Bears Set to Open Conference Play at Samford

MACON, Ga. – The Mercer men's basketball program begins Southern Conference play at Samford on Wednesday, December 28 at 7 p.m. (ET). This is the second year in a row that the Bears' conference schedule starts against Samford.

GAMEDAY INFO
Mercer (7-6, 0-0) vs. Samford (6-7, 0-0)
Wednesday, December 28, 2022 | 7:00 p.m. (ET)
Birmingham, Ala. | Pete Hanna Center
LIVE STATS
TV: ESPNU | RADIO: SportsMic Radio Network

The all-time series between Mercer and Samford is substantially in Mercer's favor at 74-46. The Bears have won 18 of the last 19 meetings against the Bulldogs dating back to 2003.

SCOUTING SAMFORD
Samford started the season 6-0 for the first time since 1960 but has since fallen from glory to 6-7 on a seven-game losing streak. The Bulldogs are also returning home from a five-game road trip, including overtime losses to DePaul and UCF.

Four players are averaging double-figure scoring for Samford, but the leader in points, Ques Glover, has been inactive since November 30 due to injury. Georgia Tech transfer Bubba Parham has started all 13 games for the Bulldogs and leads the team in assists with 35. Samford currently ranks last in the conference for assists per game (12.1) while Mercer is second (17.4).

Maintaining composure on offense will be key for the Bears as Samford leads the conference in turnover margin (+2.31) and offensive rebounds per game (12.7).

RECENT ACTION
Mercer concluded the non-conference schedule with a win at Troy, 82-79, on Wednesday, December 21. This was the first away win of the season for the Bears.

Jalyn McCreary recorded his fifth 20-point game of the season and finished just one rebound shy of a double-double with 22 points and nine rebounds. Kamar Robertson also had an excellent showing with 17 points (5-7 FG, 3-4 3FG, 4-5 FT). Freshman Michael Zanoni finished 3-3 from beyond the arc on his way to 13 points.

In his second appearance of the season, James Glisson III finished with nine points and six rebounds. Posting 4-4 from the charity stripe moved Glisson III up to ninth on the all-time program record list for career free throw percentage at 76.7%.

FOLLOW THE BEARS:
For complete coverage of Mercer Men's Basketball, please follow the Bears on social media at @MercerMBB (Twitter), /MercerBasketball (Facebook) and @Mercer_MBB (Instagram) or visit the official home of Mercer Athletics at MercerBears.com.

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Players Mentioned

James Glisson III

Jalyn McCreary

Kamar Robertson

Michael Zanoni

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