The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
UAB
1-0
Arkansas-Pine Bluff
0-1
| Team | 1 | 2 | F |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arkansas-Pine Bluff | 21 | 45 | 66 |
| UAB | 44 | 42 | 86 |
Ehsan Earns First Career Victory; Blazers Overpower UAPB
11/11/2016 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Nov. 11, 2016
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Box Score (PDF) | Postgame Notes | Postgame Quotes
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- Finding game time minutes for UAB's Tyler Madison was difficult during his junior season. On Friday, though, the energetic Madison showed that he should have a firm spot in the rotation during his final season in a UAB uniform.
Madison, a 6-foot-4, 225-pound swingman, opened his final college season with 16 points and seven rebounds in 15 minutes to spark the Blazers to an 86-66 victory over Arkansas-Pine Bluff in Robert Ehsan's regular season head coaching debut at Bartow Arena.
Madison hit 5-of-6 shots from the field, 6-of-9 from the free throw line and added two assists and a steal. Four of his rebounds came on the offensive end.
"As a fan, you can see the energy, emotion and the physicality," Ehsan said when asked what Madison brings to this lineup. "(The physicality) is one thing this team lacked. Two years ago, when he played more of a role, we shot a whole lot more free throws. One of the reasons was Tyler played a lot. He's around the rim, he gets loose ball, he's physical. He can rebound. I mean, 16 and seven in 15 minutes, I didn't realize it was that good but I'm not surprised. He's been practicing well, he's a senior, he's worked incredibly hard and is in a very good spot in the rotation right now."
Nick Norton certainly had a big impact in his 11 minutes on the floor, dishing out five assist with one turnover, but he had plenty of company. The Blazers started quickly, scoring the game's first eight points while building a first half lead that stretched to as many as 27 points. A big part of the quick start was a UAB defense that held the Golden Lions to 17.6 shooting in the first half.
"I thought we came out with a lot of energy," Madison said. "We didn't sustain it throughout the full game, but Coach Ehsan was happy with the energy we came out with, now we've got to work on keeping it for a full game."
UAB led 44-21 at halftime and the Golden Lions never threatened in the second half as the Blazers ran away to the program's 26th consecutive win at Bartow Arena.
UAB finished with five players in double figure scoring with Madison leading the way. Other double figure scorers for the Blazers were junior forward Chris Cokley (14 points, eight rebounds, two assists, two blocked shots), senior guard Hakeem Baxter (15 points, four rebounds), senior guard Dirk Williams (13 points) and freshman guard Javien Williams (11 points, four assists). Junior forward William Lee had six of the Blazers' nine blocked shots and he also added six points and six rebounds.
"It was a good first win for our team," Ehsan said. "We accomplished what we wanted, but we have got to work on some things. We got to play a lot of guys, which is good. We really did a good job defensively in the first half and set the tone with our energy and ball pressure. I'm proud of the guys for the way they competed tonight."
UAB returns to the court Monday at 7 p.m. when the Blazers host Furman from Bartow Arena.
For more information on UAB men's basketball, follow the Blazers on Twitter (@UAB_MBB), Instagram (@blazerhoops) and Snapchat (@UAB_MBB).
