Feb. 12, 2005

Box Score

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The Samford University basketball team bounced back from Thursday's heartbreaking loss against Eastern Kentucky with a vengeance on Saturday, as the Bulldogs cruised to a resounding 73-44 victory over the Morehead State Eagles in Seibert Hall.

"I thought that we bounced back well tonight," said Samford head coach Jimmy Tillette. "We suffered a devastating loss the other night, so I was very pleased with how we responded. In the first half, we looked about as good as we have all season long and we were shooting the ball well from outside."

With the lopsided win, Samford (14-9, 9-3 OVC) improved to 9-2 at home this season and registered its all-time largest margin of victory against an Ohio Valley Conference opponent. The 29-point win proved to be the Bulldogs' second-largest margin of victory during the 2004-05 campaign and the team's third triumph in its last four games.

Samford's largest margin of victory this season was a 38-point blowout of Tennessee Wesleyan on Dec. 9. In its best defensive performance in 54 years, the Bulldogs defeated the overmatched non-conference opponent, 68-30, at home in Seibert Hall.

Morehead State (10-13, 4-8 OVC) lost its seventh game in its previous 10 contests and fell to a 3-10 overall record on the road this season.

The Eagles were led in scoring by junior Josh Reed's 11 points on 4-of-8 shooting. He also pulled down three rebounds and tacked on an assist in 29 minutes of play. Morehead State finished the game 0-of-3 from beyond the arc and committed 20 turnovers. Samford earned 14 steals, nine of which occurred in the first half.

"I thought that we played well tonight, and it stems from our focus and our energy," Tillette said. "We had contributions from everyone and I was very pleased with the play of our team. This was a good win for us."

The Bulldogs had three players score in double figures on Saturday and were led by 14 points from senior Bryan Boerjan.

Samford's 6-7 forward from Rock Falls, Ill., finished a perfect 6-of-6 from the floor and was 2-of-2 from the free-throw line. Boerjan scored 10 of his game-high 14 points in the first half and scored eight of the Bulldogs' first 13 points of the contest.

"I just wanted to come out and do what I needed to do tonight," said Boerjan. "Luckily, the guys were able to find me for some easy layups and things just kind of went my way. I have to thank my teammates for looking for me and we all wanted to come out and make amends for Thursday's game."

Junior J. Robert Merritt recorded his 14th-consecutive game with at least 10 points and finished Saturday's contest with a total of 13. Samford's 6-6 forward from Oklahoma City, Okla., has now tallied 951 points in his illustrious career and is on pace to join the 1,000-point club this season.

The Bulldogs jumped out to an early 15-point lead in the game and held a 23-8 advantage with 10:00 remaining in the first half. Samford's Ryan Woolsey and Randall Gulina provided some key scoring in the first half and finished a combined 4-of-5 from the floor in the opening 20 minutes of play.

Woolsey, a 6-7 forward from Valliant, Okla., scored a career-high nine points on Saturday and paced the Bulldogs with two blocked shots. He ended the game shooting 2-of-3 from the field and a perfect 4-of-4 from the charity stripe.

Samford's Gulina started his second-straight game since injuring his foot against Jacksonville State on Jan. 4, and scored 12 points on 5-of-7 shooting from the floor. The Bulldogs' sophomore guard from Baton Rouge, La., also grabbed three rebounds and finished 2-of-2 from the free-throw line.

"We had a championship performance out there tonight," said Tillette. "I know that Morehead State did not play particularly well, but independent of that, I think that our performance tonight would have beaten a lot of people on this floor. We just need to see how it goes from here on in, but I was really pleased with how we played."

Samford regained sole possession of first place in the conference standings on Saturday as Tennessee Tech (13-10, 8-4 OVC) was upset on the road, 59-56, by Tennessee-Martin (5-18, 2-10 OVC). The win was Tennessee-Martin's first conference victory at home during the 2005 campaign and only their third home win of the season.

The Bulldogs led by 41 points with 8:24 remaining in the second half.

After a layup from redshirt freshman Joe Ross Merritt off of a beautiful assist from freshman point guard Curtis West, Samford earned its largest lead of the game, 69-28. Merritt finished with nine points, while West scored two and registered a pair of assists.

The Samford University basketball team will next be in action on Thursday, Feb. 17, as the Bulldogs begin a crucial two-game road trip against the Austin Peay Governors at 7:30 p.m. In the first matchup between the OVC rivals, Samford came from behind to defeat the Governors, 73-71, in overtime on Feb. 5.

"These next two games are going to be huge for us," Boerjan said. "We have to play on the road and both of those teams are tough. It's going to be a big stretch for us and they are good teams. Both games are going to be huge, especially heading into the conference tournament."

Samford's 1999-00 NCAA Tournament team was honored at halftime.

Samford's 1999-00 NCAA Tournament Team Reunion
At halftime of Saturday's game, the Samford University Athletics Department honored members of its 1999-00 basketball team that won the Trans-America Athletic Conference Tournament championship and advanced to the NCAA Tournament.

Nine members of the team were present for the festivities, which also included the unveiling of a special DVD to commemorate the five-year anniversary of the team's accomplishment. The hour-long DVD features interviews with the players and coaches from the team, as well as highlights of pivotal games from the season.

The DVD is available for purchase at Samford home basketball games or in the online store at www.samfordsports.com.