Blazers' Comeback Falls Short At Chattanooga

Thursday, November 21

Chattanooga, Tenn.

6:00 PM

UAB

Chattanooga

Senior Karisma Chapman tallied her first double-double of the season on Thursday night.

Blazers' Comeback Falls Short At Chattanooga

11/21/2013 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball

Nov. 21, 2013

Box Score | Box Score

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. - The UAB women's basketball team fought back from a 17-point deficit to pull within four points, but couldn't get past Chattanooga as the Mocs came away with a 63-56 win on Thursday night.  

"I told the girls I was really proud that they didn't quit," said head coach Randy Norton. "When we were down 17 they could have rolled over, but they just kept playing and competing to cut that game to four and give ourselves an opportunity to win.

UAB (2-3) out-shot Chattanooga (3-1) on the night, hitting 40.7 percent from the floor to the Mocs' 36.2 percent. UAB also continued its dominance under the basket, scoring 36 of its 56 points in the paint.

Four different Blazers scored in double-figures, led by senior Karisma Chapman who had 15 points and added 10 rebounds for her first double-double of the season. Fellow senior Ashley Grimes had 12, sophomore Chelsee Black finished with 11 and sophomore Kayla Anderson tallied 10 points.

The Blazers came out of the half trailing 30-20, but pulled within seven after Grimes hit a layup and a three-pointer. The Mocs would counter with a 16-6 run of their own to extend their lead to 17 with 14:13 remaining in the game.

UAB did not give up, and climbed back into the game with a 10-2 run that was highlighted by six points from Anderson. Shortly after, Grimes rallied off five-straight points to make it 51-47 with 5:54 left in the second half. Chattanooga was able to answer with a couple of baskets to hold on to its lead.

A three-pointer by Black made it 59-54 with 17 seconds remaining in the game. The Blazers were forced to foul, sending Chattanooga to the line. The Mocs made their free throws and secured the win.

"I thought our second half was outstanding," remarked Norton. "We scored 36 points after only scoring 20 in the first half. I felt we were much more aggressive in the second half. We had 12 turnovers in the first half and only had four in the second."

UAB came out quickly in the first half, jumping out to a 4-0 lead off of layups from senior Ashley Grimes and sophomore Kayla Anderson. The Blazers then had a four-minute scoring drought that allowed Chattanooga to take a 5-4 lead.

Senior Karisma Chapman hit two big shots to give the Blazers the lead back and sophomore Khoria Newman added two layups that gave UAB a 14-12 lead. However, the Mocs would go on a 9-0 run that gave Chattanooga a 23-16 with 3:35 left in the half. Chattanooga's Chelsey Shumpert hit a three-pointer at the end of the half to give the Mocs the 30-20 lead at the break.

Chattanooga was led by Ka'Vonne Towns and Shumpert, who each finished with 12 points. Taylor Hall and Ashlen Dwart added 10 for the Mocs.

"The lesson we need to takeaway from this is that we need to play for 40 minutes," stated Norton. "Especially against a team like this, that is a storied program that competes in the NCAA tournament every year. There are lessons to be learned, but the biggest thing is that I am really proud of the way our kids kept fighting in the second half."

The Blazers will return home this Sunday, Nov. 24 to host cross-town rival Samford in the annual Red Mountain Rivalry game. It is set to tip off at 2 p.m. CT.

For the latest news on Blazer sports, follow the UAB Athletics Twitter account: @UABathletics. For women's basketball news, follow @UAB_WBB.