The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
The Importance of UAB’s 5-Seed for C-USA Bonus Play
2/19/2019 2:04:00 PM | Men's Basketball
BIRMINGHAM - Entering last week's road trip tied for sixth place in the league standings before Conference USA Bonus Play started, the UAB men's basketball team needed two wins and help from others to make the top five for the upcoming experimental pod play.
Well, that's exactly what happened. The Blazers notched two massive victories at Marshall (77-68) and WKU (68-60), while North Texas lost at Florida Atlantic and FIU, moving UAB ahead of the Mean Green and Thundering Herd for entry into pod one.
UAB is now the 5-seed in pod one and will play the four other top teams in the league (No. 1 Old Dominion, No. 2 WKU, No. 3 Southern Miss and No. 4 UTSA) to conclude the regular season.
The reason it was so important for UAB to be in the top five for Bonus Play is because the Blazers can increase their seed for the Conference USA Tournament, but will be no lower than a 5-seed once tournament play starts on March 13 in Frisco. The top four teams in the league earn a first-round bye in the tournament.
Bonus Play was voted on by C-USA coaches and Athletic Directors and is in the first year of its existence. How it works: All league schools had their first 14 games scheduled as usual, and teams were then broken into pods 1-5, 6-10 and 11-14 for the four remaining games of the regular season.
The idea behind it is to have the top teams in the league play each other down the stretch to increase their strength of schedule and make their resume more attractive for an at-large bid into the NCAA Tournament.
For the Blazers, it not only gives them an opportunity to increase their seed for the Conference USA Tournament, but they also get to compete for the regular season crown with the other pod one teams.
These past two road games for UAB had a sense of March Madness in February. Pod play has created an urgency for the Blazers, and that will continue by playing the top teams in the league before the tournament starts.
As the 5-seed, UAB gets to host the top two seeds in Old Dominion and WKU. The Blazers and Hilltoppers square off at Bartow Arena on Thursday, Feb. 28 at 6:30 p.m., followed by hosting ODU on Senior Day, March 9, at 2 p.m.
The Blazers are on the road starting this weekend at 3-seed Southern Miss (Feb. 23), followed by at UTSA on March 3.
The WKU game will be Employee Appreciation Night at Bartow Arena and a discounted $10 ticket is available by clicking here and using the promo code EMPLOYEE. Old Dominion will offer a special ticket to season ticket holders and past group buyers with the promo code THANKYOU. For season ticket holders, these two Bonus Play games are including in the season ticket package. Single games tickets are available by clicking here.
Well, that's exactly what happened. The Blazers notched two massive victories at Marshall (77-68) and WKU (68-60), while North Texas lost at Florida Atlantic and FIU, moving UAB ahead of the Mean Green and Thundering Herd for entry into pod one.
UAB is now the 5-seed in pod one and will play the four other top teams in the league (No. 1 Old Dominion, No. 2 WKU, No. 3 Southern Miss and No. 4 UTSA) to conclude the regular season.
The reason it was so important for UAB to be in the top five for Bonus Play is because the Blazers can increase their seed for the Conference USA Tournament, but will be no lower than a 5-seed once tournament play starts on March 13 in Frisco. The top four teams in the league earn a first-round bye in the tournament.
Bonus Play was voted on by C-USA coaches and Athletic Directors and is in the first year of its existence. How it works: All league schools had their first 14 games scheduled as usual, and teams were then broken into pods 1-5, 6-10 and 11-14 for the four remaining games of the regular season.
The idea behind it is to have the top teams in the league play each other down the stretch to increase their strength of schedule and make their resume more attractive for an at-large bid into the NCAA Tournament.
For the Blazers, it not only gives them an opportunity to increase their seed for the Conference USA Tournament, but they also get to compete for the regular season crown with the other pod one teams.
These past two road games for UAB had a sense of March Madness in February. Pod play has created an urgency for the Blazers, and that will continue by playing the top teams in the league before the tournament starts.
As the 5-seed, UAB gets to host the top two seeds in Old Dominion and WKU. The Blazers and Hilltoppers square off at Bartow Arena on Thursday, Feb. 28 at 6:30 p.m., followed by hosting ODU on Senior Day, March 9, at 2 p.m.
The Blazers are on the road starting this weekend at 3-seed Southern Miss (Feb. 23), followed by at UTSA on March 3.
The WKU game will be Employee Appreciation Night at Bartow Arena and a discounted $10 ticket is available by clicking here and using the promo code EMPLOYEE. Old Dominion will offer a special ticket to season ticket holders and past group buyers with the promo code THANKYOU. For season ticket holders, these two Bonus Play games are including in the season ticket package. Single games tickets are available by clicking here.
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