GAME NOTES: VMI (5-4, 0-0 SoCon) @ Samford (4-3, 0-0 SoCon)
Complete game release with notes, stats, rankings and more in PDF format

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The start of Southern Conference play is finally upon us, as the Samford men's basketball team hosts Virginia Military Institute on Wednesday, Dec. 30 at the Pete Hanna Center. Tipoff is set for 7 PM. Complete coverage will be available on ESPN+.

The matchup is the 17th all-time between the Bulldogs (4-3, 0-0 SoCon), who are 3-2 in their last five SoCon openers, and Keydets (5-4, 0-0 SoCon) with Samford owning a 13-3 edge in the series. Both teams were picked to finish is the bottom third of the league with SU was tabbed to finish eighth in the SoCon this season and VMI ninth.

VMI claimed a 96-78 victory over Samford on March 6, 2020 in the last meeting between the clubs. The opening round loss in the SoCon Tournament snapped an 11-game winning streak for the Bulldogs over the Keydets.

With the start of the 2020-21 season in less than two weeks, the Samford Bulldogs were picked to finish 8th in the SoCon Preseason Coaches Poll. UNC-Greensboro, which received 76 votes, narrowly edged Furman as the league's preseason favorite. 

Samford enters this week's games averaging 87.7 points per game, ranking second in the SoCon. The Bulldogs have also been solid defensively, holding opponents to 39.6 percent shooting from the field, ranking third overall in the SoCon. SU is also allowing 28.2 percent from 3-point range.
 

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BULLDOGS TO OPEN SOCON PLAY WITH VMI: The start of Southern Conference play is finally upon us, as the Samford men's basketball team hosts Virginia Military Institute on Wednesday, Dec. 30 at the Pete Hanna Center. Tipoff is set for 7 PM. Complete coverage will be available on ESPN+.

The matchup is the 17th all-time between the Bulldogs (4-3, 0-0 SoCon), who are 3-2 in their last five SoCon openers, and Keydets (5-4, 0-0 SoCon) with Samford owning a 13-3 edge in the series. Both teams were picked to finish is the bottom third of the league with SU was tabbed to finish eighth in the SoCon this season and VMI ninth.

VMI claimed a 96-78 victory over Samford on March 6, 2020 in the last meeting between the clubs. The opening round loss in the SoCon Tournament snapped an 11-game winning streak for the Bulldogs over the Keydets.

SAMFORD SETS NEW SCORING RECORD IN 133-84 WIN OVER BELHAVEN: The Samford men's basketball team set school records for points in a game and assists in a game on its way to a 133-84 win over Belhaven Monday night in the Pete Hanna Center. Samford's 133 points breaks the old record of 131, set against Mississippi College in 1971. The Bulldogs' 36 assists break the old record of 29 set against Nicholls State in 2016. Samford's 22 three-pointers fell just one short of the current record of 23, set against Troy in 2001.

A.J. Staton-McCray led SU with 23 points, making 7-of-8 shots from the floor and 5-of-6 from three-point range. Triston Chambers scored 21 points for the Bulldogs.

BULLDOGS PICKED 8TH IN PRESEASON POLL: With the start of the 2020-21 season in less than two weeks, the Samford Bulldogs were picked to finish 8th in the SoCon Preseason Coaches Poll. UNC-Greensboro, which received 76 votes, narrowly edged Furman as the league's preseason favorite. The 2020-21 SoCon Preseason Poll was voted on by the league's head coaches. A complete breakdown of the poll and All-SoCon team is below. 

SoCON Preseason Coaches Poll:
1. UNCG (4) 76
2. Furman (5) 74 
3. ETSU (1) 63
4. Mercer 56 
5. Wofford 47
6. Western Carolina 44 
7. Chattanooga 38
8. Samford 23 
9. VMI 15
10. The Citadel 14

BULLDOG BITES

• Samford enters this week's games averaging 87.7 points per game, ranking second in the SoCon. 
• The Bulldogs have also remained solid defensively, holding opponents to 39.6 percent shooting from the field, ranking third overall in the SoCon. SU is also allowing a mere 28.2 percent from 3-point range. 
• Jalen Dupree, a 6-8 senior forward from Cordova, Tenn., made his 2020-21 debut in Samford's 133-84 win over Belhaven on Dec. 21, 2020. Dupree played 14 minutes while finishing with 14 points and nine rebounds. In 2019-20, Dupree played in all 33 games, averaging 11.1 points and 7.4 rebounds per game. 
• Senior guard Myron Gordon turned his best performance of 2020-21, scoring 29 points with three rebounds and three assists at Georgia. The Bordentown, N.J., native is leading the team in scoring, averaging 17.7 ppg. He is fourth in the league in scoring entering Wednesday's league opener.
• A.J. Staton-McCray, a 6-5 freshman from Charlotte, N.C., scored a career-high 23 points, making 7-of-8 shots from the floor and 5-of-6 from three-point range, in Samford's 133-84 win over Belhaven. McCray is averaging 11.1 points and 4.0 rebounds per game for the Bulldogs.
• Triston Chambers has increased his production of late, scoring a season-high 21 points versus Belhaven. The Coldwater, Ala., native, is averaging 7.1 points per game and leads the Bulldogs with 14 made 3-pointers.
• Junior forward Logan Dye, a 6-8 forward from Haleyville, Ala., is averaging 11.1 points and 3.9 rebounds per game coming into the week. He scored a career-high 21 points in the season-opener versus Alabama A&M.   
• Senior center Jacob Tryon , who is averaging 8.6 points and 5.3 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.  
• Senior point guard Richardson Maitre , a 6-3 transfer from Florida Atlantic, leads Samford in assists with 26, averaging 3.7 per contest.
• Freshman point guard Jaron Rillie is coming on of late, ranking second on the team with 21 assists. 
• Senior Preston Parks enters this week's games averaging 5.1 points and 2.0 rebounds per game. The Greenville, S.C., native, scored a season-high nine versus Belhaven last week.

NON-STARTERS PROVIDING BIG LIFT: Samford's success this season has been fueled by the offensive production of its non-starters, who have outscored the opposition 351-94. In a 98-73 win over Covenant, the Bulldogs bench outscored the Scots, 48-21, and in a 96-83 win at Belmont, SU held a dominating 64-4 edge in bench scoring. In Saturday's heartbreaking loss at Georgia, the Bulldogs bench outscored UGA 44-19. In Saturday's win at Kennesaw State, the Bulldog bench dominated the scoring, 37-7. SU had it's largest bench scoring margin of the season, 94-21, in a 133-84 win over Belhaven on Dec. 21, 2020.

SAMFORD PLAYING ITS 103RD SEASON: The Bulldogs are playing their 103rd season in Samford University Men's Basketball history. Samford has won 1,129 games in its previous 102 seasons, including 604 as an NCAA Division I institution.

BUCKYBALL COMES TO SAMFORD: Arguably one of the nation's most distinct brands of basketball, #BuckyBall, has come to Samford with new head coach Bucky McMillan. The former standout at Birmingham Southern won 332 games and five Alabama state championships in 13 seasons as head coach at Mountain Brook High School. The up-tempo, in your face style of play became a staple in Birmingham, as MBHS transformed into a national power. McMillan has been named "Coach of the Year" 12 times in his career, including 2019 USA Today National Coach of the Year.