ASHEVILLE, N.C. – Neftali Alvarez scored 23 points, making a trio of 3-pointers, and seventh-seeded Mercer defeated Southern Conference tournament upstart VMI 73-59 in the semifinal round. After upsetting second-seeded Wofford in the quarterfinals, Mercer (18-10) will meet top-seeded UNC Greensboro in Monday’s championship game. The Bears have reached the semifinals once before in 2015, but never the title game. Myles Lewis led the Keydets with 24 points on 10 of 16 shooting and also pulled down 14 rebounds. Mercer’s bench also proved to be a factor, tallying 20 points to VMI’s three points from the reserves.