The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
Hurtado, Benjamin Win High Awards at Green & Golden Globes
4/26/2020 10:53:00 AM | Men's Basketball
BIRMINGHAM – Led by the UAB Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC), the UAB Department of Athletics held the fourth annual Green & Golden Globes Awards on Thursday night.
Done virtually through the @uabsaac Twitter and Instagram accounts, the Green & Golden Globes honored UAB's athletic achievements for the spring 2019, fall 2019 and winter 2020 seasons. Winners were voted on by the student-athletes, coaches and UAB administrators.
Two members of the UAB men's basketball team received high awards.
Luis Hurtado received the Flame on Courage Award, which is presented to student-athletes who overcame adversity by demonstrating courage and perseverance, while keeping positive attitude while being a great teammate during his or her personal hardship.
In February 2019, Hurtado began to experience back and abdominal pain. He went for testing which ultimately led to a diagnosis of testicular cancer. He spent the months ahead undergoing chemotherapy treatments. In June 2019, he got to ring the ceremonial bell symbolizing his final treatment. Hurtado never lost hope and continued to be courageous in his recovery. He fought his way back to the court and on November 20, 2019, his first game back, he drained a 3-pointer on his first shot. This is one of the many reasons Luis has been an inspiration to many people.
"This award means a lot to me," said Hurtado. "This tells you that anything is possible. No matter what you are going through, you just have to push forward, be positive and word hard."
Jalen Benjamin received the Male Igniter Award. This honor goes to a male student-athlete who came to UAB as transfer/freshman and made an immediate and profound impact on the competitive success of his team.
Benjamin, who was named to the 2020 Conference USA All-Freshman team, finished the regular season averaging 12.1 points per game while making a team-best 52 3-pointers. A two-time Rookie of the Week, Benjamin registered 18 double-figure scoring games this past season. His career-high was a 29 point effort against Southern Miss when he was 9-of-18 from the field, including six 3-pointers. He also added six 3-pointers in the Blazers' home victory against Middle Tennessee. The nation got to see a glimpse of UAB's future when the Blazers played at nationally ranked Kentucky on Nov. 29, 2019. In front of 20,401 people, the freshman calmly poured in 19 points on 7-of-11 shooting, including 4-of-5 3-pointers.
"I want to thank UAB SAAC and the athletic department for the Igniter Award," said Benjamin. "I appreciate the support of everybody in Blazer Nation."
Additionally, Tavin Lovan was named the team's Most Valuable Blazer and Tyreek Scott-Grayson the men's basketball Teammate of the Year.
Lovan started all 32 contests for the Blazers, scoring in double figures in 24 games – four of those recording 20-plus points. He led the team in scoring (13.2 ppg), assists (68), steals (41) and minutes (29.3 per game). He scored a career-high 25 points with 10 field goals at home against Middle Tennessee and followed that with a 22 point effort three days later in Murfreesboro. He closed out the regular season with 23 points against Old Dominion.
Scott-Grayson finished the season averaging 10 points per contest. He was one of only 10 players in Conference USA to record a 30-plus point game this season when he dropped a career-high 30 points with 12 field goals against Rice. He finished the season with 18 double-figure scoring games
2020-21 UAB men's basketball season tickets are on sale now. Current basketball season ticket holders can click here to renew their seats for the upcoming season. Fans interested in purchasing new season tickets can do so starting as low as $100 with the Blaze's Corner season ticket.
For questions regarding your 2020-21 UAB Basketball season ticket order, email the UAB Athletics Ticket Sales and Service team at tickets@uab.edu or call (205) 975-UAB1. Ticket representatives are working remotely at this time but can be contacted during normal business hours of 9:00 AM through 5:00 PM. Fans can also request more information on ticket options for the upcoming season here.
For more information on the UAB men's basketball program, follow @UAB_MBB on Twitter and Instagram. Also be sure to follow @CoachAK13 on Twitter.
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