Jan. 16, 2009

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The Samford University basketball team will square off against its fifth Southern Conference opponent in 10 days Saturday as the Bulldogs welcome the Appalachian State Mountaineers to the Pete Hanna Center (5,000) for a critical league matchup beginning at 2 p.m. (CST).

The Samford Athletic Department has labeled Saturday's matchup as its "Critter Classic" game of the season. Fans who donate one of the following items to the Humane Society will receive FREE ADMISSION: cat litter, paper towels, bleach, Clorox wipes, Latex gloves, rubber dog toys, disinfectant spray and office supplies.

Fans unable to attend the game in person can listen live to Samford's broadcast on WVSU 91.1 FM or via the internet at www.samford.edu/groups/wvsu.

Samford (7-8, 2-4 SoCon) has compiled a 2-2 record during its recent arduous stretch of games and will look to improve to 7-1 when playing at home this season.

The Bulldogs are coming off a key 76-64 victory against the Western Carolina Catamounts on Thursday in which they finished with five players scoring in double figures. It marked the first time since a 96-45 win against Bryan College on Nov. 26, 2005, that Samford accomplished the feat.

In their win against the Catamounts, the Bulldogs shot a stellar 56.3 percent from the field and had Bryan Friday, Andy King, Josh Davis, Trey Montgomery and Josh Bedwell all score in double figures.

King, Samford's sophomore center, led the way with 16 points on a 6-of-11 performance from the field. The Bulldogs' native of Omaha, Neb., also finished with four rebounds, three steals and a pair of assists.

Montgomery followed with 15 points and a game-high seven assists. The Bulldogs' point guard from Destrehan, La., was 5-of-10 from the floor and a perfect 4-for-4 from the free-throw line. Montgomery also added four rebounds and a steal in 28 minutes of play.

Samford's Bedwell came off the bench to spark the team's offense in the second half. The Bulldogs' 6-foot shooting guard from nearby Hartselle, Ala., scored 10 of his 14 points in the final period and was 4-of-7 from the field.

Bedwell also knocked down a pair of key 3-point baskets and finished 4-of-5 from the charity stripe. He currently leads Samford with a near-perfect 91.2 shooting percentage from the line, but had his streak of 16-consecutive free throws snapped Thursday. After missing his second attempt of the night, he then knocked down his last three.

Samford's Bryan Friday and Davis both tallied 10 points in the victory. Friday was 4-for-9 from the floor and added four rebounds, while Davis finished 4-of-6 from the field and pulled down a team-high six boards.

Appalachian State (6-8, 3-3 SoCon) enters Saturday's matchup in the midst of a three-game losing streak. The Mountaineers are coming off consecutive SoCon losses to UNC Greensboro 85-83, Davidson 70-52 and Chattanooga 78-74.

Two of Appalachian State's previous three defeats have occurred in overtime. In Thursday's overtime loss at Chattanooga, Appalachian State shot 40.9 percent from the field throughout the game, but was only 1-for-4 in the overtime period.

Saturday's game between Samford and Appalachian State will be the teams' first all-time meeting.

The Bulldogs are 2-4 against SoCon opponents this season, while the Mountaineers have turned in a 3-3 mark in league play. Appalachian State is currently tied for second place in the North Division, while Samford holds the fourth-place position in the divisional standings.

Appalachian State enters the game as the best rebounding team in the conference. The Mountaineers lead the SoCon in rebounding margin (+7.5) and are ranked No. 9 in the nation in the category.

Appalachian State boasts two players averaging over eight rebounds per game this season. Sophomore center Isaac Butts leads the team with 8.8 per contest and 6-foot-6 forward Josh Hunter is second on the squad with an average of 8.1 rebounds per game.

The Mountaineers' leading scorer this season is junior guard Kellen Brand. The High Point, N.C., native is averaging 13.9 points per game.

The Bulldogs are ranked first in the SoCon in scoring defense and are also ranked among the top-five teams in the league in an additional four categories. Samford is the top-ranked team in the SoCon in scoring defense (63.1 ppg), and is the third-ranked squad in both field-goal percentage (45.7) and rebounding defense (33.2 pg).

The Bulldogs are also ranked fourth in the conference in field-goal percentage defense (43.7) and are fifth in the league in assist/turnover ratio (0.9).

So far this season, Samford owns a near-perfect 6-1 record when playing in the friendly confines of the Pete Hanna Center. At home, the Bulldogs are averaging 67.3 points per game and are shooting 52.7 percent from the field (40.0 from 3-point range). Conversely, Samford is 1-7 on the road this season and is only scoring 53.1 points per road contest.

The Bulldogs are only shooting 39.8 percent from the floor (32.4 from 3-point range) when playing away from home this year.

Following Samford's matchup against Appalachian State on Saturday, the Bulldogs will enjoy a four-day hiatus from game action until traveling to face the Elon Phoenix on Thursday at 6 p.m. (CST) in Elon, N.C.

Samford Basketball Game Notes