The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
UAB Begins Two-Game Road Stretch At Houston
2/16/2007 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Feb. 16, 2007
Houston Game Notes
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BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The UAB men's basketball team begins an important two-game road stretch when it takes on the Houston Cougars on Saturday, February 17, at 5 p.m. The game will be televised nationally on CSTV, with Carter Blackburn (play-by-play) and Steve Lappas (color commentary) on the call.
The game marks the first time UAB has made an appearance at Hofheinz Pavilion since March 5, 2005 (UAB 71, UH 66). The Blazers have won 14 of the 17 games played between the two teams, but have dropped two of the last three games played in Houston.
The radio broadcast can be heard on the Blazers ISP Sports Network, beginning with the pre-game show at 5:30 p.m. CT. Birmingham and Huntsville listeners can follow all the action on WYDE 101.1 FM. The broadcast can also be heard on WIQR 1410 AM in Montgomery/Prattville and 98.3 FM WTRB in Ashland/Talladega.
Scouting Houston
Houston enters Saturday night's contest sporting a 13-11 overall record, and is 7-3 in C-USA play, which places it in second place in the league standings. The Cougars enter the game having won two of their last three games, and seven of their last nine overall. Most recently, Houston stepped outside of conference play when it hosted South Alabama last Wednesday, falling 66-61. The Cougars were 23-of-65 from the field and 10-of-40 from beyond the arc. In fact, over half of Houston's field goal attempts this season have come from behind the three-point line. The Cougars have attempted 758 shots on the season, 441 of which came from deep.
The Cougars are led on the year by one of the top scoring duos in Conference USA in junior guard Robert McKiver and senior guard Oliver Lafayette. McKiver leads the team with 18.8 points and 3.8 assists per game, while Lafayette ranks second in points (14.1 ppg) and rebounds (6.0 rpg), while also leading the team and Conference USA with 2.4 steals a game.
Head coach Tom Penders is in his third year at the helm of the Houston basketball program and in his 33rd season as a head coach. Penders enters the game against UAB sporting a 52-35 (.598) record with the Cougars, and a 579-396 (.594) overall record as a head coach.
Scouting UAB
UAB will enter its contest at Houston with an overall record of 13-12, and a 5-6 mark in league play, good enough for a tie for sixth in the league standings. The Blazers have won two straight games entering the game at Houston; however, they have dropped five of their last eight contests overall.
Junior guard Paul Delaney III, a two-time recipient of the Conference USA Player of the Week this season, leads the Blazers in points (16.3) and assists (5.4) per game, while also ranking third on the team with 5.0 boards a contest.
Along with Delaney, senior guard Wen Mukubu and sophomore forward Lawrence Kinnard are also threats on offense. Mukubu averages 13.8 points and 5.8 rebounds per contest, while also shooting 41.3 percent from beyond the arc. Kinnard ranks third on the team with 13.0 points per game, and also leads the team with 6.1 rebounds a game and a team-leading average of 43.8 percent from beyond the arc.
UAB head coach Mike Davis enters the game against the Cougars with an overall record of 128-91 (.584) in his seventh season as a head coach, and is 13-12 (.520) in his first season at UAB.
Last Time Out
Lawrence Kinnard scored 21 points and Wen Mukubu added 20 to lead UAB to an 84-73 victory over Rice. Paul Delaney III scored 15 points and Mukubu added 10 rebounds, eight assists and three steals for UAB. Morris Almond scored 28 points to lead Rice, while Cory Pflieger scored 17 points, and Lorenzo Williams had 10 points and seven assists for the Owls. UAB led 38-35 at halftime, but Rice got off to a quick start in the second half. Almond hit a jump shot in the lane and Pflieger hit two 3-pointers to help Rice take a 51-44 lead. UAB used strong inside play to come back. Freshman reserve center Jeremy Mayfield scored three straight baskets inside to spark a 13-2 Blazer run. Two inside baskets by Frank Holmes and a 3-point play by Mukubu gave UAB a 57-53 lead. The Blazers went on to lead by as many as 13 points. Rice pulled to within 75-66 with two minutes left on a 3-pointer by Williams. But the Owls could get no closer as Delaney, Mukubu and Kinnard combined to hit seven free throws down the stretch.
