No. 7 seed Mercer 62, No. 2 seed Wofford 61

ASHEVILLE. N.C. – Mercer guard Neftali Alvarez made the two biggest plays of the game in the final minute to allow his team to survive No. 2 seed Wofford 62-61 in the quarterfinal round of the 2021 Ingles Southern Conference Men's Basketball Championship presented by General Shale Brick at Harrah's Cherokee Center Asheville.
 
After the seventh-seeded Bears (17-10) blew a 19-point lead, Alvarez scored on a layup and free throw for a 62-61 advantage with 55 seconds remaining.
 
And on Wofford's final possession, Alvarez's ballhawking defense knocked Terriers' ballhandler Storm Murphy out of rhythm, and the result was an off-balance shot at the buzzer by Morgan Safford that was off the mark.
 
The win moved Mercer to Sunday's semifinal round, a 7:30 p.m. matchup against either Furman or VMI.
 
Wofford (15-9) entered the second half down 40-23, but Messiah Jones (14 second-half points) and Murphy (12) led a stirring comeback.
 
The Terriers took a 61-59 lead with 1:08 remaining on center B.J. Mack's two free throws.
 
But on Mercer's next possession, Alvarez took advantage of a mismatch and drove to the basket on Mack. He scored, was fouled and converted the winning free throw.
 
In a tale of two halves, the Bears shot 51 percent from the floor in the first 20 minutes and 38 percent in the second half. Conversely, Wofford improved from 25 percent in the opening half to 52 percent in the final 20 minutes.

No. 6 seed VMI 91, No. 3 seed Furman 90 (OT)

ASHEVILLE. N.C. – VMI roared back from a 15-point deficit to stun Furman 91-90 in overtime Saturday night in the quarterfinal round of the 2021 Ingles Southern Conference Men's Basketball Championship presented by General Shale Brick at Harrah's Cherokee Center Asheville.
 
Trailing 71-56 at the 8:42 mark, the sixth-seeded Keydets (13-11) rallied down the stretch and closed regulation on a 10-0 run, with Jake Stephens' 3-pointer tying the game at 80-80 with 35 seconds left and forcing the overtime.
 
In the extra session, Myles Lewis scored VMI's first six points and guard Greg Parham added a layup and two free throws for a 90-85 lead.
 
No. 3 Furman (16-9) got back-to-back 3-pointers to stay close, and the Paladins had the ball trailing 90-88 in the final seconds but turned the ball over.
 
Stephens made a free throw with 1.2 seconds left in overtime for a three-point lead, and Furman's Noah Gurley sank a 15-footer at the buzzer for the final margin.
 
Furman shot over 56 percent from the floor for the first 34 minutes but missed its last seven shots from the field in regulation.
 
The Keydets advance to play No. 7 seed Mercer in Sunday's 7:30 p.m. semifinal.
 
Stephens had 25 points and nine rebounds and Parham added 21 points.
 
Gurley had 30 points, seven rebounds and seven assists for the Paladins. 
 
Both teams shot the ball well in a first half that ended with Furman holding a 42-35 advantage.
 
The Paladins' 54-percent effort (15-of-28 from the floor) included 6-of-13 3-pointers and a stretch in which they made eight straight shots.
 
VMI was 14-of-29 (48 percent) in the opening 20 minutes.
   
2021 Ingles Southern Conference Men’s Basketball Championship presented by General Shale Brick schedule
Friday, March 5 (ESPN+)
Game 1 - (8) The Citadel 100, (9) Western Carolina 68
Game 2 - (7) Mercer 87, (10) Samford 59
 
Saturday, March 6 (ESPN+/Nexstar)
Game 3 - (1) UNCG 80, (8) The Citadel 70
Game 4 - (5) ETSU 63, (4) Chattanooga 53
Game 5 - (7) Mercer 62, (2) Wofford 61
Game 6 - (6) VMI 91, (3) Furman 90 (OT)
 
Sunday, March 7 (ESPNU)
Game 7 - (1) UNCG vs. (5) ETSU, 5 p.m.
Game 8 - (7) Mercer vs. (6) VMI, 7:30 p.m.
 
Monday, March 8 (ESPN)
Championship game, 7 p.m.