The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
Men's Basketball Team Hits Road To Face Southern Miss
2/3/2003 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Feb. 3, 2003
Men's Basketball Contact: Aaron Jordan
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. ----- The Conference USA National Division-leading UAB men's basketball team (12-5, 4-2 C-USA) will travel to Hattiesburg, Miss. to face Southern Miss (9-9, 2-5 C-USA) on Tuesday, Feb. 4. The game will be televised on CSS beginning at 7 p.m. CST.
The Golden Eagles started C-USA play with a 2-0 mark; however, have lost their last five contests. Most recently, Southern Miss fell to Memphis, 80-62 on Saturday. USM is led by Charles Gaines who leads the team in scoring (14.6) and rebounding (9.8). Gaines also leads the Golden Eagles in blocks (20), FG percentage (.544) and minutes played per game (27.3). Greg Johnson and Jasper Johnson also average double figures in scoring, averaging 13.1 and 10.9 ppg, respectively.
UAB is coming off a thrilling 84-81 overtime win over TCU last Wednesday. Jeffrey Collins hit a 3-pointer and two free throws in the final 26 seconds of overtime to lead the Blazers in the win. UAB hit only 2-of-23 3-point attempts, while TCU was 12-for-18 on 3-pointers. But UAB forced 25 TCU turnovers, 18 of them in the second half. Gabe Kennedy scored 23 points and Demario Eddins had 22, both career highs. On the season, Mo Finley leads the Blazers with 17.6 ppg, while Sidney Ball is averaging a team-high 4.7 rebounds per contest.
Tuesday night's game marks the 20th time the two teams have met. UAB has won the last two contests, including taking an 84-71 victory in Birmingham on Jan. 18. Last season, UAB and Southern Miss split the season series. The Blazers captured a 66-56 win in Bartow Arena on Feb. 26, 2002. Prior to that, the Golden Eagles held UAB to its lowest point total in school history, beating the Blazers 50-36 in Hattiesburg, Miss. on Jan. 12, 2002.
The game can be heard live on 1070 WAPI-AM, with the pregame show beginning at 6:30 p.m. Gary Sanders will handle play-by-play, Matt Coulter will be the color analyst and Jon Gentile will produce the broadcast. The postgame show will follow immediately after the game. The game can also be heard by accessing the UAB website (www.uabsports.com).
