Dec. 19, 2005

Box Score

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The Samford University basketball team received career-best performances from junior guards Randall Gulina and Jerry Smith on Monday as the Bulldogs posted a resilient 68-53 Ohio Valley Conference victory over the Southeast Missouri Redhawks.

Gulina and Smith each recorded career-highs of 19 points in the win, while senior forward J. Robert Merritt added 16 and grabbed five rebounds.

"I thought that we started the game with great energy," said Samford head coach Jimmy Tillette. "We were coming up with steals and forcing them into some bad shots, but then it seemed as if we relaxed a bit halfway through the first half."

In its first game since Dec. 8, Samford (4-4, 1-1 OVC) came out strong in the first half of play and used an early 15-0 run to take a 17-6 lead with 12:27 remaining in the period.

Gulina scored the Bulldogs' first five points of the game before Smith drained a jumper and then Merritt rattled off the team's next five points. Samford shot 36.7 percent from the field in the first half of play, while Southeast Missouri (4-5, 1-3 OVC) posted a 40 percent performance.

The Redhawks were led in scoring by senior guard Roy Booker who finished with a game-high 24 points on 9-of-18 shooting.

A transfer from the University of Wyoming, Booker connected on 5-of-10 of his attempts from beyond the arc and scored 17 of his points in the first half. He also grabbed six rebounds, but committed four turnovers.

Forward Ketshner Guerrier was the only other Southeast Missouri player to finish with double figures in scoring with 10.

"Booker is a very good player and he hit a couple of really tough shots, but when he was open, it was usually because of a breakdown on our part defensively," said Tillette. "We still need to work on some of those things in practice and to get better in that respect."

At the half, Samford led 32-30.

The Bulldogs quickly increased their lead to 47-37 early in the second period as Merritt knocked down a 3-point basket, Gulina scored on a layup and then Travis Peterson slammed home a dunk over Southeast Missouri's Eric Burtin. Next, Smith tallied two of his 19 points and Joe Ross Merritt connected on a 3-point shot from the corner.

Smith also grabbed five rebounds on Monday, while Gulina led the team with six. Peterson dished out a game-high six assists and recorded Samford's lone block.

"I thought that our guards, Jerry and Randall, were unbelievable tonight," Tillette said. "They combined to score 38 points and I thought that J. Robert had a very good second half. We were able to shoot 68 percent in the second half and that was definitely the key for us."

Samford was 5-of-7 from beyond the arc in the second half and shot 68.4 percent from the floor. The Bulldogs finished 10-of-14 from the free throw line and Gulina turned in a career-high 9-of-10 performance from the charity stripe.

"I thought that we did a great job of hustling throughout the game," Tillette said. "We did a good job of forcing them into some turnovers, but I didn't think that we rebounded the ball too well, especially in the second half."

The Bulldogs only committed four turnovers against Southeast Missouri and forced the Redhawks into 12. J. Robert Merritt and Jerry Smith helped lead the team with three steals apiece.

The Samford University basketball team will next be in action on Wednesday as the Bulldogs continue their four-game homestand against the preseason OVC favorite Murray State Racers at 7 p.m., in Seibert Hall.