The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
UAB Set To Host Rice Saturday Night
2/11/2011 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Feb. 11, 2011
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The UAB men's basketball team will return to the friendly confines of Bartow Arena when it plays host to Rice on Saturday night at 7 p.m. CT. The contest will be televised on CSS and can also be heard on the Blazer Sports Network, 107.7 FM WUHT.
GAME INFORMATION
Feb. 12, 2011 • 7 pm CT • Birmingham, Ala. • Bartow Arena (8,500)
RADIO (Flagship: WUHT 107.7 FM): Blazer Sports Network
David Crane (play-by-play), Steve Mitchell (analyst) and Jon Gentile (engineer)
TV: CSS; Richard Cross (play-by-play) and Brian Oliver (analyst)
A LITTLE BIT ABOUT SATURDAY'S GAME
• The contest between UAB and Rice Wednesday night marks the seventh meeting between the two teams. The Blazers have never lost to the Owls, winning the previous six meetings, including a perfect 3-0 mark in Birmingham. Last season, the Blazers captured a 76-65 victory at Rice behind Aaron Johnson's career-high 28 points.
• UAB senior guard Aaron Johnson recorded his school record seventh double-digit assist game of the season with 11 assists and just two turnovers in the win over UCF on Jan. 29. Johnson comes into Saturday's contest third in the nation in assists per game (7.4), just 0.2 assists per game back of the nation's leader, Scott Machado from Iona at 7.6 apg. Johnson, who also tied the school single-game record with 14 assists in the win over UTEP (1/8), needs just three assists to break the UAB career record.
• Over UAB's last two contests (at Tulane and at Marshall), the Blazers have owned a distinct advantage on the boards, outrebounded the competition by an average of 16.0 rebounds per contest. It is a big reason why UAB won both road games and allowed an average of 41.5 points over the two-game stretch.
• UAB is proving to be a second-half team this season. Through 23 games, UAB is averaging 37.2 points in the second half and outscoring the competition by 5.9 points over the final 20 minutes (37.2- 31.3). In comparison, the Blazers are putting up just 30.3 points and have a 0.9 point advantage in the first half of games this season (30.3-29.4).
BLAZING BITS
• UAB head coach Mike Davis owns a 48-26 (.649) record in Conference USA contests. He has led the Blazers to at least 11 league wins in three consecutive seasons.
• Over the past four seasons (2007-pr.), UAB has an impressive record of 87-38 (.696). Coming into this year, the Blazers had collected 70 wins over the previous three seasons (2008-10), which averaged out to 23.3 wins a year over the last three years. The 70 victories is the best three-year stretch in terms of number of victories since winning 71 games from 1984-87 (71-31).
• UAB is now in the midst of its 33rd season of basketball during the 2010-11 campaign. The Blazers have had much success on the hardwood, boasting an overall program record of 660-381 (.634) - an average of over 20 wins per season (20.1).
About UAB
• UAB is coming off a 64-48 victory at Marshall on Wednesday. The victory over the Thundering Herd marked the Blazers' sixth win over the last seven games in the series and third straight win at Marshall.
• During head coach Mike Davis' five seasons at UAB, the Blazers own a home mark of 60-12 (.833). Furthermore, over the last four seasons alone, the Blazers boast a record of 51-8 (.864) in games played at Bartow Arena.
• Senior point guard Aaron Johnson continues to lead the league and now ranks third in the nation in assists per game, with an average of 7.4. Johnson, who recorded 14 assists vs. UTEP (1/8) to set a career-high and single-game school record, now has racked up 170 assists and only 80 turnovers this season. He is also contributing 11.5 points, 2.7 rebounds and 1.6 steals per contest.
• Senior Jamarr Sanders leads the team and ranks fifth in C-USA with 17.8 ppg, while also averaging 4.5 rpg. Sanders, who is averaging 18.2 ppg in league play, leads the Blazers with 61 three-pointers made.
• UAB junior Cameron Moore leads the team in rebounding (9.8) and is second in scoring (15.6). Moore is averaging a double-double in league contests (14.2 points and 10.2 rebounds a game), ranks second in the league in rebounding average and 10th in scoring average.
• Sophomore forward Ovie Soko is fourth on the team in scoring (8.5 ppg) and second in rebounding (5.7 rpg).
• With the victory at Marshall, head coach Mike Davis improved to 102-54 (.654) during his five seasons at UAB, including an 87-38 (.696) mark over his last four years alone (including the 2010-11 season). He has a career mark of 217-133 (.620) in 11 seasons as a head coach at Indiana and UAB.
About Rice
• Rice comes into Saturday's contest vs. UAB sporting an overall record of 11-12 and a 3-6 mark in C-USA play. The Owls enter the contest having won two-straight league road games (at UCF and at Tulane). In the most recent contest, Rice dropped a 59-53 decision at home against league-leading UTEP on Feb. 5. The Owls had an open date last Wednesday.
• Rice is led by sophomore sensation Arsalan Kazemi. A member of the all-freshman team a year ago, Kazemi leads the Owls with 15.8 points and 11.9 rebounds per contest. He currently leads the league in rebounding and ranks ninth in scoring. Additionally, Kazemi leads the team in field goal percentage (.557) and has made (148) and attempted (200) the most free throws on the team.
• Sophomore Tamir Jackson (13.9 ppg) and senior Connor Frizzelle (10.9 ppg) each average doble figures on the year. Jackson also averaged a team-leading 3.5 assists per game, while he and Frizzelle are tied for the team lead in steals per game (.1.2).
