Samford leaves for Salt Lake City ahead of first round clash against Kansas

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (WBRC) - Wheels up for the Samford Bulldogs as they left for the Big Dance Tuesday afternoon. Looking to be this year’s Cinderella team, the Bulldogs prepare to face Kansas in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

The Bulldogs received a nice sendoff on campus, but to paraphrase head coach Bucky McMillan: what’s there to be nervous about? Samford enters the tournament as a 13 seed taking on the No. 4 Jayhawks.

There’s no pressure for what has already been a remarkable year for the Bulldogs. At one point, Samford held a 17-game winning streak, a perfect 18-0 record at home, and you top that off with a Southern Conference regular season and tournament title. That’s Bucky Ball at its peak. But there was one message McMillan had for his team as they departed out West.

“Be fearless,” he said. “Be who we are. No matter what happens in games like this, you can always look back, and if you were who you are, and you played together, and you were you, which is a team that is aggressive and plays with absolutely no fear. No matter the result, you got a lot to be proud of. And more times than not, the result usually works in your favor when you do that.”

Bucky Ball on the national stage for some late night hoops against the Jayhawks Thursday night with tip-off scheduled for 8:55 p.m. CST.

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