Alvarez scores 23 to lift Mercer over Samford 77-70 in OT

<p>HOMEWOOD, Ala. &mdash; Neftali Alvarez had 23 points as Mercer topped Samford 77-70 in overtime on Wednesday night.</p>
<p>Samford’s A.J. Staton-McCray made a pair of free throws with 28 seconds left to force overtime tied at 66. Alvarez had six points as Mercer outscored the Bulldogs 11-4 in the extra period. </p>
<p>Leon Ayers III and Ross Cummings had 13 points apiece for Mercer (12-7, 5-6 Southern Conference). Jeff Gary added 11 points.</p>
<p>Preston Parks had 18 points and eight rebounds for the Bulldogs (6-10, 2-7). Jalen Dupree added 13 points. Staton-McCray had 12 points.</p>
<p>The Bears improve to 2-0 against the Bulldogs on the season. Mercer defeated Samford 89-82 last Monday.</p>
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<p>This was generated by Automated Insights, <a href="http://www.automatedinsights.com/ap">http://www.automatedinsights.com/ap</a>, using data from STATS LLC, <a href="https://www.stats.com">https://www.stats.com</a></p>