Feb. 25, 2006

Box Score

CHARLESTON, Ill. - The Samford University basketball team secured the second seed in next week's Ohio Valley Conference Tournament on Saturday as the Bulldogs played stifling defense in a 52-41 victory on the road against the Eastern Illinois Panthers.

The game was the regular-season finale for both teams and was held in the Lantz Arena (5,300).

"I thought that we had a great effort today," said Samford head coach Jimmy Tillette. "We didn't have a great shooting game, but we played with passion and we did well on the defensive end of the court. I also thought that we hit some key threes in the second half and we were able to get the win."

Samford (18-10, 14-6 OVC) completed its season sweep of the Panthers on Saturday and snapped a three-game road losing streak. With the win, the Bulldogs completed their OVC season with an 7-3 record on the road.

Junior point guard Jerry Smith led Samford with 14 points on 7-of-11 shooting and he also grabbed six rebounds. Randall Gulina tacked on 12 points, while J. Robert Merritt, Travis Peterson and Curtis West each finished with eight points apiece.

"I was pleased with our effort and our energy and now we have to get ready for the tournament game on Tuesday," Tillette said. "I thought that we really flew hard to the glass and we were able to rebound on them. Jerry had a good game and he was really aggressive on the offensive end today."

Eastern Illinois (6-21, 5-15 OVC) completed its 2005-06 season on Saturday and was led by senior Josh Gomes. George Tandy also scored in double figures for the Panthers, with 10 points.

The Bulldogs used a 9-0 run midway through the first half to take a 25-17 advantage into the intermission.

With Samford leading 14-11 at the 9:45 mark in the period, Smith scored six quick points and helped the Bulldogs increase their lead to 23-11 with 5:35 remaining. Smith, a native of Picayune, Miss., scored eight points in the first half on 4-of-6 shooting from the floor.

Senior J. Robert Merritt also tallied eight first-half points for the Bulldogs and grabbed a team-high five rebounds. Samford out-rebounded the Panthers, 14-11, in the opening period of play.

Samford jumped out to an early 10-2 lead in the game as Merritt scored six of the team's first eight points.

Gulina opened the contest with a turnaround jumper in the lane and then Merritt downed a 3-point basket to give the Bulldogs a 5-0 advantage. He was then fouled on a 3-point attempt and drained all three of the free throws.

Eastern Illinois' Gomes scored a team-high eight points in the first half. He shot 4-of-8 from the field, but did not pull down a single rebound.

Despite building a six-point lead at the half, Samford only shot 36 percent from the floor in the open 20 minutes of play. The Bulldogs were also stagnant in their shooting from beyond the arc and were 2-of-14 from 3-point range.

The Panthers shot 44.4 percent from the field and 33.3 percent from the arc.

The Samford University basketball team will next be in action on Tuesday as the Bulldogs begin postseason play at home against the seventh-seeded Tennessee State Tigers in the opening round of the OVC Tournament.

The first-round matchup will tip off at 7:30 p.m., and will be held at Seibert Hall.