The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
Blazers Set To Compete At 2008 Conference USA Tournament
3/11/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
March 11, 2008
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BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The UAB men's basketball team is set to travel to Memphis, Tenn. to compete in the 2008 Conference USA Tournament. The No. 2 seed Blazers will face off against Tulsa, an opening round winner Wednesday over East Carolina. The tip time for UAB's quarterfinal matchup is set for Noon on Thursday at the FedExForum and will be televised on CSS.
UAB enters the Conference USA Tournament having clinched the second seed in this year's event. The Blazers finished the regular season with a 22-9 overall record and a 12-4 mark in league play. The Blazers finished the regular season with 14 wins in their last 18 games and 20 of the last 26 after beginning the year with a 2-3 mark.
Junior guard/forward Robert Vaden currently leads the Blazers in scoring, averaging 21.8 points a game, which rank third in Conference USA. He also leads the team in three-point shooting (138-of-327, 42.4 percent) and minutes played (35.1).
Junior forward Lawrence Kinnard is the team's second-leading scorer at 11.2 points a game, and also leads the team in rebounding with 6.8 boards per contest. He has also averaged an impressive 13.1 points and 7.5 rebounds per game in league play.
Junior guard Channing Toney, who had to sit out during the first semester due to NCAA transfer rules, is third on the team in scoring, averaging 11.1 points and 3.3 rebounds. He is shooting 42.0 percent from three-point range (21-of-50), which ranks seventh in the league in C-USA contests only.
Huffman, who leads the squad with five double-doubles on the year, is second in rebounding (6.0 rpg) and fourth in scoring (7.0 ppg).
As a team, the Blazers are barely behind Memphis (.466) in field goal percentage, hitting .459 percent from the floor, and lead Conference USA in three-point field goal percentage, connecting on .393 percent from beyond the arc. Additionally, UAB ranks third in the league in three-point field goal percentage defense (33.2 percent) and rank fourth in field goal percentage defense (41.2 percent) and scoring defense (66.4 ppg). The Blazers also rank third in league play by outscoring their opponents by an average of 7.9 points a game (74.3-66.4).
Head coach Mike Davis is in his second season at the helm of the UAB men's basketball program. Davis, who is in his eighth season as a head coach, boasts a career record of 152-104 (.594) and has made five postseason appearances, including the 2002 national championship game. He is now 37-25 (.597) at UAB.
Last Time Out
After an epic battle in Birmingham just over three weeks ago -- a thriller that ended in a 79-78 victory for then-top-ranked Memphis -- UAB was hoping for a repeat performance last Saturday, only with a different outcome. Unfortunately, for the Blazers, the contest at the FedExForum featured the Tigers at their finest and the result was a convincing 94-56 Memphis victory. The Tigers, who secured their 30th win for the third consecutive season and an unblemished mark in the Conference USA play, jumped out of the gates as they built a 10-0 lead. UAB answered back to trim the margin to 12-9. From there, though, it was mostly all Tigers the rest of the way as head coach John Calipari's club built a 48-20 halftime lead and never looked back. Lawrence Kinnard led UAB with 16 points, while Robert Vaden had 13, nine under his average. Vaden was 5-of-17 from the field and just 3-of-13 from three-point range. Vaden's three treys broke the C-USA single-season record for three-point field goals as he now has 138 this season, one better than the mark set by Charlotte's Demon Brown in the 2002-03 season. The Blazers were their own worst enemy Saturday as they ended the day with 23 turnovers, 18 in the first half, and shot 34 percent. The Tigers converted those turnovers into 31 points. The Tigers committed just 10 turnovers. Memphis earned a 45-32 advantage on the boards and had 22 second-chance points to UAB's three.
Vaden, Kinnard Earn All-Conference Honors
Juniors Robert Vaden and Lawrence Kinnard have been honored by the league for their performances this season. Vaden, who leads the team and ranks third in the conference with 21.8 points a game, was named to the league's first team. It marks the third consecutive season UAB has had a representative on the C-USA First Team. Squeaky Johnson (2005-06) and Paul Delaney III (2006-07) were both tabbed first team all-conference performers in each of the previous two seasons.
Kinnard, who leads the team in rebounding (6.8 rpg) and ranks second in scoring (11.2 ppg) was selected to the league's third team. Kinnard ranks fourth in C-USA in rebounds per game and is 22nd in the league in scoring.
