BASKETBALL GAME NOTES 2017-18 SCHEDULE/RESULTS DATE OPPONENT ................................................... TIME/RESULTS November at 10 ... at Arkansas (ESPN3) ........................... L, 95-56 13 ... ALABAMA A&M (SDN) .................. W, 87-68 16 ... at LSU (ESPN3) ................................. L, 105-86 19 ... at Loyola (Chicago)< (ESPN3) ............. L, 88-67 SamfordS (9-20, 5-11) at VMI (8-19, 3-13) 21 ... at Valparaiso< (ESPN3) ....................... L, 88-67 24 ... SELA< (ESPN3) ................................... L, 77-71 Feb. 23 | 6 PM (CT) | Lexington, Va. 26 .. MVSU< (ESPN3) ............................... W, 83-70 December #2 JUSTIN COLEMAN HC 3 .... at Jacksonville State (ODN) ................. L, 89-58 5-10 | 170 | Birmingham, Ala. -- Univ. of Alabama 5 .... at Memphis (ESPN3) ........................... L, 65-64 PG 9 .... at Clemson (ESPN3) ........................... L, 81-59 -- Leads the SoCon in both assists (180) and assists per game (6.2) this year. 15 .. THOMAS UNIVERSITY (ESPN3) ... W, 98-51 Jr. -- Tied the school record with 13 assists twice this season (both vs. CIT). 18 .. ASBURY UNIVERSITY (ESPN3) .... W, 99-70 21 ... at Kennesaw State (ESPN3) .................. L, 71-66 #4 TRISTON CHAMBERS 30 .. CHATTANOOGA* (ESPN3) ........... W, 73-56 6-2 | 185 | Cold Springs, Ala. -- Cold Springs HS January G -- Second in the SoCon in 3-point shooting at 45.2 percent (61-of-135). 4 .... ETSU* (ESPN3) .................................. L, 90-72 So. -- Tallied a career-high 34 points & eight 3-pointers versus VMI on Jan. 29. 6 .... WESTERN CAROLINA* (ESPN3) .... W, 85-71 Scott 11 ... at The Citadel* (ESPN3) ................... W, 107-91 #22 DEMETRIUS DENZEL-DYSON Padgett 13 ... at Mercer* (ESPN3) ............................. L, 81-50 Fourth 18 ... WOFFORD* (ESPN3) ........................ L, 93-89 6-5 | 205 | Covington, Tenn. -- UMass 20 .. at Furman* (ESPN3) ............................ L, 78-67 G -- Ranked fourth in the SoCon in 3-point field goals with 2.4 per game. Season 24 ... at Chattanooga* (ESPN3) .................... L, 78-71 Sr. -- Ranked sixth in the SoCon in scoring at 15.0 points per game this year. 56-74 27 ... UNCG* (ESPN3) ................................ L, 98-82 29 ... VMI* (ESPN3) ................................... W, 92-79 #20 ALEX THOMPSON February ACs 1 .... at ETSU* (ESPN3) ............................... L, 96-76 F 6-8 | 210 | Dothan, Ala. -- Auburn University 3 .... at Western Carolina* (ESPN3) ............ L, 88-71 -- Tallied his first double-double of the year with 21 pts. & 13 rebs. vs. Wofford. 7 .... at Wofford* (ESPN3) ........................... L, 92-79 Sr. -- Averaging 11.4 points per game this season, including 12.1 in SoCon play. 10 ... THE CITADEL* (ESPN3) ............. W, 116-103 12 ... MERCER* (ESPN3) ............................ L, 74-69 17 ... FURMAN* (ESPN3) ........................... L, 94-79 #13 ERIC ADAMS 23 ... at VMI* (ESPN3) ........................... 6:00 p.m. F 6-7 | 215 | Hoover, Ala. -- Hoover High School 25 ... at UNCG* (Stadium) ....................... 3:00 p.m. -- Averaging 16.0 points, 8.3 rebounds and 2.3 steals in last six outings. March Sr. -- Ranked third in the SoCon in offensive rebounds per game (2.6). 2-5 .. Southern Conference Tournament .......... TBA Jake - All times Central; dates and times are subject to change. QUICK HITTERS Headrick < 2017 Savannah Invitational * - Southern Conference game -- Samford’s Justin Coleman was named the SoCon Player of the Week on Jan. 23, after averaging 20.0 points, 10.0 assists and 3.0 rebounds per game against Wofford and Furman. BULLDOG BITES -- The Bulldogs’ Demetrius Denzel-Dyson and Wyatt Walker were both named to the SoCon’s -- Samford guards Justin Coleman and Josh Sharkey 10-member Preseason Team prior to the beginning of the 2017-18 campaign. Samford’s duo earned are ranked No. 1 and No. 2 in the SoCon in assists the honor in votes taken by both the league’s head coaches and media. this season. Coleman currently leads the conference -- Earlier this season, junior Wyatt Walker was named to the Lou Henson Award preseason Watch in both assists (180) and assists per game (6.2), while List. The Lou Henson Award is presented annually to the nation’s top Division I mid-major player. Sharkey is ranked second in the league in assists (140) Sidney and assists per game (5.2). -- Samford’s Christen Cunningham is the only player in school history to record three straight Ball 125-assist seasons. Last year, he set the Bulldogs’ single-season record with 225. -- Last season, the Bulldogs’ Josh Sharkey set the -- Injuries have been prevalent for Samford this year. The Bulldogs’ Justin Coleman (leg), school’s single-season record in steals with 71. Christen Cunningham (illness), JT Mumber (illness), Alex Peters (nose/leg), Josh Sharkey (leg), -- Senior Demetrius Denzel-Dyson became the Alex Thompson (back), Luke Touliatos (illness) and Wyatt Walker (leg) have all been forced out school’s 28th member of the 1,000-point club of action at various times this season. The aforementioned players have already missed a combined Saturday at home against Furman. By achieving the total of 120 games due to either injury or illness this year. feat, he become just the third player in school history to accomplish the deed in his first two seasons as a -- Samford will be meeting VMI for ninth the time in school history Friday. The Bulldogs own a Bulldog, joining Samford Hall of Famer Craig Beard 6-2 advantage in the all-time series and have won six straight games against the Keydets. Samford’s Charles (1982-84) and Tim Williams (2012-14). last loss in the series occurred Jan. 21, 2016, on the road in Lexington, Va., 83-76. Newton @SamfordHoopsFOE SAMFORD GAME NOTES 2017-18 ROSTER NO. NAME POS. HT. WT. CL. HOMETOWN/PREVIOUS SCHOOL 00 Christen Cunningham PG 6-2 190 Sr. Georgetown, Ky./Henry Clay HS 0 Brandon Austin* G 6-5 200 Jr. Montgomery, Ala./University of Alabama 1 Kevion Nolan G 6-2 170 Fr. Anniston, Ala./Sacred Heart Catholic 2 Justin Coleman PG 5-10 170 Jr. Birmingham, Ala./University of Alabama 3 Josh Sharkey PG 5-10 170 So. Philadelphia, Pa./Archbishop Carroll HS 4 Triston Chambers G 6-2 185 So. Cold Springs, Ala./Cold Springs HS 13 Eric Adams F 6-7 215 Sr. Hoover, Ala./Hoover HS 14 Tanner Tapp G 6-2 190 Jr. Brentwood, Tenn./Brentwood HS 15 Stefan Lakic F 6-7 220 Jr. Visegrad, Bosnia/Missouri State–West Plains 20 Alex Thompson F 6-8 210 Sr. Dothan, Ala./Auburn University 22 Demetrius Denzel-Dyson G 6-5 205 Sr. Covington, Tenn./University of Massachusetts 24 Gerald Smith G 6-4 185 Jr. Carbon Hill, Ala./Carbon Hill HS 30 Luke Touliatos F 6-4 180 Fr. Homewood, Ala./Homewood High School 32 Ruben Guerrero* C 7-0 240 Sr. Marbella, Spain/USF 33 Wyatt Walker C 6-9 240 Jr. Jacksonville, Fla./Providence School 43 JT Mumber F 6-7 205 Fr. Rome, Ga./Darlington High School 55 Alex Peters F/C 6-8 225 Sr. Mountain Brook, Ala./Mountain Brook HS *Will redshirt the 2017-18 season due to NCAA transfer rules COACHING STAFF Head Coach: Scott Padgett (Kentucky, 1999) Assistant Coaches: Jake Headrick (Montevallo, 2005), Sidney Ball (UAB, 2005), Charles Newton (Tennessee Tech, 2011) Director of Basketball Operations: Brandon Gilbert (Florida, 2012) Director of Strength and Conditioning: Jonathan Farris (Lipscomb, 2010) Athletic Trainer: Karl Smith (Central Arkansas, 2013) Video Coordinator: Matthew Powell (Samford, 2014) Director of Player Development: Trae Cunningham (Louisville, 2011) Graduate Student Manager: Crawford Burton (Auburn, 2016) Director of Communications: Zac Schrieber (LSU, 2002) Special Assistant to the Head Coach: Michael Grant PRONUNCIATION GUIDE Triston Chambers ............TRIST-in Christen Cunningham .....KRIST-in Kevion Nolan ................... KEV-ee-on Stefan Lakic .....................Steff-ON LAH-kitch JT Mumber ......................MUM-ber not Mummer Luke Touliatos .................TOO-lee-AH-tose @SamfordHoopsFOE SAMFORD GAME NOTES SCORING IS KEY COLEMAN NAMED SOCON PLAYER OF THE WEEK Since the beginning of the 2015-16 campaign, Samford junior Justin Coleman was named the Southern Conference Player of the Week Samford has registered a 25-8 record when scoring at on Jan. 23, for his performance during all games played Jan. 16-22, the league office least 80 points. announced. Coleman averaged 20 points, 10 assists and three rebounds per outing and shot 57.1 percent from the field as Samford squared off against Wofford and Furman. PADGETT IN HIS FOURTH SEASON Against Wofford, Coleman tallied 20 points, 12 assists and four rebounds in the contest, Samford head coach Scott Padgett is in his fourth while shooting 8-of-14 from the field. He also scored 17 of his 20 points in the second half season at the helm of the Bulldogs. He currently to keep Samford in the game and nearly pull off the huge come-from-behind victory. owns a 56-74 record at Samford and recently led Coleman then proved to be a huge factor for the Bulldogs against Furman. In the the Bulldogs to the school’s winningest season in matchup held at Timmons Arena, Samford’s point guard led the way with a game-high 20 11 years, dating all the way back to the 2005-06 points, eight assists and two rebounds. campaign. Coleman went 8-for-14 from the floor (57.1 percent) in both contests and was 5-for-6 Two years ago, the Bulldogs compiled an (83.3 percent) from the free-throw line for the week. He totaled 20 assists against just eight impressive 10-5 record in non-conference play and turnovers and averaged 3.0 rebounds per game. registered a pivotal 69-58 road victory at Nebraska. The win proved to be Samford’s first triumph against BULLDOGS FEELING GENEROUS THIS SEASON a Big Ten opponent in school history. Samford is one of only four teams in the country with three players averaging at least 3.4 assists or more this season.