The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
Blazers Play in Cavalier Classic Thursday and Friday
12/27/2006 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Dec. 27, 2006
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. - Following a five-day layoff for the holidays, the UAB women's basketball team will be back in action as they compete in the University of Virginia Cavalier Classic December 28-29. The two-day tournament will feature Virginia, UAB, Maine and Northwestern State.
The Blazers' first round game will pit them against the Lady Demons of Northwestern State at 12:30 p.m. on Thursday, December 28. It will mark the first-ever meeting between the two schools on the hardwood.
The Lady Demons are currently holding a record of 4-7 after most recently falling to North Texas, 77-66, on December 21. Northwestern State is being led by Chassidy Jones, who is averaging a team-best 24.7 ppg. Ashli Barnum is putting up 13.0 pgg and Tena Matthews is scoring 12.1 ppg.
UAB (4-6) is currently riding a four-game winning streak after picking up wins over Mississippi State (76-70), Florida Atlantic (67-52), Hampton (66-47) and Virginia Tech (70-59) during the month of December.
Senior Carmen Guzman is pacing the Blazers with 21.6 ppg, which ranks her seventh in the nation in scoring. Junior Diamond Rogers is adding 14.2 ppg and a team-best 6.8 rpg.
The other first-round game on Thursday will feature Virginia squaring off against the Maine Black Bears. The winner of the two first round contests will play for the tournament championship on Friday, December 29 at 7 p.m. The other two teams will face off in the consolation game at 4:30 p.m.
The Cavalier Classic also serves as a homecoming for a large part of the UAB women's basketball staff. UAB head coach Audra Smith played her collegiate career at the University of Virginia, graduating in 1992 with a bachelor's degree in sociology. After her playing days expired, Smith remained at Virginia as an assistant coach from 1994-2004.
The Blazers also have a pair of assistant coaches with ties to Virginia, including Kathy Allen and Daryl Oliver. Allen played for the Cavaliers from 2001-02 and earned her bachelor's degree in commerce from UVa in 2002. Oliver spent his collegiate basketball career at the University of Richmond, but served as an assistant coach for the Cavaliers from 2002-04.
