Jan. 21, 2011

SPARTANBURG, S.C. - The Samford University basketball team will play its fifth road game in six outings Saturday at 1 p.m. (CST) as the Bulldogs square off against the Wofford Terriers in a Southern Conference matchup to be held at Benjamin Johnson Arena (3,500) in Spartanburg, S.C.

Fans unable to attend the game in person can listen live to Samford's radio broadcast on WVSU 91.1 FM or via the Internet at www.samford.edu/wvsu. Live Stats will also be available at www.SamfordSports.com.

Samford (10-9, 2-5 SoCon) heads into the contest with aspirations of ending its current four-game losing streak. Since earning a hard-fought 68-64 victory at UNC Greensboro on Jan. 6, the Bulldogs have dropped consecutive matchups at Elon, at Chattanooga, versus The Citadel and at Furman.

In Thursday's loss to Furman, which was held at Timmons Arena in Greenville, S.C., Samford only trailed 47-46 with 9:41 left to play before the Paladins streaked to an 18-1 run for a 65-47 advantage. Furman finished the game shooting 62.5 percent from 3-point range and knocked down 15 3-pointers, its third highest total in school history.

The Paladins outscored the Bulldogs 44-25 in the second half of Thursday's game. Jordan Miller's second-half outburst of 20 points propelled him to lead both teams in scoring with 21, while Furman's Noah States followed with 20 points of his own on 7-of-9 shooting from the field.

Samford's offensive attack was paced by John Peterson and Gregg Wooten. Both Bulldogs tallied 11 points each and combined to shoot 8-of-12 from the field. Peterson registered a season-high total with 11 points as he turned in a perfect 4-of-4 performance from the floor. The Bulldogs' forward knocked down a pair of 3-pointers and was 1-of-1 from the free-throw line.

Wofford (9-9, 6-1 SoCon) enters Saturday's game riding the positive momentum of a lopsided 88-56 victory against previously undefeated Chattanooga on Thursday.

The Terriers head into the showdown with a three-game winning streak. Since falling short at home against College of Charleston on Jan. 8, 77-73, Wofford has rattled off consecutive triumphs versus Georgia Southern 74-65, Davidson 69-64 and Chattanooga 88-56.

Wofford boasts three players averaging double figures in scoring this season with Noah Dahlman at 19.4 points per game, Cameron Rundles at 13.7 points per outing and Jamar Diggs at 13.2 points per contest.

A key matchup in Thursday's game will be Samford's defense against Wofford's Dahlman. A senior forward from Braham, Minn., Dahlman is ranked third in the SoCon in scoring this season. In last year's game between the teams, the Bulldogs limited Dahlman to 12 points in 33 minutes and nearly pulled off the upset victory.

Samford trails Wofford in the all-time series between the teams 2-4. Since the Bulldogs joined the SoCon in 2008-09, the Terriers have been victorious in three straight games and rallied for a come-from-behind 59-54 win in Birmingham, Ala., last season. When facing off in Spartanburg, S.C., Samford and Wofford have played to a 1-1 record.

Wofford currently leads the SoCon in both turnover margin and assist/turnover ratio. The Terriers are only committing an average of 12.7 turnovers per game this season, while Samford is only committing 13.6 miscues per outing. Wofford also enters Saturday's game with a conference-best 1.2 assist/turnover ratio, while the Bulldogs are tied for second place at 1.0.

The SoCon media tabbed Wofford and Appalachian State as the favorites to capture the conference's divisional men's basketball titles in 2010-11. The Terriers and Mountaineers were also selected favorites by the league's head coaches last week in preseason balloting.

Appalachian State earned 22 first-place votes and recorded a total of 170 points. The Mountaineers were followed by Western Carolina (146) which received eight first-place votes. Chattanooga (126) was tabbed third while Samford and Elon tied for fourth place with 64 points apiece. UNC Greensboro was slotted in sixth place with 60 points.

In Samford's version of the Princeton offense, Head Coach Jimmy Tillette's Bulldogs generally aim to get a back-door layup or a wide open look at a 3-point shot. So far this season, Samford is averaging 9.6 3-point baskets per game and is connecting on 36.3 percent of its attempts from beyond the arc. The Bulldogs are also averaging 8.2 layups per contest and are shooting 50.5 percent from 2-point range.

Samford has made at least five 3-point field goals in 18 straight games, a streak that dates back to the Bulldogs' season-opening loss at Youngstown State on Nov. 12. Samford is currently ranked second in the nation in 3-point field goals per game with 9.6.

Following Saturday's SoCon showdown at Wofford, the Samford University basketball team will next be in action Thursday at 7 p.m. (CST) as the Bulldogs return home to Birmingham, Ala., to play host to the Elon Phoenix at the Pete Hanna Center.

Samford Basketball Game Notes
Live Stats - Samford at Wofford