JACKSONVILLE — The lack of depth caught up with Jacksonville State Tuesday night against in-state opponent Samford as the Gamecocks fell to the Bulldogs 50-39.
 
Head coach Rick Pietri only had seven available players, two of which were freshmen post players, and Samford took advantage by scoring more than half of its points inside the paint while out-rebounding the Gamecocks 40 to 30.
 
JSU was in contention for most of the game, only trailing by five at halftime, but a 15-5 third quarter by the Bulldogs was one of the major turning points to go along with the Gamecocks' 27.5 shooting percent during the game's 40 minutes. JSU attempted to make a fourth-quarter comeback, but could only get as close as seven points with 1:06 remaining in the game.
 
The loss snaps a seven-game non-conference winning streak by the Gamecocks at home and drops Pietri's career record at JSU in non-conference home games to 19-10 and 18-5 since January 1, 2014 in home games. It's JSU's 18^th loss to Samford and seventh consecutive at home to the Bulldogs.
 
Briana Benson led JSU offensively with nine points to go along with five rebounds in 30 minutes of game action. It marked the first time this season that Benson was held under double digits in the scoring column.  Courtney Strain added eight points and five rebounds in a game-high 37 minutes. Kelly Naughton also had eight points in 31 minutes off the bench for Pietri. Freshman forward Chloe Long had five points, three rebounds and two blocks off the bench as well.
 
Starter Destiny James finished with six points, eight rebounds, four assists, two steals and one block. Gretchen Morrison hit one 3-point basket for her only points on the night.  James' eight rebounds set a new career high for the Gamecock point guard.
 
For Samford, Amara Mayers had a game-high 16 points, seven rebounds and four steals. She shot 80 percent from the field during the contest. Taylor Reece was the only other player for either team in double figures as she finished with 11 points. Destiney Elliott brought down a game-high 12 rebounds for the Bulldogs while Krista Stricklin and Lydia McGee both had six points each. Brittany Stevens and Ellen Riggins had five and four points respectively.
 
Tuesday's performance set a low for the fewest points the Gamecocks have scored thus far this season. JSU's 14 made field goals was also a season-low for a game.
 
Pietri and his squad will return to action Saturday when the Gamecocks travel to Wofford with tip-off scheduled for 1 p.m CST.