ASHEVILLE, N.C. – The Samford men's basketball team advanced to the semifinals of the Southern Conference Tournament with a 70-57 win over Mercer in the quarterfinal round Saturday afternoon at Harrah's Cherokee Center.
 
With the win, Samford improved its record to 27-5. Mercer ended its season with a mark of 16-17.
 
"This time of year, it's going to be about defense and rebounding," Samford head coach Bucky McMillan said. "We did a great job on defense, holding them to 36 percent from the field and 22 percent from three. That was the biggest factor in the game. The teams that can win this tournament are not going to be teams that can make every three-point shot because over a three-game setting, it's just not going to happen. You're not going to make every free throw, you're going to turn the ball over sometimes, but if you can play defense and you can rebound then you have a chance."
 
Samford was led in the win by Rylan Jones and Garrett Hicks with 15 points each. Achor Achor had 12 points, while Jermaine Marshall added 10 points for the Bulldogs.
 
For Mercer, David Thomas led the way with 14 points. Jake Davis tallied 13 points, while Jalyn McCreary added 11 points for the Bears.
 
Samford took an early 9-6 lead with 16:46 to go in the first half following a jumper by Jones. Mercer fought back to build a 17-12 lead at the 13:39 mark in the opening half after a three-point play by Robby Carmody. Back-to-back three-pointers by Hicks gave Samford an 18-17 lead with 11:59 left in the first half.
 
The Bulldogs extended their lead to 30-22 with 7:17 remaining in the first half after a three-pointer by Achor. After Mercer cut the lead to 30-25, Samford pushed the lead to nine points at 34-25 with 4:20 to go in the first half following a pair of free throws by Riley Allenspach. After Mercer cut the lead to six at 34-28, a three-pointer by Jones stretched the lead back to nine at 37-28 with 1:05 left before halftime. The Bulldogs took that 37-28 lead into the locker room at halftime.
 
Samford started the second half strong, stretching its lead to 15 points at 44-29 with 17:01 to go after a three-pointer by Jones. Mercer fought back to cut the lead to eight points at 46-38 with 13:10 to go after a layup by Thomas.
 
The Bulldogs pushed the lead back out to 14 points at 63-49 with 8:03 remaining after a three-pointer by Marshall. Samford led by 15 points at 68-53, and the Bulldogs finished with the 70-57 win.
 
Samford will take on the winner of Saturday night's game between Furman and Western Carolina in Sunday's semifinal round. The game is set for a 3 p.m. (CT) start from Harrah's Cherokee Center. The game will be broadcast live on ESPNU.




 
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