Jan. 28, 2008

MURRAY, Ky. - The Samford University basketball team will begin the home stretch of its 2007-08 Ohio Valley Conference schedule Tuesday as the Bulldogs square off against the second-place Murray State Racers at 7 p.m., in the Regional Special Events Center (8,500).

The game will be broadcast by Kevin Henslee on WVSU 91.1 FM and via the internet at www.samford.edu/groups/wvsu.

Samford (9-11, 6-6 OVC) heads into Tuesday's matchup looking to maintain its positive momentum from a decisive 63-49 victory against first-place Austin Peay Governors on Saturday. In the win, Samford shot 52.3 percent from the field and finished with three players scoring in double figures.

Senior guard Joe Ross Merritt paced the team with 19 points and five assists, while Trey Montgomery followed with 17 points and freshman Josh Bedwell added 16.

Tuesday's matchup will be the first of three games in five days for Samford, two of which are on the road. The Bulldogs are scheduled to play at Tennessee State on Thursday and then at home against Eastern Illinois on Saturday. Samford is 4-5 in road games this season.

Murray State (12-7, 8-3 OVC) enters Tuesday's matchup as the hottest team in the conference. The Racers have won seven games in a row and have not been defeated since an 83-80 overtime loss against the Eastern Illinois Panthers on Jan. 3.

Murray State boasts three players averaging double figures in scoring this season and is being led by Danero Thomas' 13.1 points per game. The Racers' 6-foot-4 sophomore from New Orleans, La., is also averaging 4.5 rebounds per contest.

The Racers are the second-place team in the conference and trail first-place Austin Peay by only one game. Earlier this year, Murray State handed Austin Peay its first OVC loss of the season 82-70.

Samford and Murray State are currently deadlocked at 10-10 in the all-time series between the teams. The Bulldogs have won the previous two games in the rivalry, including a dramatic 65-64 home victory earlier this season. Samford has won its last two games at Murray State, but are 4-7 when playing in Murray, Ky.

In the Bulldogs' victory over the Racers earlier this season, Travis Peterson made a thrilling last-second 3-pointer to win the game.

Peterson, the Bulldogs' explosive 6-foot-10 center, has scored 963 points in his career and is only 37 points shy of becoming the 21st Bulldog to reach the 1,000-point plateau. A senior from Glendale, Ariz., Peterson is averaging 11.9 points per game and leads the team with 4.7 rebounds per contest.

In only his first season as Samford's starting point guard, Montgomery is proving to be one of the Bulldogs' top performers and a solidifying force on the young team.

Montgomery, a 6-foot-4 native of Destrehan, La., has started in 18 of the team's 20 games this season and is averaging 10.4 points, 4.0 rebounds and 1.9 steals per contest. In Samford's first meeting against Murray State, he scored a career-high 23 points on 8-of-12 shooting.

In Samford's sophisticated and unique version of the "Princeton Offense", head coach Jimmy Tillette generally prefers to redshirt his players for a season before they begin to see game action as redshirt freshmen.

The extra year is beneficial for the players as they use the season to practice with the team and learn the offense. Heading into this season, Curtis West, the Bulldogs' 6-foot senior from Baton Rouge, La., was the lone returning player on the roster who was not redshirted as a freshman.

This year, Tillette has made it known that he doesn't have any qualms about letting this year's freshman class earn some playing time. The 2007-08 freshman class consists of Bedwell, Josh Davis and Matthew Friday. Both Bedwell and Davis have played consistent minutes this season.

Following Samford's key OVC matchup at Murray State on Tuesday, the Bulldogs will conclude their brief two-game road trip on Thursday, as they square off against the Tennessee State Tigers at 7:30 p.m., in Nashville, Tenn.

Samford Basketball Game Notes
Live Stats - Samford at Murray State