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GAME NOTES: A battle of Bulldogs is set to take place at McAlister Field House tonight, as Samford hits the road for a Southern Conference clash with The Citadel.

Samford head coach Jimmy Tillette has missed the last three games after suffering a seizure against UNC Greensboro on January 23rd, but he was cleared to return to the sidelines this week. The Bulldogs lost all three games during his absence, including Saturday's 62-50 setback at home to Western Carolina. Tonight's contest kicks off a three-game road trip for the Bulldogs.

The Citadel has also fallen on hard times, having lost two straight and three of its last four overall. On Saturday, the Bulldogs were dealt a 67-63 road loss at Davidson. Following tonight's action, they'll stay on campus and welcome Chattanooga to town this weekend.

These teams met on January 16th in Birmingham, and The Citadel escaped with a 51-50 victory to take a slight 3-2 edge in the all-time series. This marks Samford's first trip to McAlister Field House since joining the Southern Conference.

The Bulldogs of Samford are hoping the return of coach Tillette helps solve some of their recent offensive woes, as they've averaged only 54 points during the three-game skid. They totaled just 14 field goals in Saturday's loss to WCU and trailed by as many as 15 early in the second half, although they did mount a rally to knot the score at 39-39 with just under nine minutes to play. However, they ultimately weren't able to finish the job. Josh Davis led Samford with 11 points, while Bryan Friday and John Peterson each scored 10 in the loss. On the season, Davis leads the team with 12.3 ppg and is hitting nearly three three-pointers per contest. Bryan Friday chips in 10.6 points per outing while Trey Montgomery is scoring 10.5 ppg. Samford typically struggles on the boards and is a -3.9 in rebounding margin on the year.

When The Citadel needs a bucket, the player taking the shot is usually Cameron Wells, who averages a team-best 18.5 points and 5.1 rebounds per contest. After Wells, the next best option has been Zach Urbanus, a 42 percent shooter from beyond the arc who is posting 10.5 ppg. As a team, the Bulldogs are registering only 60 ppg, though they are holding foes to an average of 59 ppg. With limited scoring options, their success is predicated upon playing sound defense. On Saturday, they shot just 39.3 percent as a team but were able to force overtime with a late defensive stand in the final seconds of regulation. However, a 3-of-7 effort from the floor in the extra session was simply not enough to complete the job. Wells once again led the way with 22 points, followed by Urbanus with 11 and Bryan Streeter with 10.

Neither of these teams have been playing particularly good basketball of late, particularly Samford. However, having coach Tillette back on the sidelines could ignite one of the more inspired performances for a Samford squad that has struggled on the road for one reason or another.