Game Notes

FORT MYERS, Fla. – The Samford University basketball team will begin play in the 2012 Atlantis on the Mainland Tournament Wednesday at 3:30 p.m. (CST) as the Bulldogs open the four-team, two-day competition against the Toledo Rockets in a key non-conference matchup to be held at the Alico Arena (4,500) in Fort Myers, Fla. The tournament will be hosted by Florida Gulf Coast University.
 
The game can be heard locally on ESPN 97.3 FM The Zone.
 
Samford (1-3) heads into this week's event looking to rebound from a pair of difficult road losses against No. 2-ranked Louisville, 80-54, and No. 16-ranked Memphis, 65-54.
 
Against Memphis on Saturday, the Bulldogs pulled within the nationally-ranked Tigers, 54-51, with 3:30 remaining in the game. Samford was poised for the upset victory, but Memphis closed out the contest on an 11-3 run to hang on for the 65-54 win.
 
Midway through the second half at Memphis, Samford used a 9-0 run to pull within three points of the 16^th-ranked Tigers. During the Bulldogs' streak, sophomore guard Connor Miller scored on a runner and drained a deep 3-points basket. Additionally, true freshman Tim Williams looked dominant on a pair of driving layups en route to his game-high 21 points.
 
Williams, the Bulldogs' talented 6-foot-8 native of Chicago, Ill., finished with 21 points and six rebounds and turned in a solid 7-of-11 shooting percentage from the field. He logged a team-high 39 minutes and added an assist and a blocked shot.
 
On Tuesday, Williams was named the SoCon's Player of the Week after averaging 18 points and six rebounds in a pair of difficult road games at No. 2 Louisville and No. 16 Memphis.
 
Toledo (0-3) enters the Atlantis on the Mainland Tournament looking for its first win of the season. The Rockets have yet to play a home game this season and have dropped road contests at Loyola Chicago, 62-50, Minnesota, 82-56, and Northern Iowa, 84-81 (OT).
 
The Rockets returned all five starters from last season's squad which concluded the year with a
19-17 overall record and a 7-9 finish in Mid-American Conference play. So far this season, Toledo is being paced offensively by sophomore guard Julius Brown (15.7 ppg.) and junior guard Rian Pearson (14.7 ppg.). Pearson is also Toledo's top rebounder this year with an average of 5.3 rpg.
 
Samford will square off against Toledo for only the third time in school history Wednesday. The all-time series between the teams in knotted at 1-1, but the non-conference foes haven't met on the hardwood since Dec. 20, 2000, when the Rockets held on for a 2OT victory in Fresno, Calif., 80-74. The Bulldogs won the first meeting of the all-time series, 71-68, on the road, Dec. 28, 1990.
 
With Samford's new up-tempo offense and hardnosed man-to-man defensive mindset, Head Coach Bennie Seltzer realizes that there will always be a need for quickness, agility and speed on his roster. The Bulldogs' 2012-13 squad boasts 10 guards, including three point guards out of its 14-man roster.
 
The only non-guards on this season's team are forwards Clide Geffrard, Jr., and Williams, as well as 6-foot-10 center Levi Barnes.
 
Samford returning starters Tyler Hood, Raijon Kelly and Will Cook are all listed among the Bulldogs' active leaders in points, rebounds, assists and 3-point field goals. Heading into the 2012-13, campaign, steals is the only major category that all three of the aforementioned players aren't ranked among the top three on Samford's roster.
 
Hood, Samford's sophomore forward from Lenoir City, Tenn., leads all active players in points (364) and 3-point field goals (45), while he is listed second on the team in rebounds (130). Cook, the Bulldogs' junior guard from Dallas, Texas, leads Samford in rebounds (194) and is also listed second on the squad in both 3-point field goals (41) and steals (24). Cook also enters the game ranked third on the team in points (300) and assists (47).
 
Kelly, Samford's dynamic sophomore point guard, leads the team in both assists (87) and steals (27), and is second on the squad in points (327). He is also ranked third in rebounds (96) and 3-point field goals (41).
 
The victor of Wednesday's tournament-opening game will square off against the winner of Florida Gulf Coast and Alcorn State on Thursday at 6 p.m. (CST). Host school Florida Gulf Coast and Alcorn State are scheduled to meet Wednesday at 6 p.m. The first-round losers will meet Thursday in the 3:30 p.m. matchup to be held at Alico Arena (4,500).

Game Notes