Game Notes
SoCon Release

CHARLESTON, S.C. – The Samford University basketball team will attempt to defeat the College of Charleston Cougars for the first time in school history Thursday as the Bulldogs square off against their undefeated Southern Conference foes at 6:30 p.m. (CT) at TD Arena (5,100).
 
The game will be aired locally on ESPN 97.3 FM The Zone. Fans will also be able to follow along on the Internet via Live Stats.
 
Samford (3-12, 1-1 SoCon) enters Thursday's contest with hopes of snapping a current two-game losing streak. Since earning a key road victory at UT Martin on Dec. 19, 75-62, the Bulldogs have dropped back-to-back games against Wisconsin and Chattanooga.
 
In Saturday's hard-fought home loss to Chattanooga, 74-70, Samford's Raijon Kelly scored a career-high 27 points and turned in a sizzling 6-of-8 shooting performance from 3-point range. The Bulldogs' sophomore guard from St. Paul, Minn., also played the entire game against Chattanooga and finished 9-of-16 from the field.
 
With his performance against Chattanooga, Kelly reached the prestigious 500-point plateau in only his second season as a Bulldog. He enters Thursday's game with a career scoring total of 504 points.
 
Samford's Kelly is shooting a stellar 65.2 percent (15-of-23) from 3-point range in his last four games, dating back to the Sam Houston State contest on Dec. 15. In his last four outings, Kelly has turned in 3-point performances of 2-for-4 versus Sam Houston State, 3-for-6 at UT Martin, 4-for-5 at Wisconsin and a career-high 6-for-8 versus Chattanooga on Saturday.
 
College of Charleston (10-4, 2-0 SoCon) is in the midst of its longest winning streak of the season. The Cougars have won five straight games dating back to Dec. 13 when they were stunned at home by Anderson University, 65-49.
 
Since its surprising loss on Dec. 13, College of Charleston has rattled off consecutive victories against Old Dominion, 76-65, Coastal Carolina, 60-51, Vermont, 62-50, Marist, 85-75, and Furman, 60-56.
 
College of Charleston heads into Thursday's game as the top-ranked team in the conference in six statistical categories. The Cougars are currently tops in the SoCon in field-goal percentage (44.0), 3-point field-goal percentage (39.1), 3-point field-goal percentage defense (27.8), rebounding defense (31.9 pg), blocked shots (4.8 pg) and defensive rebounds (25.6 pg).
 
Andrew Lawrence, College of Charleston's Preseason All-SoCon performer, is currently leading the Cougars with an average of 13.9 points per game. He is also ranked third in the conference in assists with 3.9 per contest.
 
College of Charleston's Anthony Stitt enters Thursday's meeting with an 11.6 points per game scoring average. Stitt, the Cougars' 6-foot-1 sophomore guard from Charlotte, N.C., has started all 14 games this season and is also shooting a stellar 44.9 percent from 3-point range.
 
The Bulldogs have never defeated College of Charleston and trail the Cougars in the all-time series 12-0. Samford is 0-6 when playing at College of Charleston and owns a 2-9 all-time record when competing in the city of Charleston, S.C. The Bulldogs' two victories in Charleston came against Baptist College (now Charleston-Southern) in 1977 and 1978.
 
Samford's Kelly and Tim Williams are both ranked in the SoCon's top 10 in scoring this season. Kelly enters Thursday's game as the seventh-ranked scorer in the conference with a 14.9 points per contest average, while Williams is listed ninth in the league with a 14.7 points per game scoring average.
 
The Bulldogs' Williams, who is only a true freshman this season, is also highly ranked in the SoCon's rebounds standings. Williams heads into this week as the No. 3 rebounder in the conference with an average of 7.5 per game. He is currently the only freshman to be ranked among the top 20 in the league's rebounding list.
 
Kelly is also ranked seventh in the conference in assists with 3.5 per game. Additionally, he enters the game ranked fourth in the SoCon with an average of 2.5 3-point baskets per outing.
 
As freshmen in 2011-12, the Bulldogs' duo comprised of Kelly and forward Tyler Hood was named to the SoCon All-Freshman Team. Collectively, the pair averaged 20.5 points per game, 6.5 rebounds per contest and 106 assists over the course of the season.
 
Individually, Kelly finished his true freshman campaign averaging 9.4 points and 2.9 rebounds per game. Samford's native of St. Paul, Minn., concluded the year ranked third on the team in scoring and logged an average of 28.2 minutes of game action per outing.
 
Hood, as a redshirt freshman in 2011-12, led the Bulldogs in scoring nine times and registered 19 double-digit scoring performances. Samford's 6-foot-6 native of Lenoir City, Tenn., finished the season ranked second on the team in scoring (11.1 ppg) and fourth on the team in rebounds (3.6 pg.). Hood also concluded the year ranked 14th in the SoCon in field-goal percentage (47.0)
 
Samford returning starters Hood, Kelly and Will Cook are all listed among the Bulldogs' active leaders in points, rebounds, assists and 3-point field goals. Currently, steals is the only major category that all three of the aforementioned players aren't ranked among the top three on Samford's roster.
 
Kelly, Samford's dynamic sophomore guard, is the team's active leader points (504), assists (120) and steals (33). He is also the Bulldogs' leader in 3-point field goals (70) and is third in rebounds (122).
 
Hood is currently ranked second among active players in points (395), 3-point field goals (50) and rebounds (139). He is also ranked fourth on the team in career assists (43). Cook, the Bulldogs' junior guard from Dallas, Texas, leads Samford in rebounds (216) and is also listed second on the squad in steals (26). Cook is also ranked third on the team in points (333), assists (51) and 3-point field goals (43).
 
The Bulldogs' fourth returning player listed among the team's active leaders is junior guard Gregg Wooten. Wooten, who is coming off a medical redshirt season, is ranked second on the team in both assists (56) and steals (24), as well as fifth on the squad on 3-point field goals (14).
 
With Samford's new up-tempo offense and hardnosed man-to-man defensive mindset this season, 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 two true point guards out of its 13-man roster. The only non-guards on this season's team are forwards Clide Geffrard, Jr., Hood and Williams.
 
Following Thursday's contest at College of Charleston, the Samford University basketball team will next be in action Saturday at 6:05 p.m. (CST) as the Bulldogs travel across town to face The Citadel Bulldogs in another early-season SoCon matchup to be held at McAlister Fieldhouse.

Game Notes
SoCon Release