Dec. 16, 2009

Box Score

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - In the first meeting between in-state rivals Samford and Alabama since Nov. 14, 2001, the Bulldogs couldn't overcome a 19-5 first-half run by the Crimson Tide Wednesday in a 60-45 loss held at Coleman Coliseum. Samford (3-7) was led in scoring by junior guard Josh Davis' 13 points on 5-of-15 shooting from the floor.

"We committed way too many turnovers and Alabama did a good job of speeding us up," said Samford head coach Jimmy Tillette. "I thought that we had a plenty of open shots, but we missed a lot of them. In the second half, we went 9-of-19 and missed at least three wide-open layups. Alabama is a physical team and they really out-rebounded us during key stretches."

Samford outshot Alabama (7-3) from 3-point range (33.3 percent to 28.6 percent), but finished with six fewer field goals in the game. The Crimson Tide tallied four free throws, while the Bulldogs only attempted one. There were only a total of 15 fouls called in the game.

Alabama was led offensively by senior guard Mikhail Torrance who scored a game-high 15 points, all of which occurred in the first half. JaMychal Green followed with 14 points on a near-perfect 6-of-7 shooting performance from the field. Senario Hillman added seven points and a game-high six rebounds for the Crimson Tide.

Samford committed a season-high 20 turnovers and surpassed its previous high of 17, which was registered against McNeese State on Nov. 23.

"We tried to play too fast and that's why we committed so many turnovers," Tillette said. "This game was all about tempo and we didn't play nearly as slow as we needed to play. Alabama is very athletic and very physical and I found them to be comparable to the Texas Tech and Texas A&M teams that we played earlier this season. They are also very well-coached and Anthony (Grant) is doing a great job."

Alabama used a 19-5 run midway through the first half to take a 35-24 advantage at the intermission. The Crimson Tide was paced offensively by Torrance's 15 points on 5-of-7 shooting from the field. During the scoring streak, Torrance tallied 10 of Alabama's 12 points with back-to-back 3-point baskets, a runner in the lane and a pair of free throws.

The Crimson Tide shot a sizzling 58.3 percent from the field in the opening period, including a 42.9-percent outing from beyond the arc. Samford shot 45.5 percent from the field in the first half, but was only 4-of-13 from long range.

The Bulldogs' Davis scored 10 points of his team-high 13 points on a 4-of-9 shooting performance in the opening period and knocked down a pair of 3-pointers. Jeffrey Merritt and Andy King both added five points before halftime.

King followed Davis' 13 points with nine of his own. Samford's 6-foot-8 center from Omaha, Neb., was 4-of-5 from the field and pulled down four rebounds. King also added four assists in his new role of adding an offensive spark from off the bench.

Sophomore Kaylin Johnson and senior forward Bryan Friday both finished with six points apiece Wednesday. Friday proved to be a solid inside presence for the Bulldogs and grabbed a team-high five rebounds. He also connected on a few quality back-to-the-basket post moves. Johnson came off the bench to stroke a pair of second-half 3-pointers. He finished 2-for-2 from the field.

In the early moments of the game, both teams seemed to be feeling each other out as the score was only 6-6 with 13:50 to play in the opening period. Following a 3-pointer from Merritt at the 10:58 mark, Samford only trailed Alabama 11-9 in the first half. The Crimson Tide then embarked on its 19-5 run to take a 30-14 lead.

"I thought we started off playing okay, but then we committed too many turnovers and we allowed them to go on that big run," said Tillette. "We were just never able to string together any shots after that and this is a learning experience for our guys. Alabama did a great job of being physical and we'll just have to move on from this game and get better as the season goes on."

The Samford University basketball team will next be in action Saturday at 2 p.m. (CST) as the Bulldogs play host to the Shorter College Hawks in a non-conference contest to be held at the Pete Hanna Center.