'Dogs Suffer First OVC Road Defeat At Murray State, 59-38

Jan. 30, 2006

MURRAY, Ky. - In front of Murray State's largest crowd of the 2005-06 campaign, the Samford University basketball team dropped its first Ohio Valley Conference road game of the season on Monday as the Bulldogs fell, 59-38, to the first-place Racers.

The game was held in front of 6,089 fans in the Regional Special Events Center.

Samford (14-6, 10-3 OVC) suffered its first loss since Jan. 14, and had its four-game winning streak snapped. The Bulldogs failed to have a player score in double figures for the first time this season and fell to 5-1 on the road against OVC opponents.

"I have to give a lot of credit to Murray State," said Samford head coach Jimmy Tillette. "They did a good job of taking us out of our offense and we weren't able to hit any of our shots tonight. They also did a good job of speeding us up and forcing us into some of their traps."

Murray State (14-5, 11-2 OVC) won its third-straight game and took sole possession of first place in the conference standings. With the win, the Racers earned their first victory over Samford since the Bulldogs joined the OVC in 2003.

Shawn Witherspoon led Murray State with 15 points and 11 rebounds, while Pearson Griffith added 11 points and 10 boards.

Samford only shot 28.3 percent from the field and 25 percent from 3-point range.

Despite falling behind 12-2 to open the game, Samford fought back with a 12-0 run and evened the score at 17-17 with 4:28 left until halftime. The Bulldogs' Jerry Smith led the team with six points in the opening period and drilled the 3-point shot that tied the score.

Murray State rallied behind the play of senior forward Chuck Johnson late in the half and took a 26-19 advantage into the intermission.

The Racers ended the opening 20 minutes of play with a 9-2 run and were led by Johnson's four points during the stretch.

OVC Preseason Player of the Year Trey Pearson tallied six first-half points, while Murray State's freshman sharpshooter added six with a pair of 3-point buckets. The Racers out-rebounded Samford, 22-15, in the first half.

Neither team shot well in the opening period, but Samford turned in a season-low shooting percentage of 22.2.

The Bulldogs were 6-of-27 in the first half and 3-of-15 (20.0) from beyond the arc. Murray State shot 40.7 from the field and 33.3 from 3-point range.

The Samford University basketball team will next be in action on Thursday as the Bulldogs remain on the road to face off against the Tennessee State Tigers at 7:30 p.m., in Nashville, Tenn.

The game can be heard live on WVSU 91.1-FM or via the Internet at either www.samfordsports.com or www.al.com/WVSU.