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BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- The Samford University basketball team will play its first home game in nearly a month Friday at 7 p.m. (CT) as the Bulldogs welcome the South Alabama Jaguars to the Pete Hanna Center for the first time in school history. Samford and South Alabama have not met in Birmingham since the teams played in Seibert Hall on Jan. 31, 1976.
 
"We're really looking forward to a home game," said Samford head coach Scott Padgett. "Hopefully, we can have a great crowd here tomorrow night. South Alabama is a good team and it's going to be an in-state rivalry game. They are a very good program and we're looking forward to getting back to the friendly confines of the Pete Hanna Center."
 
Samford (7-3) enters the matchup with a full head of steam after earning an 86-67 road victory at Florida A&M on Saturday. The Bulldogs' win capped a seven-game road swing, which featured triumphs against Troy, North Texas, Idaho, Jacksonville State and Florida A&M. Samford concluded the arduous road stretch with an impressive 5-2 record.
 
$1 HIGH SCHOOL NIGHT
Friday's game will also be a "$1 High School Night". All high school students can show their school I.D. and get in for just $1. Also, starting at 6:30 p.m., the first 100 fans in attendance will receive a free Samford Athletics Tacky Christmas t-shirt. Pick yours up on the concourse on top of Section Q.
 
SCOUTING THE COMPETITION
South Alabama (3-6) heads into the contest with a two-game losing streak. Since topping Spring Hill on Nov. 30, 79-50, the Jaguars have dropped back-to-back games against Middle Tennessee, 68-55, and Southern Miss, 57-54.
 
South Alabama enters Friday's game as one of the top teams in the nation in forcing turnovers. Already this season, the Jaguars have forced opponents into 136 miscues, which is ranked No. 72 in the nation at 15.11 turnovers per outing.
 
South Alabama's Ken Williams is averaging 15 points per game this season and has handed out a team-high 23 assists. The Jaguars' explosive junior guard from Houston, Texas, also boasts 3.3 rebounds per contest and is shooting 83.3 percent from the free-throw line. South Alabama is 0-4 when playing on the road this season.
 
THE ALL-TIME SERIES
The Bulldogs and Jaguars haven't met on the hardwood since Dec. 2, 2006, when South Alabama earned a 59-54 home victory in Mobile, Ala. The Jaguars own a 16-3 advantage in the all-time series and have won the last 11 meetings between the teams dating back to Feb. 10, 1972. Samford's last home game in the series occurred Jan. 31, 1976.
 
WHAT'S TRENDING . . .
• Samford's Matt Rose was named the SoCon Player of the Week Tuesday after scoring 17 points and adding seven rebounds in the Bulldogs' 86-67 road win at Florida A&M.
• Samford's starting backcourt comprised of Christen Cunningham and Darius Jones-Gibson has started together in all 42 games of the Scott Padgett Era.
• Samford is undefeated when leading at the half (7-0) and out-rebounding the opposition (6-0).
 
BOASTING A BIG-TIME BACKCOURT
Samford continues play in the 2015-16 campaign with a pair of returning starters at the guard position in Cunningham and Jones-Gibson. Cunningham, the Bulldogs' talented sophomore point guard from Georgetown, Kentucky, has never missed a start in his young up-and-coming college career.              
 
As a true freshman last year, Cunningham started at the point guard position in all 32 of the team's games and averaged 10.3 points, 3.9 assists and 2.4 rebounds per contest. He also logged a team-high average of 30.1 minutes per outing and finished second on the squad with a 79.1 free-throw percentage.
 
Jones-Gibson, Samford's senior guard from Lexington, Kentucky, returned this season as the Bulldogs' top returning scorer. Last year, Jones-Gibson paced the squad with 12.2 points per game and also pulled down an average of 3.1 rebounds per contest.
 
Since transferring to Samford from Barton County Community College prior to the 2014-15 campaign, Jones-Gibson has started in every outing as a Bulldog, and has shared backcourt duties with Cunningham in all 42 games of Padgett's tenure.
 
TRANSITIONING OFFENSE – SAMFORD TAKES IT TO HYPERDRIVE
Samford fans will continue to enjoy a much faster paced offense this season. With plenty of depth and a roster chalk-full of young talent, the Bulldogs are getting up and down the court in 2015-16 and creating easy buckets in transition. Last season, Padgett implemented his full-court, fast-paced offensive attack and Samford averaged 69.2 points per game.
 
