Well, since I've got it pretty much done...here's Thursday night's game in all its shining glory.

Bulldog Men win SoCon thriller against Elon, 69-67

By Clayton Hurdle

                The Bulldogs, led by John Peterson, Josh Bedwell, and Jeffrey Merritt, survived a late run by conference foe Elon on Thursday night to win at home.

                After winning the opening tip-off, Samford took a quick 12-5 lead, featuring two early baskets by redshirt freshman center Drew Windler.  Elon fought back, however, evening the score at twelve with ten minutes to play in the first half.  The next six points were scored by the Bulldogs, who eventually lost their lead briefly after Elon’s senior guard Chris Long hit a three-point shot to pull ahead by a point.  Two free throws by senior guard Josh Davis and a three-pointer from junior guard Jeffrey Merritt gave the Bulldogs back the lead.  The rest of the half was played with Samford ahead, and the Bulldogs were leading 29-25 at the intermission.

                The Phoenix of Elon dominated the first three minutes of the second half, tying the game back up as Long made back-to-back free throws.  After four more tied scores and eleven lead changes, Elon showed signs of pulling away after a seven-point run, led by a crucial Long three-pointer, put them in the lead at 55-50 with less than six minutes to play.  The five-point advantage was the Phoenix’s largest lead of the game, and it was the first time since the start of the half that a team had led by more than one score.

                Samford was not fazed by this five-point hole, however.  Junior forward John Peterson and senior center Andy King each scored five points in a 16-3 Bulldog run, giving the team a 66-58 lead and putting them in position to win with about a minute and a half to play.  Game seemingly at hand, Samford suffered several costly turnovers, allowing Elon to pull within two points as Long sank two three point shots within the next minute. 

Needing the ball back, the Phoenix intentionally fouled senior guard Josh Bedwell with eighteen seconds to go.  Bedwell was cool and collected as he nailed both of his free throw attempts, putting Samford ahead 68-64.  It took Elon just six seconds to get the ball back in the hands of Long, who made yet another shot from behind the arch to give the game a one-point difference.  Long was the game’s leading scorer, and finished 6-for-12 from three-point range.

With just over nine seconds to play, Elon once again committed a foul, sending senior guard Gaby Bermudez to the charity stripe.  After making his first free throw, Bermudez’s second attempt was rebounded by Elon’s freshman forward Lucas Troutman.  Troutman quickly got the ball to Long, who passed to wide-open freshman guard Jack Isenbarger.  Isenberger’s three-point attempt bounced off the back of the rim, and Peterson secured the Samford rebound as the buzzer sounded to give the Bulldogs a 69-67 victory.

                Peterson’s game-clinching rebound ended a game in which he scored 16 points, the most of any Bulldog and a career high.  The Bulldogs (11-10 after the game, and 3-6 in the Southern Conference) had two more players score in double digits:  Bedwell did not miss on four field goal attempts and three foul shots to finish with 12 points, and Merritt also scored 12.  Merritt also led the team with six rebounds, three steals and a block.

                For the Phoenix, Long scored 21 points while dishing out seven assists.  Junior guard Drew Spradlin added 10 points for Elon, despite committing seven turnovers, more than any other player.