The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics

Blazers Clash With Panthers in Saturday Matinee
1/4/2019 2:10:00 PM | Women's Basketball
MIAMI – The (RV) UAB women's basketball team wraps up the opening weekend of Conference USA play when it faces FIU on Saturday in Miami. Tipoff between the Blazers and Panthers is set for 1 p.m. CST.
UAB (13-1, 1-0 C-USA) is coming off of an 89-64 victory at Florida Atlantic on Thursday. Katelynn Thomas led a quartet Blazers in double figures as the Birmingham native finished with a career high 23 points. The junior ranks 15th nationally in field goal percentage, connecting on 60.2 percent (77-of-128) of her attempts from the field.
UAB enters Saturday's contest leading the league in scoring (79.6) and scoring defense (56.9), while boasting the 13th best scoring margin in the nation (+22.7). The Blazers have four players in the top-15 in the conference in points per game headlined by Deanna Kuzmanic's 14.4 points per game. Additionally, Kuzmanic ranks second in C-USA in assists (63) and third in assists per game (4.5).
A large reason for the offensive success is because of UAB's ability to share the basketball. The Blazers rank 11th in the NCAA in assists (260) and 16th in assists per game (18.6), while holding the third highest assist-to-turnover ratio (1.7). Point guard Miyah Barnes holds the sixth best assist-to-turnover ratio in the country (3.4), ranks 12th in assists (79) and leads the league in assists per game (5.6).
A staple of the Blazers is their ability to shoot the 3-point shot as they rank ninth nationally in 3-point field goals made (135), 17th in 3-point field goals per game (9.6) and 31st in 3-point field goal percentage (37.0). Junior Rachael Childress ranks sixth in the country in 3-point field goals made (48), 12th in 3-point field goals per game (3.4), and the Blazers have four players in top-15 in the league in 3-point field goal percentage.
FIU (3-11, 0-1 C-USA) is in the midst of a three-game losing skid, including its C-USA opener on Thursday night against Middle Tennessee. The Panthers ranks 12th in the league in total offense (60.3), while giving up the 11th most points per game (68.2).
TaMiracle Taylor leads the Panther's offense, averaging 11.2 points per game. The sophomore has found the double figure scoring column in her previous two games and in eight of the last 10 contests.
Saturday marks the 13th all-time meeting between UAB and FIU with the Blazers leading the series 9-3. UAB is on four game winning streak over FIU, including taking last season's meeting 71-61 in Miami.
Women's basketball season tickets are on sale by purchasing the 2018-19 Gold Card for $65. The Gold Card includes access to home baseball and softball games in addition to all nine of women's basketball's remaining home contests. Contact the UAB Ticket Office, (205) 975-UAB1, for more details.
For more information on the UAB women's basketball team, follow the Blazers on Twitter (@UAB_WBB), on Instagram (UAB_WBBall) or like them on Facebook (Facebook.com/UABWBB).
UAB (13-1, 1-0 C-USA) is coming off of an 89-64 victory at Florida Atlantic on Thursday. Katelynn Thomas led a quartet Blazers in double figures as the Birmingham native finished with a career high 23 points. The junior ranks 15th nationally in field goal percentage, connecting on 60.2 percent (77-of-128) of her attempts from the field.
UAB enters Saturday's contest leading the league in scoring (79.6) and scoring defense (56.9), while boasting the 13th best scoring margin in the nation (+22.7). The Blazers have four players in the top-15 in the conference in points per game headlined by Deanna Kuzmanic's 14.4 points per game. Additionally, Kuzmanic ranks second in C-USA in assists (63) and third in assists per game (4.5).
A large reason for the offensive success is because of UAB's ability to share the basketball. The Blazers rank 11th in the NCAA in assists (260) and 16th in assists per game (18.6), while holding the third highest assist-to-turnover ratio (1.7). Point guard Miyah Barnes holds the sixth best assist-to-turnover ratio in the country (3.4), ranks 12th in assists (79) and leads the league in assists per game (5.6).
A staple of the Blazers is their ability to shoot the 3-point shot as they rank ninth nationally in 3-point field goals made (135), 17th in 3-point field goals per game (9.6) and 31st in 3-point field goal percentage (37.0). Junior Rachael Childress ranks sixth in the country in 3-point field goals made (48), 12th in 3-point field goals per game (3.4), and the Blazers have four players in top-15 in the league in 3-point field goal percentage.
FIU (3-11, 0-1 C-USA) is in the midst of a three-game losing skid, including its C-USA opener on Thursday night against Middle Tennessee. The Panthers ranks 12th in the league in total offense (60.3), while giving up the 11th most points per game (68.2).
TaMiracle Taylor leads the Panther's offense, averaging 11.2 points per game. The sophomore has found the double figure scoring column in her previous two games and in eight of the last 10 contests.
Saturday marks the 13th all-time meeting between UAB and FIU with the Blazers leading the series 9-3. UAB is on four game winning streak over FIU, including taking last season's meeting 71-61 in Miami.
Women's basketball season tickets are on sale by purchasing the 2018-19 Gold Card for $65. The Gold Card includes access to home baseball and softball games in addition to all nine of women's basketball's remaining home contests. Contact the UAB Ticket Office, (205) 975-UAB1, for more details.
For more information on the UAB women's basketball team, follow the Blazers on Twitter (@UAB_WBB), on Instagram (UAB_WBBall) or like them on Facebook (Facebook.com/UABWBB).
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