SLIPPERY ROCK - The numbers are ominous.

Eight games, eight losses - all by double digits - and the worst start since World War II.

Things aren't very merry for the Slippery Rock University men's basketball team.

Mercyhurst College (6-6) added to The Rock's woes Wednesday night, jumping out to an 11-0 lead in the first two and a half minutes to seal the game well before the final horn in a 79-52 thrashing in SRU's first home game of the season.

"Our team is much better that what they have shown," said Slippery Rock coach John Marhefka.

The Rock's struggles only got worse against the Lakers, who parlayed that fast start to their third win in four games after hitting a tough four-game stretch.

"This was a big one for us because we are back to .500," said Mercyhurst coach Gary Manchel. "We had lost four in a row, but now we have won a few in a row. Now, we have 10 days off to get ready for a brutal league schedule."

The schedule has been brutal already for The Rock, which played seven straight games on the road or at neutral sites before returning to Morrow Field House Wednesday night to play in front of a sparse winter-break crowd.

Marhefka said he was dismayed at the sparse effort by some of his players.

"We played with no energy, no heart, no effort," Marhefka said.

The third-year coach is well aware of the numbers tipping the scale decidedly in the wrong direction. His career record is just 16-44 in his two-plus years at the school, and the 0-8 start is the worst since the team started keeping track of won-loss records in the 1944-45 season.

"We just have to try to come back every day and work hard," Marhefka said. "Winning is a habit, but, unfortunately, so is losing."

The Rock played even with the Lakers after the slow start and got as close as nine points down midway through the second half.

But Mercyhurst pulled away, outscoring SRU 27-9 the rest of the way.

Freshman point guard Terry Smith had a lot to do with the Lakers' surge, hitting two big 3-pointers and scoring 10 of his game-high 21 points down the stretch.

"He's a freshman and we expect a lot of him," Manchel said. "We give him a lot of leeway."

Mercyhurst shot 50 percent from the floor, while Slippery Rock managed to hit on just 29 percent of its attempts.

SRU's Bill Johnson scored 20 points and Glenn Reepmeyer, who had to change numbers midway through the first half because a cut on his chin bled onto his No. 55 jersey, recorded his fourth double-double of the season with 13 points and 10 boards.

Mercyhurst gave Slippery Rock another black eye.

"We gotta learn to finish," Marhefka said. "The calls aren't going to bail you out. We need to play with more effort. No excuses."

MERCYHURSTCOLLEGE (79)

Andy Kubinski 6-8 1-2 13, Roberts Jansons 6-10 1-3 14, Terry Smith 8-18 0-0 21, Roland Andris 1-2 2-2 4, Jawad Ali 4-9 0-0 8, Luke Handley 1-1 0-0 3, Mitch Brennan 2-8 2-2 6, Darren Angell 0-0 0-0 0, Cory Carson 1-1 2-2 4, Steve Horner 3-7 0-0 6, Cory Tubo 0-0 0-0 0, Jeff Daisley 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 32-64 8-11 79.

SLIPPERY ROCK (52)

Sean White 0-6 2-4 2, Glenn Reepmeyer 5-11 3-3 13, Bill Johnson 6-14 7-7 20, Mason Glick 1-5 0-0 2, Ryan Yarosik 1-4 0-0 0, Brandon Thompson 0-1 0-0 0, Corey Nesser 0-0 0-0 0, Ben Daniels 2-7 2-2 8, Dejan Jancic 1-1 2-2 4. Totals: 16-50 16-18 52

Halftime - M, 39-25. 3-point goals - M 7-22 (Jansons 1-3, Smith 5-10, Andris 0-1, Ali 0-1, Handley 1-1, Brennan 0-4, Horner 0-2), SRU 4-15 (White 0-2, Johnson 1-4, Glick 0-3, Yarosik 1-1, Daniels 2-5) Rebounds - M 40 (Kubinski 12), SRU 28 (Reepmeyer 10). Assists - M 19 (Smith 7), SRU 10 (Johnson, Yarosik, Kearney 2). Total fouls - M 16, SRU 14. Fouled out - None; Technical fouls - none.