GREENSBORO, N.C. – The UNC Greensboro (UNCG) men's basketball team secured an 89-82 victory over the Samford Bulldogs on Saturday evening to go 2-0 in The Southern Conference (SoCon) play inside Bodford Arena. This is the fourth straight year the Spartans have begun SoCon action 2-0.

Four Spartans reached double-figures in the contest with Justin Neely leading the way with 22 points. Neely also led the game in rebounds with 14 boards to record his 16th career double-double and ninth of the season. Second in scoring was freshman Noah Norgaard with 17 points. Rounding out the double-digit scorers was Donald Whitehead Jr. and KJ Younger each with 15 points.

HOW IT HAPPENED
Samford scored the first point of the game on a free throw, but the Spartans' Norgaard responded with the first three-pointer at 19:19 for a 3-1 lead. The Bulldogs tied the score twice, with the latter being with 17:45 left in the first half, 5-5, before UNCG stayed ahead for the remainder of the game. Younger's five-straight points extended the Spartans' lead to double-digits, 15-5, with 15:49 left in the half. UNCG climbed to an 11-point advantage twice in the first half, including the second at 12:53, 22-11, on a pull-up jumper from Whitehead Jr. The Bulldogs closed the deficit down to 27-26 after a pair of free throws made by Dylan Faulkner at the 8:25 mark. However, UNCG ended the half on a 16-9 run capped off by a three-pointer by Norgaard with 47 seconds left on the clock to end the first half up 43-35.

The second half started with a Norgaard three pointer to kick start a 12-5 Spartan run to put UNCG up 55-40 at the 16:56 mark. Samford battled back after the early 11-point deficit, with Jadin Booth leading the charge with 21 second half points going 5-for-9 from behind the arc. His fifth three of the game at the 1:51 mark closed the gap down to 84-79. However, in the ensuing UNCG possession, Neely drew the fifth foul on Booth to send him to the bench. With Samford's leading scorer out, Neely secured the win with two made free throws, as UNCG's defense kept the Bulldogs from scoring in the remaining 13 seconds for an 89-82 victory.

BY THE NUMBERS

• UNCG bested Samford in bench points (17-12), fast break points (12-10), points off turnovers (12-4), three-pointers made (11-10) and three-point percentage (69%-33%).
• The Bulldogs led the way in points in the paint (34-20), blocks (6-0), assists (19-12) and field goal percentage (48%-47%).
• The two teams were tied in rebounds (37-37) and second chance points (14-14).
• Neely and Whitehead Jr. recorded three assists each.

RECORDS
UNCG: 6-9, 2-0 SoCon
SAM: 8-7, 1-1 SoCon

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UP NEXT
UNCG continues SoCon play next week on the road, traveling to Spartanburg, South Carolina, to face Wofford on Wednesday, Jan. 7 at 6:00 p.m. at Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium on Nexstar/ESPN+. The Spartans will then travel to Johnson City, Tennessee, to face ETSU on Saturday, Jan. 10 starting at 4:00 p.m. at Freedom Hall.