TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Cam’Ron Fletcher scored 23 points and Florida State held off a second-half rally by Mercer, defeating the Bears 81-72 on Monday night.
Florida State finally broke into the win column after opening the season with losses to Stetson, Central Florida, Troy and Florida.
Fletcher made 9-of-12 from the floor and hit all three of his 3-point attempts for the Seminoles (1-4). Matthew Cleveland added 18 points and Caleb Mills 12.
Fletcher’s layup with 15:49 remaining in the second half gave Florida State a 52-41 lead before Mercer scored the next 12 points to go up by one at 11:23. There were seven lead changes in the next seven minutes before Florida State regained control with a 9-0 run to lead 75-66 in the final minute.
Still, Kamar Robertson hit a pair of free throws and Michael Zanoni nailed a 3-pointer to get the Bears within 75-71 before Mills hit two big free throws for the Seminoles.
Five players scored in double figures for Mercer (2-3), led by Jalyn McCreary with 20 points.
Florida State led 42-34 at halftime.
The Seminoles will stay in-state and play Siena on Thursday in the ESPN Events Invitational in Lake Buena Vista.
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