BIRMINGHAM. Ala. - The Samford men's basketball program returned home tonight as they hosted Division III Rhodes College at the Pete Hanna Center. The Bulldogs overwhelmed the visitors tonight on their way to a 108-52 victory to move their record to 2-1 on the season.

The Dogs had five players reach double figures, led by Trey Fort and Riley Allenspach who finished with a game-high 16 points. A 19-0 scoring run from the Bulldogs early on put Samford up 25-4 and they would extend that lead throughout the night as the Lynx couldn't handle the Samford press. 

The Bulldogs forced 30 turnovers which led to 42 points for the home side as they captured their 20th straight home victory under head coach Bucky McMillan. The forced turnovers combined with 26 offensive rebounds allowed the Bulldogs to take 35 more shots than Rhodes. 

Despite the free buckets off turnovers and offensive rebounds, the Dogs managed just 44 percent from the floor, 41-of-93, and 26 percent from three, 9-of-34. "Hopefully better days are ahead and we got it out of our system," said head coach Bucky McMillan on the team's shooting from three. "Early in the season last year we didn't shoot it well and then we started to roll. We are a better shooting team than being in the 20's from three and we are going to have to be going forward."

Samford dominated the game around the rim as forwards Collin Holloway, Jaden Brownell, and Allenspach all scored in double figures. The bench was strong again for the Dogs as they scored 52 points and they protected the ball well themselves as they finished with 19 assists to just six turnovers. 

Despite being a top-10 three-point shooting team last season, the Bulldogs have struggled early this year as they sit below 30 percent as a team. They got promise in that regard from Trey Fort who knocked down 4-of-6 attempts from deep tonight while Collin Holloway hit on 2-of-5 from behind the arc.

Lukas Walls was strong off the bench with an efficient 10 points and added nine rebounds from his guard position while Larry Olayinka proved his usual energy on his way to an 8-point and 7-rebound night. 

The Bulldogs are back in action again this Friday as they head to North Alabama at 7:45 p.m. The Lions are 3-0 on the season, with DI wins at Air Force and against UT-Martin. 

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).