#FOE = FAMILY OVER EVERYTHING
Since taking over as head coach in 2014, Samford's Padgett has coined the phrase "FOE" as his biggest mantra of the Bulldogs' basketball program. FOE stands for Family Over Everything and has truly resonated with Samford's players ... old and new.
 
"I don't really invent a lot of things, but I've worked under a lot of great coaches and have been around a lot of great people," said Padgett. "My former teammate and boss, Steve Masiello, came up with the saying Team Over Everything, and I kind of liked it, but at Kentucky it was all about Family. So, I kind of combined those two concepts and now we have Family Over Everything (#FOE).
 
"I really believe that this team is a family and that goes with everybody's extended families, as well as the staff and everybody involved with Samford basketball."
 
SAMFORD'S ROSE NAMED SOCON PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Rose was named the SoCon Player of the Week Tuesday for his performance during all games played Dec. 8-14, the league office announced. Rose scored 17 points and pulled down seven rebounds, while adding a blocked shot in an 86-67 win at Florida A&M on Saturday.
 
Rose scored his career-high 17 points in just 23 minutes, shooting 4-of-6 from 3-point range. Overall, he was 5-of-9 from the field and his seven rebounds were a game-high against the Rattlers. Rose is averaging 9.5 points per game this season.
 
HOME SWEET HOME - 'DOGS SHOOT BETTER AT THE HANNA CENTER
Last year, Samford shot the ball significantly better at home in the friendly confines of the Pete Hanna Center. The Bulldogs finished the year shooting 47.8 percent from the field at home in 2014-15, but only 40.6 percent from the floor when playing on the road. Additionally, Samford shot 2.2 percentage points better at home from 3-point range; 35.8 at home versus 33.6 on the road.
 
THE LAST TIME OUT - - BULLDOGS CRUISE PAST FLORIDA A&M ON THE ROAD
Samford closed out Saturday's road contest against the Florida A&M Rattlers with a 35-16 run to pull away for an 86-67 victory in a non-conference matchup held at the Alfred Lawson, Jr. Multipurpose Center in Tallahassee, Florida.
 
With the win, Samford moved to 3-3 in true road games this season and closed out its seven-game stretch away from home with a 5-2 record. Two of the Bulldogs' victories during the streak were held in neutral settings against Troy and Idaho.
 
Four Samford players scored in double figures Saturday against Florida A&M. The Bulldogs' Cunningham tallied a game-high 18 points on 6-of-13 shooting from the field, while Rose followed with a career-high 17 points on a 5-of-9 performance from the floor.
 
Rose, Samford's talented true freshman from Lexington, Kentucky, also notched a career-high with four 3-point baskets, while grabbing a team-high seven rebounds. Darius Jones-Gibson added 12 points, four rebounds and a trio of assists for the Bulldogs on Saturday. He also led the team with three steals.
 
Senior guard Marcus Johnson finished with 11 points and didn't miss a single shot from the field. The Bulldogs' speedy native of Washington, D.C., turned in an unblemished 4-of-4 outing from the floor, a 3-of-3 performance from 3-point range and pulled down four rebounds.
 
Samford jumped out to a quick 9-0 lead Saturday and garnered an early 27-6 advantage by forcing the Rattlers into six initial turnovers. With 7:58 remaining in the first half, the Bulldogs built a 31-14 lead following a 14-foot jumper from senior forward Iman Johnson.
 
THE "PETE" – SAMFORD CALLS THE PETE HANNA CENTER HOME
Nov. 15, 2007, marked the dawning of a new era for Samford as the Bulldogs began play in their pristine 32-million-dollar Pete Hanna Center. The state-of-the-art 5,000-seat arena was completed in October of 2007 and features new locker rooms, a training room, a weight room and coaches offices.          
 
The Pete Hanna Center, which replaced Samford's historic 45-year-old Seibert Hall, also houses the University's recreation center and workout facility. In their Pete Hanna Center debut, the Bulldogs dropped a hard-fought 82-73 decision against perennial NCAA Tournament participant Belmont.
 
WHAT'S COMING UP NEXT?
Following Friday's key home test against South Alabama, the Samford University basketball team will next be in action Sunday at 6 p.m. (CST) as the Bulldogs fly to Lincoln, Nebraska, for a marquee Big Ten Network game against the Nebraska Cornhuskers. The contest will be held at the University of Nebraska's sparkling new Pinnacle Bank Arena.
 
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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