The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
Harris Paces C-USA in Scoring
1/26/2010 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Jan. 26, 2010
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- UAB freshman guard Jala Harris has quickly become one of the top players in Conference USA. Not only is she the top-shooting freshman in the conference, but Harris also paces the league in scoring average with 19.4 points in conference-only games and is tied for fourth in C-USA with 2.2 3-pointers per contest.
Overall, Harris is averaging 15.5 points per game, good for fifth in the league.
"Jala is a highly skilled player and we're fortunate to have her," UAB head coach Audra Smith said. "She has established herself as an offensive threat because she is multi-dimensional with the ability to attack the basket, shoot from mid-range and knock down a three. Once she gets in the zone, we have to keep getting her the ball because she can take over a game. We knew she would be an impact player in the conference."
Harris has shown her well-rounded abilities throughout the season. She has cracked the 20-point mark in five of the last six contests, including a career-high 26-point performance against Houston on Sunday. The Madison, Ala., native has knocked down a career-best four 3-pointers in back-to-back contests and reached double-figures in 11 of the last 13 games.
In league play, Harris is shooting 46.7 percent, including a 42.3 percent clip from behind the arc. On Monday, she became the first player in league history to earn three consecutive weekly awards as she received C-USA Freshman of the Week honors. The award was Harris' fourth C-USA freshman honor this season.
Harris and the Blazers (10-7, 4-1 C-USA) begin a four-game road stretch at East Carolina on Thursday. Tipoff is slated for 6 p.m. CST.
