Feb. 18, 2012

Box Score

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - On Senior Day in the Pete Hanna Center, the Samford University basketball team used a clutch 3-point basket from senior Jeffrey Merritt to hold off the Furman Paladins, 55-49, in a key Southern Conference showdown.

"This was a big win for us, but it felt like a root canal," said Samford head coach Jimmy Tillette. "Furman came back from 13 points down and we lost a little bit of our poise there in the second half. Furman plays extremely hard, especially on the defensive end of the court, and they try to make it a grind-it-out game. Plus, Jeffrey Merritt was able to hit a huge 3-pointer for us and it was only fitting on Senior Day."

Samford (11-16, 8-8 SoCon) led by as many as 13 points Saturday and only trailed once in the second half as the Paladins' Charlie Reddick knocked down a 3-point basket from the right flank to give Furman (13-14, 7-9 SoCon) a 49-48 lead with 1:36 left to play in the game.

Reddick's basket capped off a 16-2 Furman run which helped the Paladins erase a 46-33 Samford lead at the 7:54 mark in the second half.

On the ensuing possession, the Bulldogs ran the game clock down to 1:13 before Merritt drained a deep 3-pointer from the top of the key. Merritt's crucial basket gave Samford a 51-49 advantage and eventually led to the victory as the Bulldogs knocked down four free throws in the final 37 seconds of play.

"I had an open look and I let it fly," Merritt said. "As it came off my hands, it felt pretty good so I thought it was going in. I really wanted to make that shot, because against UNCG I missed a wide-open shot from the corner that would have given us the win in that game."

Merritt only scored seven points Saturday, but finished with a game-high 10 rebounds. The Bulldogs' native of Oklahoma City, Okla., played in the final home contest of his Samford career and was one of four seniors to be honored on Senior Day. Merritt also finished with three assists and logged a game-high 39 minutes of playing time.

"In the first half, I was pressing too much because it was Senior Day and I put too much on my shoulders," said Merritt. "I slowed down and played much better in the second half and it felt really good to get a victory in my last home game. It was great to go out with a win."

Prior to Saturday's SoCon showdown, Samford's senior class comprised of Matthew Friday, Kaylin Johnson, Merritt and John Peterson was honored with a special Senior Day presentation. Friday, Johnson and Merritt all started for the Bulldogs, while Peterson has been forced to miss a majority of the season with an injury.

Samford snapped a four-game losing streak in its all-time series against Furman and picked up its first win in the rivalry since March 6, 2009. The Bulldogs still trail the Paladins, 8-3, in the all-time series standings.

"This was a huge win for us," said Merritt. "It was especially big for us seniors, because this was our last game ever here at the Pete Hanna Center. I just came out today and played my hardest and that's what my teammates did as well."

Furman's Jordan Loyd tallied 15 points Saturday and proved to be his team's only player in double-figure scoring. The Paladins' freshman guard from Atlanta shot 6-of-13 from the field and pulled down four rebounds. Loyd also grabbed two steals and handed out an assist.

The Bulldogs' leading scorer was sophomore center Drew Windler who finished with 18 points on a 6-of-13 shooting performance from the field. Samford's 6-foot-9 native of South Milwaukee, Wis., knocked down five free throws in the game and tallied three rebounds.

True freshman guard Raijon Kelly scored 11 points and pulled down a career-high eight boards for the Bulldogs Saturday. Kelly, the Bulldogs' explosive native of St. Paul, Minn., also registered three assists and finished 5-of-9 from the field.

Samford also received seven points from Tyler Hood, including a thunderous one-handed dunk over a pair of Furman defenders. The Bulldogs' true freshman Brandon Hayman also chipped in with six points and two rebounds, while sophomore Will Cook added four points, three rebounds, an assist and a blocked shot.

Both teams played aggressive defense Saturday and kept their opponent out of its comfort zone.

Samford shot 46.8 percent from the floor, but only knocked down 4-of-13 of their 3-point attempts. Furman struggled from the field with a 19-of-55 shooting performance. The Paladins didn't do much better from 3-point range and finished 6-of-29 for a 20.7-percent outing.

The Bulldogs outscored Furman, 32-16, in points in the paint and outscored the Paladins, 32-13, off the bench.

"A month ago, if we'd have shot 4-of-13 from the arc and 7-of-17 from the free-throw line, we had no chance of winning that game," said Tillette. "Tonight, our guys were able to win a grind-it-out game. We got some huge stops down the stretch and we rebounded the ball well. All those things were huge for us in a grind-it-out win."

Saturday's game marked Samford's home finale for the 2011-12 campaign. The Bulldogs finished the season with a 7-8 home record and a 5-4 SoCon mark when playing in the friendly confines of the Pete Hanna Center.

With Samford's victory Saturday and Elon's home loss to Western Carolina, the Bulldogs moved into a two-way tie for second place in the SoCon North Division. Samford swept Elon this season and holds the tiebreaker between the teams. The top-two seeds in each division will receive a first-round bye in the upcoming 2012 SoCon Tournament.

"We're tied for second place with Elon now in the North Division, but we still have to go to Western Carolina and then play at Chattanooga on Senior Night," Tillette said. "Those are both going to be difficult games for us, but Elon still has to play at Davidson and then at home against UNCG, so we'll see how it works out."

The Samford University basketball team will next be in action Thursday at 6 p.m. (CST) as the Bulldogs begin play in their final road trip of the regular season against the Western Carolina Catamounts at the Ramsey Center (7,826) in Cullowhee, N.C.