Feb. 10, 2012

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The Samford University basketball team will conclude its critical Southern Conference North Division homestand Saturday at 4 p.m. (CST) as the Bulldogs welcome the Elon Phoenix to the Pete Hanna Center for a key late-season matchup.

Saturday's contest will be Samford's inaugural Red Out game in which all proceeds are to be donated to the American Heart Association. The Bulldogs will also be wearing special red jerseys for the first time since the early 1980s.

The game can be heard locally on WVSU-FM 91.1, or worldwide on the Internet at www.samford.edu/wvsu. The contest may also be viewed online via the Bulldog Big Screen at www.samfordsports.com. Fans can also follow the action live via GameTracker.

Samford (9-15, 6-7 SoCon) heads into the game looking to rebound from a hard-fought 71-69 loss to UNCG on Thursday. In the defeat, the Bulldogs only shot 21.9 percent (7-of-32) from 3-point range and missed their final six field-goal attempts of the game.

Samford trailed UNCG, 71-68, with 1:29 remaining. At the 1:12 mark, the Bulldogs' Drew Windler was fouled on a driving layup attempt and went to the line for a pair of free-throw attempts.

Windler knocked down the first shot to make the score, 71-69, but then missed the second attempt. The Spartans' Trevis Simpson grabbed the rebound, but turned the ball over by stepping out of bounds with 50 seconds to play.

Following a Samford timeout, the Bulldogs ran through a designed play and found Windler open for a 3-point basket at the top of the key. Windler, who is Samford's best 3-point shooter at 43.6 percent, missed the attempt with 35 seconds left in the game, but the Bulldogs' Tyler Hood grabbed the offensive rebound.

Samford's Raijon Kelly then missed a 3-point attempt from the left flank. The rebound bounced all the way down the right sideline and went out of bounds off a diving UNCG player with 18 to play.

On the Bulldogs' final possession, Jeffrey Merritt attempted a wide-open 3-point shot from the left wing. The shot looked good coming off his hand, but hit the front rim, skidded across the top and rolled around the rim before it came off the right side near Windler.

Windler was able to get a hand on the rebound and tapped it up towards the basket, but the attempt never crossed over the cylinder and fell back down to the right side. The Spartans' David Williams then pulled down the final rebound as time expired for the 71-69 UNCG win.

Elon (13-11, 8-5 SoCon) is also looking to bounce back from a North Division loss Thursday. On the road at Chattanooga, the Phoenix had its three-game winning streak snapped with an 83-75 defeat held at McKenzie Arena in downtown Chattanooga, Tenn.

Elon has been victorious in five of its previous seven games and three of its last four outings. The Phoenix owns a 4-8 record in road contests this season and is in the midst of a two-game losing streak when playing away from home. Despite Elon's recent loss at Chattanooga, the Phoenix still sits atop the North Division and is tied with UNCG for first place.

The Bulldogs own a 6-1 all-time record against Elon and have never been defeated by the Phoenix at home. Samford holds a perfect 3-0 record against Elon in the Pete Hanna Center and tallied a 69-67 victory at home last season. With a win Saturday, the Bulldogs would earn the annual series sweep for a third time since joining the SoCon in 2008.

Samford's lone loss in its all-time series against Elon occurred Jan. 8, 2011, in Elon, N.C.

Earlier this season, Samford shot its way to an 86-80 victory at Elon on Jan. 19. In the Bulldogs' win, they shot 49.2 percent from the field and knocked down 16 baskets from beyond the arc in a 53.3-percent outing from long range. Despite Samford's stellar shooting, the game still came down to a couple of key possessions.

With 2:57 left to play in the Jan. 19, SoCon shootout, Samford held a 74-69 advantage after Elon's Sebastian Koch knocked down a pair of free throws. The Phoenix was in the midst of a five-point run and the momentum in the gym was quickly shifting to the home squad.

On the Bulldogs' ensuing possession, Merritt out-battled four Phoenix players for a rebound in the paint and called timeout. Following the break in action, Samford's Kelly found Windler on the right flank and he knocked down a key 3-point basket to build the Bulldogs' lead back to 77-69 with 2:12 to play.

Windler, the Bulldogs' 6-foot-9 center from South Milwaukee, Wis., used his clutch 3-point basket late in the game to finish with 21 points on 7-of-13 shooting from the floor. Samford's sophomore also knocked down a career-high six 3-point field goals and grabbed seven rebounds.

The Bulldogs' Will Cook scored 13 points in the first meeting and delivered the game's knockout punch with 1:20 left to play. He drained a key 3-point basket from the left flank and helped solidify Samford's 86-80 victory.

A key matchup in Saturday's SoCon North Division showdown will be Samford's defense against Elon sharpshooter Jack Isenbarger. Isenbarger, the Phoenix's 6-foot-2 sophomore guard from Zionsville, Ind., has connected on 30 3-point baskets in Elon's last eight games for an average of 3.8 per contest.

In his first meeting with the Bulldogs, Isenbarger scored 15 points and knocked down a team-high five 3-point field goals.

Since moving into the starting lineup against UTSA on Dec. 5, Samford's Tyler Hood is averaging 12.7 points per game.

Hood, a 6-foot-6 redshirt freshman from Kingston, Tenn., has made an immediate impact for the Bulldogs and is also averaging 4.5 rebounds per contest during the span. Since moving into the starting lineup, Hood is playing 29.7 minutes per game and is shooting 47.4 percent from the field.

Against Elon on Jan. 19, Hood turned in the best game of his collegiate career as he scored a career-high 25 points on 8-of-13 shooting from the field. He also knocked down a career-high four 3-point field goals and pulled down seven rebounds.

Hood will be looking for a repeat performance against Elon on Saturday. In Samford's thrilling 86-point output against the Phoenix on Jan. 19, Hood knocked down four 3-point field goals in 38 minutes of playing time.

Samford's 3-point shooting will be a key factor in Saturday's game. In the Bulldogs' win at Elon, Samford knocked down a season-high 16 3-point baskets. The total far exceeded the Bulldogs' current average of 8.4 3-point field goals per game.

Since their first meeting with Elon, Samford is only averaging 6.1 3-pointers per contest, including a 7-of-32 (21.9 percent) outing against UNCG on Thursday.

It is safe to say that Samford's offensive style is unique. While most teams play pressure defense and tend to run the ball up the court, the Bulldogs also use patience and precision cutting in their offensive sets to get either a back-door layup or a wide open look at a 3-point shot.

With that in mind, Samford's offense is hard to prepare for and often poses problems for the opposition's coaches in the league to scout. Since Head Coach Jimmy Tillette incorporated the Princeton offense at Samford in 1997, the Bulldogs have reeled off an 88-70 record in games played against teams that have less than three days to prepare.

Following Saturday's SoCon North Divisional showdown with Elon, the Samford University basketball team will next be in action Wednesday at 6 p.m. (CST) as the Bulldogs travel to North Carolina for a highly-anticipated matchup against the Davidson Wildcats to be held in Belk Arena (5,223) in Davidson, N.C.

GameTracker - Elon at Samford
Samford Basketball Game Notes