The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
UAB
Nicholls State
UAB Holds Off Nicholls State, 82-70
12/17/2002 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Dec 17, 2002
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) - Morris Finley scored 26 points, 19 in the second half, as UAB broke open a tight game and defeated Nicholls State 82-70 here Tuesday night. The game marked the Blazers' first game since playing Richmond on December 4 - 13 days ago.
"We are still trying to become a better basketball team," UAB head coach Mike Anderson said. "Nicholls State is a different style team and I thought they played hard. We are coming off a 13-day layoff and we were out of sync in the first half."
Gabe Kennedy scored a career-high 17 points for UAB (4-2). Nicholls State (2-4) was led by Markeith Brown with 19 points and Earnest Porter with 16.
The Colonels played UAB tight for a half, shooting 50-percent from the floor and outrebounding the Blazers 22-15. UAB struggled to a 35-34 halftime lead, and Nicholls State held five 1-point leads in the first half. There were six ties and 10 lead changes in the first half alone.
But UAB turned up its defensive pressue in the second half, taking control with a 14-0 run in the first three minutes of the half. During that span, UAB forced four turnovers and collected three steals. The Blazers went on to lead by as many as 24 points.
"I told the guys at halftime that the first five minutes of the second half would set the tone for the rest of the game. I think our guys were able to find their rythm and that got the game going. The most disappointing thing about this game was that we didn't finish it like we should have."
UAB forced 26 turnovers, with Eric Bush having a career-high seven steals, four points and six assists without a turnover. Jeffrey Collins added a career-high 15 points and six rebounds.
The Blazers will return to action on Thursday, December 19, when they play host to Texas A&M Corpus-Christi at 7 p.m.
