Jan. 15, 2005

Box Score

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The Samford University basketball team received a season-high 15-point performance from senior Josh Hare on Saturday as the Bulldogs overcame a late 11-point deficit to defeat the Tennessee-Martin Skyhawks, 62-59, in a pivotal Ohio Valley Conference matchup at Seibert Hall.

Despite trailing 57-46 with only 6:56 remaining in the game, Samford (9-6, 4-0 OVC) used a pair of clutch 3-point shots from Hare, a layup from freshman Curtis West and a game-winning 3-pointer from J. Robert Merritt to finish the final 6:15 of the contest on a 16-2 run.

Hare scored eight of the Bulldogs final 14 points and led the team to its fourth-consecutive victory of the conference season. Samford's 6-5 senior played a pivotal role off of the bench and shot 5-of-7 from the floor, including a 2-of-4 performance from beyond the arc.

"This was a big win for us and I think that says something about our kids' spirit," said Samford head coach Jimmy Tillette. "I also thought that Josh Hare had a huge contribution for us off of the bench. He was just spectacular out there today."

With the win, Samford extended its winning streak at home to five-consecutive games and opened conference play with a perfect 4-0 record.

Tennessee-Martin (4-11, 1-3 OVC) fell to 2-7 on the road this season and recorded its seventh loss in eight games. The Skyhawks will continue OVC play next week as they return to Martin, Tenn., to face off against both Murray State and Tennessee State.

With 1:17 remaining in the game and Tennessee-Martin leading 59-58, Samford's Merritt came out of the timeout and drained a deep 3-point shot from the right side to give the Bulldogs its first lead of the contest.

"We only really scripted one shot down the stretch and that was the one that J. Robert (Merritt) hit to give us the lead," said Tillette. "Everything else just came naturally. We told them to take care of the ball and to not turn the ball over. We only had three turnovers in the second half and defensively we got into it better. We were just more aggressive."

Merritt, Samford's leading scorer on the season, finished Saturday's game as one of three Bulldogs in double figures with 13 points and a team-high seven rebounds.

Samford's sophomore point guard Jerry Smith came through with a key defensive stop down the stretch as he picked off a pass from Marcus Ford and found West for an easy lay in. The play came with 3:22 remaining in the game and cut Tennessee-Martin's lead to 57-56. Smith finished with 11 points, six assists and three steals.

Tennessee-Martin jumped out to an early 7-2 lead as the Bulldogs opened the game with two turnovers on their first four possessions.

The Skyhawks' took advantage of Samford's early miscues and built an early 12-point lead in the first half. Tennessee-Martin was led in the opening 20 minutes of play by junior forward Jared Newson's eight points on 3-of-4 shooting from the floor.

Tennessee-Martin's senior leader finished the contest with a game-high16 points and also added five rebounds.

"We just didn't come out as energized and focused as we should have," said Tillette. "We've had a couple of hard games in a row and this is a game that we needed to finish out. We didn't do a lot of things well early on, but we fought back and got the win. Hopefully, this says something good about our team, because when you don't play your best and you still find a way to win, it says that you're getting better."

Despite trailing by 12 points with only 5:24 remaining in the first half, Samford used a critical 15-3 run to fight its way back to a 30-30 tie at intermission. The Bulldogs were led by redshirt freshman Joe Ross Merritt and received a key 3-point play from Hare.

Hare, with the final seconds of the half ticking down, drove to the basket and drew a foul from Tennessee-Martin's Jason Thompson. Despite being hacked on the play, Hare was able to muscle the ball to the rim and roll in the layup. The Bulldogs native of Cleveland, Tenn., then drained the free throw to even the score at 30-30.

The Bulldogs were trailing by its largest deficit of the game, 27-12, when Samford's Joe Ross Merritt drained to 3-point shot from the wing to stifle the Skyhawks' early momentum. He then knocked down another first-half trey to add to his nine total points.

"Our team is tough," Tillette said. "We just turned it up at the right time and we have to give a lot of credit to UT-Martin. They took the fight to us for most of the game, they made timely shots, but our team was just able to dig in hard there at the end. We played with some big energy and we just made our shots."

Samford closed out each half of Saturday's game with a significant run. The Bulldogs outscored Tennessee-Martin 15-3 to finish the first half and then streaked to a 16-2 run to close out the game.

The first-place Samford University basketball team will next be in action on Thursday as the Bulldogs continue their 2005 OVC schedule on the road against the Morehead State Eagles at 6:45 p.m.