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JACKSONVILLE, Ala. -- The Samford University basketball team will play its fifth consecutive game away from home Tuesday at 8 p.m. (CST) as the Bulldogs travel to face former Ohio Valley Conference rivals, the Jacksonville State Gamecocks, in a key in-state contest to be held at the newly-refurbished Pete Mathews Coliseum (3,500).
 
Samford (5-2) enters the game with aspirations of bouncing back from a tough 74-73 road loss at Austin Peay on Saturday. The Bulldogs got off to a slow start in the contest and trailed by as many as 15 points in the first half. Samford rallied in the second period, but came up a point shy versus the Governors in Clarksville, Tennessee.
 
SCOUTING THE COMPETITION
Jacksonville State (3-6) will be facing its second straight Southern Conference opponent Tuesday. On Saturday, the Gamecocks met Chattanooga on the final day of competition at the Emerald Coast Classic and were defeated by a score of 62-52.
 
Jacksonville State boasts three players averaging double figures in scoring this season. Junior guard Erik Durham, a transfer from Lamar State College in Texas, and former teammate of Samford's Jamal Shabazz, is leading the Gamecocks with 13.9 points per game. Durham is also averaging five rebounds per contest.
 
Malcolm Drumwright, a sophomore guard from Rancho Cucamonga, California, is averaging 13.6 points per game, while Jared Hamilton enters Tuesday's matchup scoring 10.2 points per outing. Hamilton is a true freshman from Charlotte, North Carolina.
 
THE ALL-TIME SERIES
The Bulldogs and Gamecocks haven't met on the hardwood in nearly eight seasons. The last meeting between the teams occurred Jan. 7, 2008, when Samford registered a 57-53 road win at Jacksonville State. The Bulldogs hold a 51-37 advantage in the all-time series and boast a five-game winning streak versus the Gamecocks, dating back to Jan. 7, 2006.
 
WHAT'S TRENDING . . .
• Samford will face its second straight Ohio Valley Conference opponent Tuesday.
• On Saturday, the Bulldogs dropped a 74-73 decision on the road at Austin Peay.
• Samford's Shabazz registered career highs in both points (24) and 3-pointers (5) at Austin Peay.
• The Bulldogs have not played at Jacksonville State since Jan. 7, 2008, which proved to be a 57-53 road win.
• Freshman Matt Rose has scored in double figures in five of Samford's seven games this year.
 
SAMFORD VERSUS IN-STATE OPPONENTS
Since the beginning of the 2006-07 campaign, Samford owns a 12-3 record against in-state opponents. The Bulldogs are in the midst of a five-game winning streak versus in-state opponents, which includes victories against Auburn, 79-68, and Troy, 83-79. Samford has not been defeated by an in-state opponent since Dec. 16, 2009, when the Bulldogs lost at Alabama, 65-50.
 
BULLDOGS' GUARDS GETTING THE JOB DONE
Samford's starting backcourt of Christen Cunningham and Darius Jones-Gibson is averaging 32.0 points, 6.4 rebounds and 5.7 assists per game this season. Additionally, the Bulldogs' Marcus Johnson is averaging 6.7 points and 2.4 assists per outing as a backup.
 
SAMFORD REBOUNDING ITS WAY TO HISTORY
Samford currently boasts a plus-2.8 rebounding margin through seven games this season. The last time that the Bulldogs finished a campaign with a positive rebounding margin was 16 years ago in 1999-2000 when they finished at plus-0.7. Also that season, Samford finished the year with a 21-11 overall record and advanced to the NCAA Tournament.
 
CUNNINGHAM CONTINUES TO EXCEL
Samford's Cunningham averaged 16.7 points, 3.0 assists and 2.7 rebounds per game last week from his point guard position as he helped lead the Bulldogs to the championship title of the Mean Green Showcase hosted by the University of North Texas.
 
In the championship game of the four-team, three-day competition, Cunningham exploded for a career-high 26 points and shot a sizzling 8-of-11 from the field against Idaho. He also turned in an 8-of-10 performance from the charity stripe as Samford rolled to a 75-58 victory in the title game.
 
Cunningham, the Bulldogs' 6-foot-2 sophomore floor general from Georgetown, Kentucky, also led the team with five steals last week and posted a 57.6-percent shooting mark from the field. In his games against North Texas and Austin Peay, Cunningham scored 11 and 13 points, respectively, while grabbing seven rebounds and handing out seven assists.
 
THE FOUR HORSEMEN
Samford's top three active leaders in the statistical categories of points, rebounds, assists, steals and 3-point field goals are all a combination of the following four players:  Jones-Gibson, Cunningham, Marcus Johnson and Shabazz.
 
Here in the early portion of the 2015-16 campaign, Jones-Gibson is ranked first in points (507), rebounds (119) and steals (49). The Bulldogs' senior guard is also listed second in active career assists with 85. Cunningham paces Samford in assists with 149 and is also ranked second on the team in points (435), steals (47) and 3-pointers (16), while being listed third in rebounds (101).
 
Johnson, the Bulldogs' senior guard from Washington, D.C., is ranked third on the team in points (242), assists (71) and steals (28), while Shabazz is tabbed second in both rebounds (110) and 3-point field goals (21).
 
THE LAST TIME OUT
Samford's five-game winning streak came to an end Saturday against the Austin Peay Governors as the Bulldogs' furious second-half comeback attempt came just one point shy, 74-73, on the road in the Dunn Center.
 
Despite trailing by as many as 15 points late in the first half, Samford battled back to within three, 70-67, with 51 seconds left in the game. The Bulldogs' rally was fueled by Shabazz, who exploded for a career-high 24 points on 8-of-12 shooting from the floor.
 
Shabazz, Samford's 6-foot-6 native of Pflugerville, Texas, also knocked down a career-high five 3-point baskets on a stellar 5-of-7 shooting performance from beyond the arc.
 
With an off-balanced, driving layup from Josh Robinson, Austin Peay extended its lead to
72-67 with 22 seconds remaining to play.
 
On the ensuing possession, the Bulldogs' Shabazz was fouled while attempting a 3-point basket from the left flank and was awarded three free-throw attempts for the infraction. Shabazz, who entered the game with the team's best free-throw percentage at 91.7, drained all three of the attempts to cut Austin Peay's lead to 72-70 with 11 seconds to play.
 
The Governors were immediately fouled following Shabazz's free throws and Robinson continued his hot shooting on the other end by making both attempts.
 
On the final possession of the game, Samford trailed by four, 74-70. The Bulldogs took a timeout and when play resumed Shabazz tried to get fouled while shooting a 3-point basket. He connected on the shot at the buzzer, but Austin Peay stayed away from contact. Shabazz's late 3-pointer made the final score, 74-73.
 
WHAT'S COMING UP NEXT?
Following Tuesday's in-state road test at Jacksonville State, the Samford University basketball team will next be in action Friday at 8 p.m. (CST) as the Bulldogs travel to Austin, Texas, for a nationally-televised contest against the Texas Longhorns. The game will be broadcast live on the Longhorn Network and will be held at the Frank Erwin Center.
 
For quick score updates, breaking news and links to all of your favorite articles featuring the Bulldogs, please follow @SamfordHoopsFOE and @Samford_Sports on Twitter.

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