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BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- The Samford University basketball team will begin play in its final homestand of the 2016-17 nonconference season Thursday at 7:30 p.m. (CST) as the Bulldogs welcome the Florida A&M Rattlers to the Pete Hanna Center for a highly-anticipated, pre-Christmas showdown.
 
Samford (7-4) heads into the contest with hopes of bouncing back from a tough 76-68 road loss at No. 21-ranked Florida State on Monday. In the setback, the Bulldogs finished the game with four players scoring in double figures. Junior point guard Christen Cunningham led the way with 16 points and three assists.
 

Samford has been solid at home this season and owns a 3-1 record when playing in the Pete Hanna Center. The Bulldogs are also averaging 92.2 points per game when competing at home.
 
SCOUTING THE COMPETITION
Florida A&M (2-9) enters Thursday's contest with hopes of snapping an eight-game losing streak.  
 
Since earning back-to-back home victories against Trinity Baptist College, 94-62, and Johnson University, 100-91, on Nov. 15 and 17, respectively, the Rattlers have since suffered consecutive losses to Air Force, East Carolina, Georgia Southern, Stetson, Kennesaw State, Southern University, Southeastern Louisiana and Jacksonville University on Saturday.
 
In its recent loss to Jacksonville, Florida A&M let a 17-point first-half lead slip way as they fell at home to the Dolphins, 75-72, in The Al Lawson Center.
 
The game got off to a rollicking start as the Rattlers shot 73 percent over the first 10 minutes, cruising to an 11-point lead, thanks to a 12-1 run led by sophomore guards Justin Ravenal and K'Ja Johnson.
 
The sophomore duo from Georgia each hit 3-pointers to spark the early run, and with scoring help from Desmond Williams, Marcus Barham and Derrick Dandridge, the Rattlers built a 17-point lead, 41-24, after Ravenal cashed in three free throws with 4:20 left in the half, before the Dolphins made their move before halftime.
 
Jacksonville then went on a 14-3 finishing surge to cut the Florida A&M lead to 44-38 at the half, eventually tying the score at 46-46 with 18:10 left on a Devin Harris layup.
 
Johnson's 3-pointer with 12:33 left capped a 12-4 Rattler run to vault them ahead, 58-50, but the Dolphins rallied to tie the game at 59-59 with 10:12 left on a Devin Harris layup. A J.R. Holder layup with 8:24 left would give Jacksonville a 61-59 lead.
 
Darien Fernandez's layup with 6:53 left gave the Dolphins their largest lead at 66-59, but the Rattlers made a last-gasp flurry, tying the score at 72-72 on a Ravenal layup with 19 seconds left. Fernandez cashed in a game-winning 3-pointer with 3.4 seconds left to seal the deal.
 
Desmond Williams finished with a game-high 20 points, to go with four rebounds and four blocked shots. Ravenal and Johnson each finished with 16 points for Florida A&M, with the two combining for seven 3-pointers (Johnson four, Ravenal three), with Barham finishing with nine points, seven assists and seven rebounds.              
 
THE ALL-TIME SERIES - - SAMFORD vs. FLORIDA A&M
The Bulldogs own a perfect 3-0 all-time record against Florida A&M and are coming off an 86-67 road victory over the Rattlers last season. The most recent matchup, which was held Dec. 12, 2015, proved to be Samford's first meeting with Florida A&M in well over 30 years, dating back to Feb. 11, 1985.
 
The Bulldogs' first two games against Florida A&M occurred in 1985 as Samford won 77-74 on the road on Jan. 14, before notching a 78-56 triumph at home in Seibert Hall on Feb. 11.
 
SCORING IS KEY
Since the beginning of last season, Samford has registered an 11-2 record when scoring at least 80 points. On Nov. 14, the Bulldogs opened the 2016-17 season with a dominant 83-65 road victory at San Diego and turned in a 46.9-percent shooting performance from the field, including a welcome 10-of-25 (40 percent) outing from 3-point range.
 
On Friday, Samford posted an 82-79 road victory against South Alabama as the Bulldogs earned their first all-time win over the Jaguars held in Mobile, Ala.
 

PADGETT IN HIS THIRD SEASON
Samford head coach Scott Padgett is in his third season at the helm of the Bulldogs. Padgett currently owns a 34-42 record at Samford and is coming off the school's winningest season in seven years, dating back to the 2008-09 campaign.
 
Last year, the Bulldogs compiled an impressive 10-5 record in non-conference play and registered a pivotal 69-58 road victory at Nebraska. The win proved to be Samford's first triumph against a Big Ten opponent in school history.
 
"I'm really excited about where we're at right now," said Padgett recently. "We still have a long way to go, but I think we're on target to where we wanted to be in year three. We have a team that's right there talent-wise and that will be able to compete. I think Samford fans will be happy to come watch the team this season."
 
3D'S HISTORIC GAME
The Bulldogs' Demetrius Denzel-Dyson (3D) led all scorers with a career-high 40 points on 15-of-20 shooting from the field against Nicholls State on Nov. 27. He also posted a double-double with 11 rebounds and shot a sizzling 7-of-11 from 3-point range. Denzel-Dyson played 44 of the team's 50 minutes and added two assists and a pair of steals.
 
SAMFORD'S WALKER IN THE NATIONAL RANKINGS
The Bulldogs' Wyatt Walker heads into Thursday's game ranked fourth in the nation with eight double-doubles this season. Walker is also ranked No. 11 in the country in rebounds per contest (11.3) and No. 13 in defensive rebounds per game (7.8). Additionally, Samford's Walker is ranked 15th in the nation in total rebounds (124).
 

CHAMBERS' CAREER DAY
Samford's Triston Chambers turned in a career performance against Nicholls State on Nov. 27. The Bulldogs' true freshman sharpshooter from Cold Springs scored a personal-best 24 points on 6-of-9 shooting from the field. All six of his field goals came from 3-point range as he finished 6-of-8 from beyond the arc. Chambers also handed out five assists for Samford.
 
CUNNINGHAM'S ASSIST FRENZY
On Nov. 27, in the Bulldogs' heartbreaking 106-103 home loss to Nicholls State, Cunningham handed out a career-high 13 assists. Last year, Samford's dynamic floor general became the first player in school history to record back-to-back seasons with at least 125 assists. Cunningham is also just 76 points shy of reaching the prestigious 1,000-point plateau.
 
WHAT'S COMING UP NEXT?
Following Thursday's home matchup against Florida A&M, the Samford University basketball team will take a couple days off for the Christmas break before returning home to practice in preparation for the Bulldogs' Dec. 28 home contest against Fort Valley State. Samford will host the Wildcats at 7 p.m. (CST) in the Pete Hanna Center.
 
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