Nation's Leader
Junior guard/forward Robert Vaden is not only leading his team and Conference USA in three-point shooting, but he is also tops in the nation as well. The Indianapolis, Ind. native enters the Conference USA Tournament leading the country in three-pointers made per game (4.7), three-pointers made on the year (138) and three-pointers attempted this season (32.7). Furthermore, his three-point field goal percentage of 43.0 percent ranks 26th nationally.
Team Records Ready To Shatter
As a team, UAB is approaching several three-point school records. Entering the Conference USA Tournament, the Blazers have made 242 three-pointers as a team. They only need six more threes to surpass the record of 247 made threes set during the 1988-89, 19 years ago. Additionally, UAB has attempted 623 treys on the campaign, 41 attempts away from breaking the single-season school record of 664, set back in 2002-03.
NCAA Tourney Worthy?
When UAB began the season 2-3 following the Glenn Wilkes Classic (Nov. 16-18) and was nearing the end of non-conference play with an 8-5 record, not many people would think the Blazers would have a chance at an at-large berth to the NCAA Tournament. But that is exactly what has happened. The Blazers have played their way into the tourney picture by winning 14 of their last 18 games, and 20 of the last 26 contests. According to CollegeRPI.com's latest standings, the Blazers' RPI is at 48 with a strength of schedule of 93. Furthermore, UAB has a conference RPI of 26 and a non-conference RPI of 96 as the Blazers enter the league tournament.
Board Work Improvement
One of the Blazers' biggest improvements from a year ago has been their work on the glass. Entering the C-USA Tournament, UAB is outrebounding opponents by almost three bøards a game (36.8-33.9) and have outrebounded our tied an opponent in 20 of its 31 games this season. Last year, UAB outrebounded the opposition in just 16 contests, and held a -0.5 rebounding disadvantage (35.3-35.6).
Furthermore, a key to a UAB victory this season has been in board work. In UAB's 22 wins this season, it owns a +6.4 advantage on the boards (37.8-31.4). However, in the Blazers' nine losses, they have been outworked on the glass, 40.0-34.6, for a -5.4 disadvantage.
Darth Vaden Feeling The Force
Junior guard Robert Vaden has been one of the more steady players all season for UAB; however, he has really turned his game up a notch over the last six games. Over that stretch, Vaden has been nearly unstoppable. He has averaged 24.8 points per game, while also contributing 4.0 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game. Furthermore, the Indianapolis, Ind. native is shooting 43.0 percent from the floor (43-of-100) and 44.2 percent from beyond the arc (34-of-77). He has also averaged 5.7 threes made per game and led the Blazers to a 5-1 record over the six-game stretch.
Vaden enters Conference USA Tournament play averaging 21.8 ppg (would tie a school record), has hit 138-of-327 three pointers (both school records) and is shooting 87.0 percent from the charity stripe. Vaden also leads the country in total threes made and three-pointers made per game (4.7).
A.J. All The Way
Freshman guard Aaron Johnson may be one of the more pleasant surprises in UAB head coach Mike Davis' eyes. Over his last three contests, Johnson has averaged 8.7 points and 6.0 assists per game. In fact, over UAB's most recent six games, Johnson has been averaging 8.3 points and 5.3 assists during the stretch. This season, when Johnson dishes out at least four assists in a game, the Blazers often fare well. When that happens, UAB is 15-2 this season, with both losses coming against Memphis (79-78 on Feb. 16 and 94-56 on March 8).
Huffman Plays Important Role
Junior forward Reggie Huffman is proving to be a key cog in UAB victories this season. In the 22 wins this year, Huffman is averaging 8.7 points and a team-best 6.6 rebounds a game. He also has connected on 86-of-148 shots (58.1 percent). However, those numbers drop significantly during UAB's nine losses. Huffman averages 2.9 points and 4.4 rebounds in the nine defeats. Additionally, his field goal percentage drops to 37.5 percent (9-of-24).
Furthermore, the junior proved that he doesn't have to score to be a contributing factor in an outcome of a game. There have been nine occasions when Huffman has recorded eight or more rebounds in a game, with the Blazers sporting an impressive 8-1 record when he reaches the mark. For the season, Huffman ranks second on the team with an average of 6.0 rebounds per game, while also contributing 7.0 points a game, which ranks fourth-best on this year's squad. Over his last six contests alone, Huffman is averaging 8.0 points and 7.5 rebounds and has collected two double-doubles over that span.
