The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
UAB
Rice
Blazers Hold On For 69-68 Win At Rice
1/18/2009 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Jan. 18, 2009
HOUSTON, Texas - Senior guard Britney Jones led all players with 24 points as the UAB women's basketball team hung on for a one-point win over Rice, 69-68, on Sunday afternoon at the Tudor Fieldhouse. The Blazers, up by 10 with 7:15 left in the game, fended off a late comeback by the Owls for the Conference USA victory.
UAB improved its overall record to 7-11 and captured its second league win of the year to stand at 2-3 in C-USA. Rice fell to 5-12 overall and 0-4 in conference play.
UAB and Rice battled throughout the first half, with the lead changing hands four times and the game tied on five occasions. The Blazers held their largest lead of the opening half, 15-12, at the 13:36 mark on a trey by junior guard Fatiha Salaam.
Rice came back and regained the lead, going up by as much as five in the opening half, 24-19, on a layup by Emery Carter. The Owls took a four-point lead into halftime, 36-32.
Rice opened the second half by taking a six-point lead at the 16:37 mark, 42-36. UAB went on a 16-2 run that put the Blazers up by eight, 52-44, with 9:54 remaining in the game.
UAB was up by 10, 59-49, with 7:15 left on the clock when Rice went on an 11-2 run to pull within one, 61-60, at 4:09. The Owls tied the game at 65-all on a three-point basket by Morgan Mayse with 1:23 left. The Blazers answered with a three-pointer of their own courtesy of Salaam to regain the lead, 68-65, with 1:06 remaining.
After UAB made one free throw to go up, 69-65, Rice came within one point once again, 69-68, with 35 seconds left in the game on another three-pointer by Mayse. The Blazers missed the front end of a one-and-one, but played solid defense on Rice's final possession to hang on to the one-point win, 69-68.
"This was a huge win for us today," said UAB head coach Audra Smith. "We really needed this for a confidence booster. We had three tough losses in a row, so this will help get us back on the winning track.
"Our success today started with playing solid defense. We were taking charges, going after loose balls and defending pretty well. On the offensive side, we had players step up and make the shots that we know they can make. At the end of the day, this team really fought for this victory and it feels good."
UAB shot a game-high 57.7 percent in the second half on its way to 48.1 percent shooting overall. The Blazers went 8-of-18 (44.4 percent) from three-point range and 9-of-13 (69.2 percent) from the free throw line.
Jones' 24 points came on 11-of-18 shooting for the Blazers. It marked her seventh consecutive game scoring in double figures and her third straight game with 20-plus points. Jones also added two rebounds, two steals and a team-best five assists on the day.
UAB sophomore guard Amanda Peterson tallied 18 points on 6-of-11 shooting, including 4-of-7 from beyond the arc. Salaam and junior forward Tamika Dukes added 11 points each for the Blazers. Dukes also added a team-high seven rebounds.
Rice shot 45.7 percent in the first half, but cooled off to 34.5 percent in the second half. The Owls, who shot 40.6 percent overall, also hit 40.0 percent (8-of-20) from beyond the arc and 8-of-11 (72.7 percent) from the charity stripe.
Mayse went 3-of-3 from the three-point line to lead her to a team-high 17 points for Rice, followed by Megan Elliott with 15 points and a game-high eight boards. Maudess Fulton was the third player to score in double digits for the Owls, contributing 11 points.
UAB will be back in action on Thursday when it plays at Marshall. The Blazers and the Thundering Herd are scheduled to tip off at 7 p.m. ET at the Cam Henderson Center in Huntington, W. Va.
