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BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- The Samford University basketball team will take to the road for the first time of the 2013-14 season Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. (CST) as the Bulldogs square off against the UT Arlington Mavericks in a key early-season matchup to be held at the College Park Center.

Samford (1-0) heads into the contest looking to build upon the positive momentum of a 79-62 season-opening victory against Martin Methodist on Friday. In the Bulldogs' win, sophomore Tim Williams garnered game highs in both points (19) and rebounds (16).

Martin Methodist opened the second period Friday with a 9-0 run and took a 35-34 advantage at the 17:17 mark. The Redhawks' D'Angelo Tucker connected on a pair of key buckets during Martin Methodist's second-half streak.

The teams battled back and forth midway through the final frame until Samford used a decisive 18-2 run to garner a 60-45 advantage and to put the game away. During their critical stretch, the Bulldogs' Jordan Capps scored seven points, Williams added six and Raijon Kelly chipped in with five.

Capps, Samford's dynamic true freshman from Suwanee, Ga., finished the game with eight points, five rebounds, an assist and a steal in only 16 minutes of playing time. Fellow true freshman Isaiah Williams earned 27 minutes of action at the point guard position and finished with 16 points and five assists.

Following Samford's 18-2 run late in the second half, the Bulldogs never led by less than 10 points for the remainder of the game.

UT Arlington (0-1) will be playing at home for the first time this season Tuesday. The Mavericks opened the year at Boise State on Friday and dropped a 116-87 decision.

UT Arlington finished with four players scoring in double figures Tuesday, but allowed Boise State to shoot 57.7 percent from the field and out-rebound the Mavericks, 45-26. Guard Reger Dowell led UT Arlington in scoring with 20 points. He also drained five 3-point baskets in the season-opening loss at Boise State.

The Bulldogs and Mavericks are tied in the all-time series, 5-5. The teams have met on the hardwood in each of the last two seasons, with the visiting team winning both contests. In 2011-12, Samford rallied for a 71-69 win at UT Arlington, while the Mavericks posted a 65-58 victory at the Pete Hanna Center in Birmingham, Ala., last year.

In the 2012 matchup, Samford rallied to within 49-48 with 7:58 to play in a hotly-contested non-conference contest held at the Pete Hanna Center. UT Arlington shot 66.7 percent in the final period and held off the Bulldogs' come-from-behind attempt in a 65-58 win.

Against the Mavericks, Kelly, the Bulldogs' dynamic guard from St. Paul, Minn., turned in one of his best outings of the 2012-13 season as he scored a game-high 20 points on 7-of-12 shooting from the field. Kelly also went a near-perfect 4-of-5 from 3-point range and handed out four assists in 36 minutes of playing time.

Immediately after Kelly's jumper trimmed the Mavericks' advantage to 49-48, UT Arlington's Brandon Edwards was fouled and knocked down a pair of free throws. Junior guard Shaq White-Miller was also fouled and connected on two free throws of his own before Edwards capitalized on a steal and laid it in following a Samford turnover.

Edwards' bucket gave UT Arlington a 55-48 advantage with 4:33 remaining in the game. The Mavericks' forward from Fort Worth, Texas, finished the contest with seven points and eight rebounds.

Samford's Kelly quickly answered UT Arlington's run with a 3-point basket to make the score, 55-51, but the Mavericks bounced back with back-to-back buckets from Kevin Butler and Jordan Reves.

The Bulldogs continued to battle down the stretch and used a 3-pointer from Clide Geffrard, Jr., to trim UT Arlington's advantage to 59-54 with 1:52 left in the game. That would be the closest as Samford came in the final minutes as the Mavericks continued their hot shooting down the stretch and hung on for the 65-58 win.

The Bulldogs' 2013-14 roster is comprised of eight newcomers, six true freshmen, three sophomores and five juniors. Samford's lone seniors on the team this season are walk-ons Hamilton Bailey and Tony Thompson. Second-year head coach Bennie Seltzer has quickly changed the makeup of the Bulldogs' roster and nine of the team's extremely talented 16 players are underclassmen.

With Samford's up-tempo offense and hardnosed man-to-man defensive mindset, Seltzer realizes that there will always be a need for quickness, agility and speed on his roster.

The Bulldogs' 2013-14 squad boasts 10 guards, including five players capable of filling the point guard position out of the 16-man roster. The only non-guards on the team are forwards Eric Adams, Jordan Capps, Tyler Hood, Emeka Ikezu, Tim Williams and center Michael Bradley.

Following Tuesday's showdown at UT Arlington, the Samford University basketball team will next be in action Friday at 6 p.m. (CST) as the Bulldogs travel to Bloomington, Ind., for a huge non-conference game against the 24^th-ranked Indiana Hoosers to be held in historic Assembly Hall.

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Game Notes
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