Jan. 6, 2008

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The Samford University basketball team will conclude its longest road trip of the 2007-08 season Monday as the Bulldogs head east to Jacksonville, Ala., for an Ohio Valley Conference matchup against the Jacksonville State Gamecocks.

The game will be broadcast by Samford's play-by-play specialist Kevin Henslee on WVSU 91.1 FM and via the internet at www.al.com/wvsu.

The in-state meeting will be Samford's final contest of a four-game road swing. During the time away from home, the Bulldogs have compiled a 1-2 record with a win against Tennessee Tech on Thursday sandwiched by losses to 20th-ranked Clemson and UT Martin.

Samford (6-7, 3-2 OVC) is coming off a 63-49 loss against UT Martin on Saturday.

The defeat was the Bulldogs' first versus the Skyhawks since the 1992 season. In the loss, Samford's Josh Bedwell led all scorers with a career-high 20 points on 7-of-12 shooting from the floor. The Bulldogs' true freshman from Hartselle, Ala., was 6-of-8 from beyond the arc.

Jacksonville State (2-11, 0-5 OVC) heads into Monday's game with aspirations of ending its current eight-game losing streak. The Gamecocks are the last-place team in the OVC standings and are the only squad in the league without a conference victory.

The Gamecocks have yet to defeat a Division I opponent this season and have not been victorious since an overtime win at home against Berry College on Nov. 20, 97-89.

Samford has won four-consecutive games against Jacksonville State, including a hard-fought 41-34 victory earlier this season.

The Bulldogs lead in the all-time series against the Gamecocks and hold a 50-37 advantage in the in-state rivalry. Samford has struggled on the road against Jacksonville State and is only 17-22 when playing in Jacksonville, Ala.

Samford is the 21st-ranked team in the nation in scoring defense.

So far this season, Samford is only allowing 60.4 points per game and is not far behind the nation's leading team, Georgetown, which is allowing a stingy 52.0 points per contest. The Bulldogs are also ranked amongst the top-50 teams in the nation in fewest personal fouls per game (14.5). Samford is the 27th-ranked team in the nation in fewest personal fouls per contest.

Samford's 2007-08 roster consists of players from nine different states.

Only Bedwell hails from Alabama (Hartselle), while Curtis West and Trey Montgomery came to Samford from nearby Louisiana. The rest of Samford's roster is comprised of players from Florida (Gaby Bermudez) to California (Savoy Fraine).

Texas is the most represented state with Josh Davis, Bryan Friday and Matthew Friday all calling the "lonestar state" home. The remaining four states that Bulldog players call home are Illinois (Jim Griffin), Oklahoma (Joe Ross Merritt), Nebraska (Andy King) and Arizona (Travis Peterson).

Samford's Merritt will be making his 41st-consecutive start Monday.

The Bulldogs' 6-foot-4 sharpshooter has been listed in the starting lineup in every game since Nov. 16, 2006, when Samford played at Towson in the Towson Center. Against the Tigers, Merritt was forced out of the starting lineup due to a sprained ankle. In the Bulldogs' next game, Merritt returned to the starting lineup against 15th-ranked Arizona.

Throughout his illustrious four-year career, Merritt has started in 83 of his 104 games at Samford.

Following their game against Jacksonville State on Monday, the Bulldogs will next be in action Thursday at home versus the Tennessee State Tigers. The OVC matchup is scheduled to begin at 7:30 p.m., in the Pete Hanna Center.

Samford Basketball Game Notes