The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
UAB Takes On Rice in C-USA Road Test
2/5/2010 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Feb. 5, 2010
UAB-Rice Game Notes | Gametracker | Watch
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -The UAB men's basketball team will travel to Houston, Texas to take on the Rice Owls on Saturday afternoon at 2 p.m. CT. The contest will mark the second of a two-game road swing and can be heard live on the ISP Blazers Radio Network, 107.7 FM WUHT.
The UAB men's basketball team enters Saturday's contest at Rice sporting an overall record of 18-4 on the season. The Blazers dropped their second consecutive league contest, falling at Memphis, 85-75, to drop to 6-2 in Conference USA play. Junior guard Elijah Millsap led four players in double-figures with 18 points and nine boards in the contest which featured 10 ties and 31 lead changes throughout. Junior guard Jamarr Sanders collected 16 points, eight rebounds and six assists in the losing effort.
Millsap continues to lead UAB in scoring (16.3 ppg), rebounding (9.5 rpg), steals (1.9 spg) and free throws made (107) and attempted (147). He also leads C-USA in double-doubles and in rebounding and is fifth in scoring. The Louisiana-Lafayette transfer has led the Blazers in scoring and/or rebounding in 18 of their 22 games this season.
Senior forward Howard Crawford is second on the team with 12.2 points per contest, while Sanders adds 11.0 ppg and leads the team in three-pointers made (45) and attempted (121). Junior guard Aaron Johnson adds 9.4 points and leads the team in assists (4.5).
As a team, the Blazers are shooting 42.7 percent from the floor and 30.7 percent from beyond the arc this year. UAB also boasts a +6.2 advantage on the boards (37.1-30.9). Furthermore, the Blazers hold the opposition to 61.0 points a game, which is second in C-USA and ranks 18th nationally (as of 2/1), and have held 16 of their 22 opponents to 64 points or below.
Head coach Mike Davis is in his fourth season at the helm of the UAB basketball program and his 10th season as a head coach. He boasts a record of 78-43 (.645) at UAB and a 193-122 (.613) mark overall. He now owns a record of 34-20 (.630) in Conference USA play.
Rice comes into Saturday's contest with a 7-14 overall record and a 1-7 mark in conference play following a tough, 79-74, overtime defeat at home against Tulane on Wednesday night. The Owls were led by freshman forward Arsalan Kazemi, who recorded his sixth double-double of the year with game highs of 19 points and 13 rebounds. Freshman Tamir Jackson added 13 points and eight assists in the losing effort.
The two freshmen lead the Rice offensive attack entering its matchup against UAB. Jackson leads all scorers with 11.9 points, while adding a team-best 3.2 assists and 1.9 steals per contest. Meanwhile, Kazemi is second on the squad with 11.1 points a game, while adding a team-leading 8.9 rebounds a contest. Additionally, he leads the team in blocked shots (16) and field goal percentage (.570) on the year.
Junior center Trey Stanton collects 9.6 points a game and, at 6-10, ranks second on the team in three-point percentage at .383.
As a team, the Owls shoot 40.3 percent from the floor and 31.7 percent from deep on the season. Rice is being outscored by 3.5 points a game on average (68.5-65.0), but own a 1.0 advantage in rebound margin (35.8-34.8) this year.
Head coach Ben Braun is in his second year at the helm of the Rice men's basketball program where he has compiled a record of 17-36 (.321) during his tenure. He is now in his 33rd season as a head coach and has compiled an impressive overall record of 569-425 (.572).
UAB vs. Rice: The Series
UAB and Rice will do battle for the sixth time in series history when the two teams take to the hardwood on Saturday. The Blazers enter the contest having never lost to tthe Owls in the five previous meetings between the two teams. UAB owns a 2-0 record in games played between the two teams in Houston.
UAB-Rice A Year Ago
Last season, UAB and Rice played on just one occasion, with UAB taking a 78-40 win at Bartow Arena (1/24/09). The win was the most lopsided victory by the Blazers in the previous four meetings between the two squads. The last time UAB played Rice in Houston, it came on Feb. 13, 2008 when the Blazers defeated the Owls, 69-60. The contest was played in Reliant Arena, as Rice's Tudor Fieldhouse was being renovated.
