BOX SCORE (PDF)

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The Samford women's basketball team shot 56.1 percent from the floor on its way to a 63-49 victory over Alabama State Wednesday night in the Pete Hanna Center.
 
"We wanted to be aggressive in terms of attacking the paint and getting shots around the goal, and I thought for the most part we did that," Samford head coach Mike Morris said. "Any time you can win, it's nice, but the biggest thing is we're progressing as a basketball team. We really had two good days of preparation, coming back from Kentucky."
 
Samford was led in scoring by Kassidy Blevins with 18 points. Hannah Nichols followed with 16 points. Ellen Riggins added 10 points, four rebounds and four assists. Brittany Stevens also contributed four assists in the win.
 
"This group is as good a group as I can remember having in responding to what we want them to do," Morris said. "They have done a great job of internalizing that. They've done a great job of taking the coaching. Individual players have done that, and the team has done that. That's really a great feeling as a coach."
 
For Alabama State, Daniele Ewert scored 16 points and grabbed five rebounds. Kayla Stephens scored 12 points, while Britney Wright added 11 points and five rebounds.
 
Samford led from the start. The game was close early in the first quarter until, with Samford leading, 6-5, the Bulldogs closed the quarter on a 13-3 run to take a 19-8 lead at the end of the period.
 
In the second quarter, Samford pushed its lead out to as many as 17 points at 29-12. The Bulldogs took a 31-17 lead into the locker room at halftime.
 
Samford led by as many as 23 points twice in the third quarter. The Bulldogs led, 50-30 heading into the final period. Samford maintained a comfortable lead throughout the fourth quarter, with the 14-point final deficit marking the closest the Hornets were able to get to the Bulldogs, as Samford came away with the 63-49 win.
 
Samford made 23-of-41 shots from the floor for a 56.1-percent shooting effort. The Bulldogs made 41.7 percent of their attempts from three-point range. Alabama State shot 30.0 percent overall and 11.1 percent from beyond the arc.
 
With the win, Samford improves to 3-4 on the young season. Alabama State falls to 1-5 with the loss.
 
Samford will host Alabama A&M Saturday at 12 p.m. in the Pete Hanna Center. To purchase tickets, click on the following link: WBB TICKETS.