GAME NOTES--SAMFORD AT VMI (PDF)

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The Samford men's basketball team (11-6, 1-4 SoCon) will go back out on the road to play at the VMI Keydets (10-8, 303 SoCon) Thursday night at 6 p.m. (CT) in Cameran Hall in Lexington, Va. The game can be seen live on ESPN+ with Wade Branner (PBP) and Grafton Young (Color) calling the action. Live stats will also be available at www.VMIKeydets.com.  

• Samford and VMI are meeting for the 19th time, with Samford owning a 14-4 lead in the all-time series. The teams met twice last season with the squads splitting the two meetings. Samford won the first meeting, 84-71, in the Pete Hanna Center. The Keydets won the meeting in Lexington by a score of 85-56. 

• The Bulldogs are coming into the game off a hard-fought 88-85 home-court loss to ETSU last Saturday afternoon. Samford was led in the loss by Jaden Campbell with a career-high 20 points and seven rebounds. Logan Dye also scored 20 points for the Bulldogs. Wesley Cardet scored 15 points, while Ques Glover had 12 points and eight assists.

• Samford has been led in scoring so far this season by sophomore guard Ques Glover, who ranks third in the Southern Conference with an average of 18.1 points per game. Glover leads the SoCon in free throw percentage (.878) and ranks second in assists (4.6 apg.).  Jermaine Marshall ranks second in the SoCon in rebounding, grabbing 8.6 boards per contest.

• VMI has a record of 10-8 overall and 3-3 in Southern Conference play. The Keydets are coming off a 90-85 win at The Citadel Saturday afternoon.

• VMI has been led in scoring by Jake Stephens, who ranks second in the SoCon at 19.2 points per game. Stephens also leads the team in rebounding, grabbing 9.1 rebounds per game. Kamdyn Curman is averaging 17.2 points per game for the Keydets.

• VMI is averaging 79.2 points per game so far this season, while allowing 70.1 points per contest. 

• Samford is averaging 75.5 points per game while giving up 74.4 entering Thursday evening's game at VMI.

• Samford has a record of 3-4 in games played on the road. The Bulldogs have earned road victories at Oregon State, Alabama State and Ole Miss. The team has dropped road games to San Francisco, Furman, Mercer and Wofford. 

• Samford is No. 1 in the SoCon in turnovers forced per game (15.2) and No. 2 in steals per game (8.2). The Bulldogs forced a season-high 33 turnovers versus Spring Hill.

• Samford has made a habit of winning close games, posting a record of 5-2 in games decided by three points or less.

• The Bulldogs are 10-1 when leading at halftime this season and 7-2 on the year when controlling the opening tipoff.

• Samford's bench has outscored the opposition's reserves 10 times this season, leading to an 8-2 mark in those contests. 

• SoCon teams combined to win six games against Power 5   conference (ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, SEC, Pac-12) teams during the non-conference portion of the 2021-22 season. The six wins is the most the league has accumulated against those conferences since also winning six games in the 2012-13 season.

• Mr. Double-Double Jermaine Marshall (6-6, 225, So.) recorded his seventh double-double this season with 14 points and 11 boards in Samford's 85-60 win over Western Carolina. The Akron transfer has been a force on the wing for the Bulldogs, averaging 11.9 points and 8.6 rebounds per game.

• Ques Glover (6-0, 180, So.) has made a remarkable impact on the Bulldogs so far this year, ranking No. 3 the SoCon in scoring at 18.1 points per game while ranking second in the SoCon in assists at 4.6 per game. The Knoxville, Tenn., native, scored 16 points and dished out five assists in last Saturday's win over Western Carolina.

• Jaden Campbell (6-5, 195, Soph.) has been a major spark for the Bulldogs, averaging 11.4 points per game, ranking 23rd in the Southern Conference. The Brampton, Ontario native led the team with 16 points last Wednesday night at Wofford, and he tied for the team lead with 20 points Saturday afternoon against ETSU.

• Wesley Cardet, Jr. (6-6, 205, Fr.), one of the nation's most sought after recruits, continues to develop as the season progresses. The Fort Lauderdale, Fla., native is averaging 9.5 points, and 4.5 rebounds per game. He had 15 points and nine rebounds last Saturday against ETSU. Cardet was the No. 60 ranked player in the nation and No. 13 at his position by Rivals at West Oaks.

• Jacob Tryon (6-11, 220, Sr.) has continued to be a presence down low for Samford this season. Tryon currently ranks fifth in the Southern Conference in blocked shots per game, averaging 1.2 per contest.

• In the last meeting between Samford and VMI, played on Feb. 13, 2021, the Keydets took an 85-56 win over Samford. In the game, Jaron Rillie led Samford with 11 points and seven rebounds. A.J. Staton-McCray added eight points for the Bulldogs.

UP NEXT

• After Thursday night's game at VMI, Samford will then play at UNCG on Saturday, Jan. 22, at 4 p.m. (CT). Samford's next home game will be Wednesday, Jan. 26, when the Bulldogs play host to Mercer. The game is set for a 7 p.m. start from the Pete Hanna Center.

FOLLOW THE BULLDOGS

• For the latest news and information on Samford Men's Basketball, visit the official website for Samford Athletics at SamfordSports.com. Fans can also follow the Bulldogs on social media at /SamfordSports (Facebook), @SamfordMBB (Twitter), and @SamfordMBB (Instagram).