UAB-Houston A Year Ago
Freshman forward Lawrence Kinnard hit three clutch baskets near the end of the game to lead UAB to a 82-79 victory over Houston. Kinnard's biggest basket came on UAB's final possession, with the Blazers leading 80-79 and the shot clock winding down. The Memphis, Tenn., native banked in a 10-foot jumper with 6.3 seconds left. The basket gave UAB a three-point lead and Houston called a quick time out. Guard Chris Lawson drove down the floor and launched a 3-point try under tight defense, but the shot missed. Houston rebounded with one second left, but could not get off another shot before the final horn sounded. Wen Mukubu scored 16 points to lead UAB. Kinnard had a then-career high 13 points and a team-high seven rebounds. Marvett McDonald added 13 points and Paul Delaney had 11.
"Block"ing The Way
Junior forward Frank Holmes is showing why he is one of the best shot blockers in Conference USA this season. He swatted four shots in the Blazers' victory over Rice last Wednesday, improving his single-season record to 32 blocks this season, an average of 1.3 blocks per game. He only needs four more blocks to crack UAB's all-time single-season top-10 list. Former UAB great Jerome Mincy is currently 10th on the single-season list with 36 blocked shots during the 1984-85 campaign.
Furthermore, the four blocks against the Owls give Holmes 69 career blocks, which improves him from 12th to eighth on the school's all-time blocked shots list. He surpassed former Blazers Igor Nikolic, Donnie Speer, Oliver Robinson and Will Campbell with his four swats last Wednesday night. With two blocks against Houston, Holmes would move up to No. 7 on the list, matching former Blazer Brandon Tobias' 71 career blocks.
One Of Only Three
Junior guard Paul Delaney III is quickly becoming one of the elite players in college basketball. Entering the Houston game, Delaney is one of only three players in Division I nationally to average over 15 points, five rebounds and five assists per game. Delaney, who enters the Houston game with an average of 16.3 points, 5.4 assists and 5.0 rebounds a game, joins the trio of Marist's Jared Jordan (18.3 ppg, 6.1 rpg, 8.6 apg) and Albany's Jamar Wilson (18.0 ppg, 6.4 rpg, 5.0 apg).
Double-Doubles Galore
UAB has played with more intensity over the last three games and that has shown in the stats. Through the first 22 games of the season, UAB had collected a total of five double-doubles. However, in the last three games alone against the Tigers, UTEP (Feb. 10) and Rice (Feb. 14), the Blazers matched that total with five double-doubles to improve to 10 on the 2006-07 campaign. In fact, despite falling 70-56 to Memphis, three UAB players earned double-doubles in the contest. It is believed to be the first time in school history three UAB players recorded double-doubles in the same contest.
During the last three games, senior guard/forward Wen Mukubu has had double-digit rebounds in each contest and is averaging a double-double, with 12.7 points and 10.3 rebounds. It should be no surprise that the Blazers won two of the three games and are outrebounding their opponents by over seven rebounds a game (42.7-35.3) during the three-game stretch.
Dishing It Out
In UAB's 84-73 win against Rice on Wednesday, the Blazers collected 18 assists on 29 made field goals, marking their third-highest assist mark in a game this season. The season-high assist mark came with 20 helpers in the 76-63 win over Radford on Nov. 11. In fact, the Blazers improved to a perfect 9-0 when collected at least 13 assists in a contest this season.
Furthermore, in its 13 wins this season, UAB is averaging an impressive 14.1 assists per contest. However, that number drops significantly to 8.4 assists per game in the Blazers' 12 defeats this season.
Hot Shooting
One of the reasons for the Blazers capturing two consecutive wins is the way they are shooting the ball. UAB connected on 53.8 percent of its field goals in the 73-64 win over UTEP on Feb. 10, and hit 54.7 percent from the floor in the 84-73 win over Rice last Wednesday. UAB has now eclipsed the 50 percent mark for field goal percentage in a game on six occasions this season, which is usually a good thing. The Blazers are now 5-1 on the year when connecting on at least half of their field goals in a game, with the lone loss coming at Wyoming on Nov. 18. In fact, the Blazers have an outstanding record of 38-2 since the 2001-02 campaign when shooting 50 percent or better from the floor in a contest.
Holmes Sweet Holmes
Junior forward Frank Holmes has been a force to reckon with recently. For the first time in his career, the Somerville, Tenn. native recorded back-to-back double-double games, with 14 points and 10 rebounds against Memphis, followed by 13 points and 10 boards against UTEP. In fact, Holmes has been one of the better players in the league over his last six contests. Over that stretch, Holmes is averaging 8.8 points and 6.5 rebounds a game, while also shooting a torrid 74.2 percent from the floor (23-of-31).
