GAME NOTES: Samford (2-3) @ Kennesaw State (3-3)
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BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The Samford men's basketball team concludes its four game road swing on Saturday, Dec. 19, as the Bulldogs (2-3) travel to Kennesaw, Ga., to face the Owls (3-3) of Kennesaw State. Tipoff is set for 3:30 PM at the KSU Convocation Center. Complete coverage will be available on ESPN+.

The Bulldogs and Owls are meeting for the fifth time in the series with the series tied at 2-2. Samford defeated KSU, 74-60, on Nov. 12, 2018 at the Pete Hanna Center in the last meeting between the schools. In the history of the four game series, the home team is undefeated on their floor. 

Spencer Rodgers (16.4 ppg) and Chris Youngblood (15.0 ppg) lead the way for coach Amir Abdur-Rahim and the Owls. KSU, which fell to Belmont 64-53 on Wednesday, owns victories over three non-NCAA DI opponents, including Carver, Toccoa Falls and Dalton State.

Samford is coming off a 79-71 defeat at Troy on Wednesday at Trojans Arena. Christian Guess recorded his third double-double of the season and the second in as many games with 18 points, 13 rebounds and four assists.
 

BULLDOG BITES

• Samford enters this week's games at Troy and Kennesaw State receiving votes in the Mid-Major Top 25 Poll.
• Myron Gordon, a 6-3 senior guard, is off to a phenomenal start, leading the Southern Conference in scoring and ranks 16th nationally at 22.7 points per game. For those efforts, Gordon was named the SoCon Player of the Week for a second-straight week on Monday. The Bordentown, N.J., native, scored a career-high 29 points at Georgia on Saturday after turning in a game-high 23 points in Samford's 96-83 win at Belmont.   
• Christian Guess , a 6-6 junior transfer guard, currently ranks 16th in the SoCon in scoring at 15.3 points per game and 4th in rebounding (9.3). The Cleveland, Ohio, native, has scored in double figures in every game this season, including a double-double at Georgia with 14 points and 10 rebounds. His 22 points and 10 rebounds versus Alabama A&M established career-highs at Samford.
• Junior forward Logan Dye, a 6-8 forward from Haleyville, Ala., enters the week averaging 12.0 points and 4.6 rebounds per game. He currently ranks 26th in the SoCon in points per game. 
• Senior center Jacob Tryon , who is averaging 9.5 points and 5.5 rebounds per game, scored a career-high 17 points and grabbed eight rebounds in his second start for the Bulldogs in a 98-73 win over Covenant. The Portland transfer chipped in 16 points and cleared seven rebounds at Belmont.  
• A.J. Staton-McCray, a 6-5 freshman guard from Charlotte, N.C., enters Wednesday's match-up at Troy averaging 8.8 points and 3.8 rebounds per game. He tied his career-high with 15 points at Belmont.
• Senior point guard Richardson Maitre , a 6-3 transfer from Florida Atlantic, leads Samford in assists with 16, averaging 4.0 per contest, which ranks 5th in the SoCon. 
• Triston Chambers, a 6-2 senior guard from Cold Water, Ala., scored nine points at Georgia on Saturday after going 3-of-5 from 3-point range. Chambers, who is averaging 6.0 points per game, is shooting 46.7 percent from 3-point range this season to rank 7th in the Southern Conference.
• Freshman Jaron Rillie enters this week's games at Troy and Kennesaw State averaging 2.5 assists per game.
• Samford has been strong this season out of the gate, outscoring the opposition 184-135 in the first half.
• The Bulldogs are holding opponents to 41.4 percent shooting from the floor, including a mere 29.0 percent from 3-point range.
• Samford plays by the motto "Hard Working, Unselfish, Fearless" and this season the Bulldogs are using those words to define their frenetic style of play. SU is averaging 17.0 assists per game while forcing the opposition into 14.3 turnovers per game.
• Samford is set to conclude its four-game road swing with a pair of contests this week, including Wednesday's clash at Troy and a Saturday match-up at Kennesaw State. The Bulldogs, who are 1-1 on the road this season, will return to the Pete Hanna Center to face Belhaven on Dec. 21.