• As a team, Rice is outscoring its opponents by 0.8 points a game (67.8-67.0), which ranks last in the conference. The Owls are shooting 43.4 percent from the floor and 33.0 percent from beyond the arc. In conference action, Rice has a scoring margin of -3.2 points a game (69.2-66.0) but rank third in league play in rebounding margin at +3.8 (34.2-30.4).
• Head coach Ben Braun is in his third season at the helm of the Rice program. Braun has a 29-57 (.337) record during his tenure with the Owls and an overall record of 581-446 (.556) in 34 seasons as a head coach.
Notes From Marshall Game
• Cameron Moore had 18 points and 14 rebounds and Jamarr Sanders scored 17 points to lead UAB to a 64-48 victory over Marshall on Wednesday night. Moore recorded his 12th double-double of the season, which ranks second in the league.
• Aaron Johnson had seven assists and also scored 10 points. The senior point guard needs just three more assists to break the school record of 597, currently held by former great Steve Mitchell.
• Moore scored 10 points during a 17-6 run by the Blazers that gave them a 52-35 lead with 12:35 remaining. The Thundering Herd never got closer than 14 points after that.
• The Blazers dominated the glass as well, owning a 39-23 advantage on the boards. Furthermore, UAB outrebounded Marshall 14-4 on the offensive glass, which resulted in a nine-point edge in second-chance points (13-4).
UAB vs. Rice A Year Ago
• Aaron Johnson scored a career-high 28 points Saturday and UAB pulled away in the second half for a 76-65 victory over Rice on Feb. 6, 2010 in Houston.
• The Blazers trailed by as many as 12 points in the first half, and were down 31-26 at halftime. But UAB put together a 16-0 run that stretched from the end of the first half and beginning of the second half to take the lead for good. Another 9-0 run put UAB up 47-37 with 13:01 remaining. The Owls got no closer than eight points the rest of the way.
• Johnson was 7 of 10 from the field and 11 of 13 from the free-throw line for UAB. He also had five assists and three steals. Jamarr Sanders added 18 points - all in the second half.
• Arsalan Kazemi led Rice with 15 points and 13 rebounds. Lawrence Ghoram added 13 points and Trey Stanton had 12.
Assist King
• Senior point guard Aaron Johnson needs only three assists to become the school's all-time assist leader. Steve Mitchell (1982-86) currently owns the record with 597 helpers, while Johnson enters Saturday's contest vs. Rice with 595 assists during his career.
• Johnson has been leading the nation in assists per game for most of the season. He currently is third in the country with an average of 7.4 assists a game, just 0.2 assists behind leader Scott Machado of Iona (7.4). Johnson, a Chicago, Ill. native, has racked up 170 assists with only 80 turnovers. Furthermore, he is currently ranks eighth in school history in single-season assists.
• With 14 assists in the triple overtime win vs. UTEP on Jan. 8, the senior guard set his career high and tied the single-game school record, set by Jack Kramer back in 1990. He now has a school-record seven double-digit assist games this year.
• Johnson became the first player in school history to record three consecutive double-digit assist games. He had 10 assists at MTSU (11/17), 12 at Arizona State (11/20) and 12 vs. South Alabama (11/23).
• Johnson is also making his mark on the defensive end of the floor. A member of the C-USA All-Defensive team a year ago, Johnson leads the team with 37 steals and 32 charges drawn this year.
"Fields" of Dreams
• Sophomore guard Dexter Fields is enjoying the best shooting streak of his young career. The Orlando, Fla. native struck for back-to-back career-high scoring games with 19 points at UCF (1/29) and 24 points vs. Southern Miss (2/2).
• Over UAB's last four contests, Fields ranks second on the team with an average of 14.5 points while connecting on 17-of-29 (.586) from beyond the arc.
• Fields connected on eight threes in the loss to the Golden Eagles. That marked the second-most treys made in a contest by a Blazer in program history.
Making The Case For UAB
• With Wednesday's win at Marshall, the Blazers have won 17 of their 23 games this season and now have an RPI of No. 33 according to WarrenNolan.com and No. 34 on CBSsports.com. Below are a few reasons why the Blazers continue to make a strong case of earning an invite to the NCAA Tournament:
-UAB has a record of 6-5 against top-100 teams, which is the most wins over top 100 squads since earning six in the 2006 campaign, which was also the last time the Blazers made an NCAA Tournament appearance.
-UAB's strength of schedule rates anywhere between 60th to 65th in the country.
-UAB has seven true road victories this season (7-4), including a 4-1 road record in C-USA games.
-Of UAB's six remaining contests, two will come against teams rated in the top 40 RPI.
Winning/Losing Trends
• Through 23 games this season, UAB has developed some trends when it comes to winning/losing a contest. Below are just a few of the trends to keep an eye on during a game. UAB is:
-12-0 when holding opponents to under 60 points.
-10-0 when leading at halftime.
-13-1 when holding opponents to below 45-percent shooting from the floor.
-10-1 when committing fewer turnovers than the opposition.
Saving The Best For Second Half
• The Blazers are proving to be a second-half team this season.
• That was no more evident than UAB's second-half performance in the win over VCU on Dec. 21. In that contest, the Blazers trailed by 12, 33-21, at the half and by as many as 19 in the second half only to pull out an incredible 68-65 win. UAB outscored the Rams, 47-32, over the final 20 minutes.
• Through 23 games, UAB is averaging 37.2 points in the second half and outscoring the competition by 5.9 points over the final 20 minutes (37.2- 31.3). In comparison, the Blazers are putting up just 30.3 points and have a 0.9 point advantage in the first half of games this season (30.3-29.4).
• UAB has been outscored by just five of its 23 opponents in the second half this season (at Middle Tennessee, at Arizona State, at Duke, at Tulsa and vs. Southern Miss).
