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GREENSBORO, N.C. -- The Samford basketball team fell behind early on the road against the first-place UNCG Spartans, 45-18, but used a strong second-half performance from senior Eric Adams to move within 10 points in the final minute of action Sunday, 85-75, before the Bulldogs eventually came up short, 88-75, in their final game of the regular season held at the Greensboro Coliseum.
 
With the loss, Samford (10-21, 6-12 SoCon) moved to 2-15 this season when playing on the road. The Bulldogs closed out conference play as the seventh-place team in the final standings and will open next week's SoCon Tournament on Friday at 6:30 p.m. (CT) against the No. 10-seed Chattanooga Mocs.
 
Samford and Chattanooga (9-22, 3-15 SoCon) split this season's annual home-and-home series with each team winning on its home court. The Bulldogs rolled to a 73-56 triumph held in the Pete Hanna Center on Dec. 30, before coming up short, 78-71, in Chattanooga, Tennessee, on Jan. 24.
 
UNCG (24-7, 15-3 SoCon) claimed its second straight SoCon regular-season championship, clinching the No. 1 seed in the upcoming SoCon Tournament.
 
The competition begins Friday, March 2, with a pair of first-round games. Four quarterfinal games follow on Saturday, with the semifinals on Sunday and the title game on Monday at 8 p.m. (CT). The championship tilt will air live on ESPN2, while every other contest will air on ESPN3.
 
The Spartans' regular-season title and No. 1 seed are their second straight. UNCG finished the regular season with a 24-7 overall record and a 15-3 league mark, overtaking ETSU in the standings on the final day for the outright title. UNCG earns one of two first-round byes and will await either The Citadel or VMI at noon on Saturday.
 
No. 8 seed The Citadel and No. 9 seed VMI get the men's tournament started with a 4 p.m., first-round bout Friday. The Bulldogs went 10-20 overall and 5-13 in league play to finish a game ahead of the Keydets in the standings, but VMI pulled off the sweep in a pair of regular-season matchups.
 
No. 7 seed Samford and No. 10 seed Chattanooga follow at 6:30 p.m. The winner will advance to Saturday's quarterfinal round of action where it will face No. 2 seed ETSU at 5 p.m. (CT).
 
In Sunday's loss at UNCG, Samford outscored the Spartans, 53-41, in the second half. The Bulldogs' Adams finished the game with a career-high 24 points and tallied 20 in the final period alone. He finished 7-of-9 from the field, 10-of-11 from the free-throw line and added seven rebounds, three steals and two blocked shots.
 
Samford's Demetrius Denzel-Dyson scored 15 points and pulled down five rebounds, while junior point guard Justin Coleman nearly tallied a double-double with 12 points and eight assists.
 
Senior Alex Thompson and sophomores Triston Chambers and Josh Sharkey rounded out the Bulldogs' scoring with 12, eight and four points, respectively.
 
UNCG's Marvin Smith scored a game-high 26 points and knocked down seven 3-point baskets on his Senior Night to lead the Spartans.
 
Samford was out-rebounded 36-21 on Sunday, including a 15-4 disparity on the offensive end of the court. UNCG outscored the Bulldogs, 18-8, in second-chance points and 34-4 in points off the bench.
 
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2018 SoCon Tournament Schedule
(All Times Central)
 
Friday, March 2 (ESPN3)
Game 1 - (8) The Citadel vs. (9) VMI, 4 p.m.
Game 2 - (7) Samford vs. (10) Chattanooga, 6:30 p.m.
 
Saturday, March 3 (ESPN3)
Game 3 - (1) UNCG vs. Game 1 winner, 11 a.m.
Game 4 - (4) Mercer vs. (5) Wofford, 1:30 p.m.
Game 5 - (2) ETSU vs. Game 2 winner, 5 p.m.
Game 6 - (3) Furman vs. (6) Western Carolina, 7:30 p.m.
 
Sunday, March 4 (ESPN3)
Game 7 - Game 3 winner vs. Game 4 winner, 4 p.m.
Game 8 - Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner, 5 p.m.
 
Monday, March 5 (ESPN2)
Championship game, 8 p.m.

Box Score
Updated Stats
SoCon Tournament Bracket