ball to a cutting Peguero, who converted the layup for the 53-50 lead with 14 seconds to go.

On Furman's ensuing possession, Peguero deflected Niveya Henley's game-tying 3-point try from the left wing, and the Bears put down a layup in the final seconds for the final margin.

Mercer (12-16, 6-6 SoCon) escaped with the win after building a 42-22 three minutes into the second half.

Furman (14-13, 4-7 SoCon), which sliced the deficit to 45-35 by the end of the third quarter, trailed 49-39 with just under seven minutes to go when Jada Session scored six points in an 8-0 Paladin run that pulled Furman to within 49-47 on a bank shot by James with two minutes remaining.

Benefiting from a textbook screen that was called a foul on Furman at the 1:22 mark, the Bears' Summah Evans drained a jump shot to give Mercer a 51-47 advantage with a 1:05 to go.

Session led Furman in scoring with 19 points, the only Paladin to reach double figures.  Sydney James was credited with a game high 12 rebounds.

The Paladins' managed to battle back and have a chance to win despite going 0-for-12 from 3-point range and suffering 20 turnovers.  Mercer shot just 32.4 percent from the field (22x68) but took 20 more shots than Furman (18x48), made possible, in part, by the Bears' 20-8 edge in offensive rebounding and 43-34 overall edge on the glass.

Mercer made 6-of-14 3-pointers in the first half in taking a 35-18 lead at the break, but the Bears went 0-for-10 from beyond in the arc of the game's final 20 minutes.

Evans paced Mercer with 16 points, and Stacie Jones followed with 14 points and 10 rebounds.

Furman's two-game road trip continues on Saturday with a 5:30 ET contest at Samford.

Note:  Tipoff for Furman's Mar. 2 home regular season finale versus East Tennessee State is now 6:00 p.m. at Timmons Arena.