Box Score
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- Despite trailing by 14 points in the first half Tuesday, the Samford University basketball team battled back to within 51-48 at the 15:31 mark in the second period to nearly take the lead from the UT Arlington Mavericks in front of 1,239 boisterous fans at the College Park Center.
 
The Bulldogs' All-Southern Conference performer Raijon Kelly scored 14 of his 18 points in the second half, but UT Arlington closed out the game on a 37-27 run to earn an 88-75 win.
 
"This was our first road game as a group, so it was a little tough for us," said Samford head coach Bennie Seltzer. "Our guys are still trying to understand that our mistakes need to be limited when you're playing on the road. Late in the game, we got away from what we ordinarily do and that's the nature of the beast when you're playing a good team on the road.
 
"Now, we're going to go back to the drawing board, but we still have five more games on the road. This is going to be a learning experience for us. We'll watch the film, learn from it, get better and we'll be ready to play in our next one."
 
Samford (1-1) moved to 0-1 when playing away from home season and will continue its early six-game road stretch at No. 24-ranked Indiana on Friday at 6 p.m. (CST). The contest will be broadcast live on the Big Ten Network and will be the Bulldogs' first all-time meeting with the Hoosiers.
 
UT Arlington (1-1) finished Tuesday's game with five players scoring in double figures and was paced by preseason Sun Belt Conference selection Brandon Edwards' 18 points and 17 rebounds. He played a game-high 36 minutes and finished 6-of-10 from the field. Additionally, Edwards knocked down a pair of 3-point baskets.
 
The Mavericks' Reger Dewell, a transfer from Oklahoma State, led all scorers with 24 points on 8-of-17 shooting from the field. He also grabbed seven rebounds and handed out two assists.
 
Samford's Kelly led the Bulldogs with 18 points, while Tyler Hood and Connor Miller both finished with 12 points apiece. Tim Williams pulled down a team-high 12 rebounds, but failed to reach double figures in scoring for just the second time in 18 games. Williams, Samford's 2013 SoCon Freshman of the Year, tallied nine points on 3-of-12 shooting from the floor.
 
During the Bulldogs' comeback stretch early in the second half, Kelly exploded for nine points, while Miller drained a 3-pointer and Hood knocked down a jumper. Following Kelly's floater from the right flank at 15:31, Samford only trailed UT Arlington by three points, 51-48.
 
"We were able to make that run early in the second half because we weren't turning the ball over," Seltzer said. "We were taking care of the ball, taking good shots and sharing the basketball, but ultimately, we were getting stops. That was the most important part of that stretch. When you get stops, then you have a great opportunity to close the gap."
 
The Mavericks slowly continued to add to their lead midway through the second frame and eventually built a 74-58 advantage with 6:08 left to play.
 
With 4:27 remaining in the game, the Bulldogs' Miller knocked down a deep 3-point basket to bring Samford within nine points at 75-66, but UT Arlington stemmed the rally and held on for a final score of 88-75.
 
UT Arlington shot 50 percent from the field and 40 percent from beyond the arc Tuesday, while the Bulldogs finished 38.3 percent from the floor and with a solid 43.5 mark from long range.
 
The Mavericks didn't commit a single turnover in the second half and out-rebounded Samford, 42-35.
 
The Bulldogs' Isaiah Williams and Brandon Roberts both came off the bench and provided an offensive spark Tuesday. Williams scored nine points on a 3-of-7 performance from 3-point range, while Roberts added six points in only 10 minutes of playing time.
 
"I thought Isaiah and Brandon played well," said Seltzer. "This was the first road game of their collegiate careers, so I suspect that those guys will continue to get better and better as the season goes on. I'm encouraged by how some of our guys played. We played well in certain areas, but then there were some areas where we didn't play so well. We need to be a better rebounding team and we need to do a better job of boxing out and pursuing the ball."
 
Samford's Russell Wilson earned the start at point guard and tallied six points, six assists and a pair of rebounds in 29 minutes of game action. He finished 2-of-3 from the field and 2-of-4 from the charity stripe.
 
Samford only shot 31 percent from the field in the first half, but just trailed UT Arlington by seven points at the intermission, 41-34. Conversely, the Mavericks posted a 45.2 shooting percentage in the opening period and knocked down 5-of-8 3-point attempts for a sterling 62.5 mark from beyond the arc.
 
The Bulldogs finished with seven players scoring baskets in the first half and were paced by Hood, Roberts and Isaiah Williams with six points apiece. Tim Williams, Samford's 6-foot-9 forward from Chicago, Ill., registered five points and seven rebounds in the opening 20 minutes of action.
 
Both teams shot free throws well in the first half. Samford turned in a 76.5 percentage from the charity stripe, while UT Arlington was nearly perfect from the line at 8-of-9.
 
The Bulldogs forced the Mavericks into 11 turnovers in the first half, but UT Arlington out-rebounded Samford, 24-17.
 
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.