MACON, Ga. - The Samford men's basketball team played its final road game of the season as they battled with Mercer. Samford's six-game winning streak came to an end as they came up just short, 89-86, against a hot shooting Bears team. Samford falls to 16-13 overall and 9-7 in league play after the defeat.

The two sides entered the game tied for third in the Southern Conference and played an even game that featured 17 lead changes and 11 ties. The home side shot a staggering 76 percent from the field in the opening half as the Dogs struggled to get stops. Samford shot the ball well, at 50 percent, and was paced by Jadin Booth and Dylan Faulkner, who scored 13 and 12 points, respectively, in the opening 20 minutes.

Samford was able to force 10 turnovers in the first half and capitalized with 14 points off turnovers to keep them in the game. It took a Mercer three as the first half was expiring to give them a three-point lead, 44-41 at the break.

Both sides remained hot from the floor in the second half, as Mercer somewhat came back to earth but still shot 52 percent from the field. After just six free throws were taken in the first half, the second half turned into a foul fest as the two sides combined for 42 second-half attempts. Once again, it was the Samford duo that paced the way for the Dogs down the stretch. Faulkner went 12-of-16 from the floor, with a game-high 27 points, while Booth scored 26 on 8-of-15 shooting.

Keaton Norris (11 points) and Cade Norris (9 points) provided the rest of the scoring punch for Samford, while the remainder of the team made four field goals. Mercer built the lead up to as much as seven points, but the Dogs battled back to tie the game late. A Bear layup put them up three with a minute left before Booth answered with what was originally called a three to tie the game, but was changed to a two after review. Down one, the Bulldogs were forced to foul, and when they got the ball back down three after a pair of Mercer free throws, they failed to get a shot off as they committed one of their just six turnovers in a big spot. Mercer would go on to ice the game from the line and capture the 89-86 victory.

Samford finished shooting 47 percent from the field as a team and 6-of-16 from three, while the home side finished at 64 percent for the game. 

The Bulldogs return home for their final two games of the regular season, hosting VMI on Thursday, followed by UNCG on Saturday inside the Pete Hanna Center.

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