Last Time Out
Wesley Witherspoon scored 29 points and keyed a late Memphis rally as the Tigers defeated UAB 85-75 on Wednesday night.
Elliot Williams added 25 points and seven assists for Memphis. The Blazers have not won a regular-season game in Memphis since Jan. 2, 1999, extending their winless streak to 11-straight games at Memphis.
Elijah Millsap led the Blazers with 18 points and nine rebounds, connecting on 7 of 11 from the field. Jamarr Sanders added 16 points and Howard Crawford finished with 13 points. Aaron Johnson had 12 points and eight assists for UAB.
The game was close throughout with 31 lead changes and 10 ties. Neither team led by more than six points, until the stretch run.
With the game tied at 69 with 3:53 remaining, Witherspoon scored six unanswered points to give the Tigers the lead.
Breaking Down The Previous Game
Below are some notes in regards to the previous game:
• UAB allowed Memphis to score 85 points, which marked the second-straight contest it has given up a season high in points allowed (gave up 74 points to UTEP on Jan. 30).
• Memphis' Elliot Williams (25) and Wesley Witherspoon (29) combined to score 54 of the Tigers' 85 points on the night.
• The Blazers collected a season-best 17 assists, but at the same time tied a season high with 19 turnovers.
• UAB's starting five all reached double figures and combined to score 69 of its 75 points on the night.
• UAB (13-of-14) and Memphis (25-of-28) combined to hit 38-of-42 free throws in the contest. It was a season-best for the Blazers in terms of percentage (.929).
Ruling The Boards
One of the strengths of this year's UAB team has been on the boards. The Blazers outrebounded Memphis, 32-27, in the contest, despite losing the contest.
UAB's board work this season has been a big reason why it has won 18 of the first 22 games. The Blazers have only been out-rebounded in five of 22 games on the year, including outworking their opponents on the boards in 12 of the last 14 contests. UAB boasts a 6.2 average advantage on the boards during the campaign (37.1-30.9).
Entering Saturday's contest, UAB ranks fourth in total rebounding and is third in rebounding defense and rebounding margin. Furthermore, the Blazers are tied for first in offensive rebounds per game, averaging 13.0 a contest.
UAB In The RPI
Following the 85-75 loss at Memphis last Wednesday night, the Blazers' RPI fell to No. 28 in the country in the latest RPI. Below is a breakdown of where UAB's RPI stands through games of Feb. 4.
Source RPI SOS
CBSSportsline.com 28 84
RealTimeRPI.com 28 84
CollegeRPI.com 27 94
NCAA.com 27 NA
Warren Nolan 28 84
Now That's Offensive!
In addition to being a good rebounding team, the Blazers are also one of the top offensive rebounding teams in the conference. UAB comes into the Rice game averaging 13.0 offensive rebounds per contest this year, compared to only 9.0 offensive boards by their foes. That has led to an advantage on second-chance points, as UAB owns a 11.8-8.0 average advantage on the season.
Defensive Dominance
A calling card for this year's UAB squad has been its defensive prowess. The Blazers held Tulsa, one of C-USA's top offensive teams, to just 55 points when the two squads clashed on Jan. 26, which marked the 13th time this season UAB has held the opposition to under 60 points in a contest. In fact, in 22 contests on the year, UAB has now held 16 foes to 64 points or less. As a result, the Blazers are holding teams to 61.0 points a game, which ranks second in Conference USA. Additionally, the Blazers rank fifth in the league in three-point field goal percentage defense (.310) and are sixth in field goal percentage defense (.415).
Nationally, UAB ranks among the top defenses in the country. In the latest NCAA rankings (through games of 2/1), the Blazers are ranked 18th in the nation in scoring defense. Additionally, UAB is ranked 49th in the country in three-point field goal percentage defense.
Drake Knocks `Em Down
Senior guard George Drake scored 10 points in the loss at Memphis Wednesday night, which marked the ninth time this season he has reached double figure scoring. Even more impressive was the fact that Drake knocked down all six of his free throws in the contest. With the made six free throws, Drake has now made 16-straight free throws entering the game at Rice. The Calera, Ala. native currently leads UAB and Conference USA in free throw percentage this season (.872).
