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SAN DIEGO -- The Samford University basketball team opened its 2016-17 season in impressive fashion Monday as the Bulldogs cruised to a wire-to-wire 83-65 road victory against the San Diego Toreros in their first matchup of the four-game San Diego Classic. The contest was held at USD's Jenny Craig Pavilion.
 
Monday's game proved to be a part of the 2016 San Diego Classic. Next up, Samford (1-0) will travel to Las Cruces, New Mexico, for another key road test against the New Mexico State Aggies.
 
Later this month, the Bulldogs will close out the four-game San Diego Classic with back-to-back home games against Bethune-Cookman (Nov. 26) and Nicholls State (Nov. 27).
 
Samford finished Monday's victory with five players scoring in double figures.
 
The Bulldogs were paced by junior Demetrius Denzel-Dyson's 20 points on 7-of-9 shooting from the field, while Alex Thompson followed with 17 points, five rebounds, two assists and a steal. Denzel-Dyson drained four 3-point baskets in the matchup and only missed one attempt from downtown.
 
Thompson also turned in a strong outing from 3-point range with a 2-for-4 performance. As a team, Samford finished 10-of-25 from beyond the arc for a 40-percent outing.
 
On Monday, 79 of the Bulldogs' 83 points were scored by five players.
 
Denzel-Dyson and Thompson led the way with a combined 37 points for Samford, while Wyatt Walker proved to be dominant in the frontcourt by recording a double-double with 16 points and 15 rebounds. Walker's 15 rebounds set a career-high and his total was more than double the closest competitor.
 
Additionally, Walker's double-double proved to be the fifth of his young, up-and-coming career.
 
Junior point guard Christen Cunningham ran the show for the Bulldogs and scored 14 points, while handing out a game-high seven assists. True freshman point guard Josh Sharkey looked sharp in his collegiate debut and closed out the victory with 12 points, three assists and a trio of steals.
 
Samford forced San Diego (0-2) into 13 turnovers and turned in a 46.9 shooting mark from the floor. The Toreros shot 41.2-percent from the field and were limited to 9-of-29 shooting from 3-point range for a 31-percent mark.
 
The Bulldogs opened the game with a 6-0 lead on early 3-point baskets from Denzel-Dyson and never looked back. Samford garnered a 37-25 lead at the half and cruised to its momentous 18-point season-opening victory.
 
The Samford University basketball team will next be in action Wednesday at 8 p.m. (CST) as the Bulldogs continue their San Diego Classic road swing in Las Cruces, New Mexico, against the New Mexico State Aggies. The contest will be held at NMSU's Pan American Center.
 
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