The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
UAB
USF
UAB Easily Handles South Florida, 86-47
1/20/2004 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Jan 20, 2004
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - Morris Finley scored 17 points and Demario Eddins added 13 to lead UAB to a 86-47 rout of South Florida.
Eddins, making his first start in three weeks, sparked an 18-0 first-half run that put UAB (10-5, 3-1 Conference USA) in charge.
Donell Taylor came off the bench to score 11 points and made two fast-break layups in UAB's early spurt. UAB used sharp ball handling and passing to get good shots.
The Blazers finished with 26 assists and a season-low six turnovers while shooting 49 percent from the field.
"The fact that we got 26 assists is great," UAB head coach Mike Anderson said. "We played with a lot of energy and I was pleased with our effort. Our bench especially played well. I thought USF never quit and that is a real tribute to coach (Robert) McCullum."
The Blazers' bench outscored USF's bench, 41-4, on the evening. UAB also improved to 5-0 when outrebounding a team this season, with 39 boards on the night compared to 37 for the Bulls.
Bradley Moseley scored 18 points to lead South Florida (6-8, 0-3). The Bulls got 14 points and nine rebounds from Terrence Leather.
Eddins hit a layup and completed a 3-pointer to stake UAB to an early 8-6 lead.
An inside basket by Gabe Kennedy started the 18-0 run that put the Blazers on top 26-6. Derrick Broom hit a pair of 3-pointers during the run.
UAB built a 24 point lead in the first half, but South Florida went on a 13-0 run driven by Sam Barber's back-to-back 3-pointers.
The Bulls cut the lead to 36-24 at halftime, but UAB started the second half with an 11-2 run to blow the game open.
Finley scored 14 points in the second half, hitting four 3-pointers to seal the victory. In the second half alone, UAB shot a blistering 58.8 percent (20-of-34) from the floor and 50 percent (7-of-14) from three-point range.
The Blazers will next travel to Charlotte, N.C. for a Conference USA showdown with the 49ers of Charlotte on Saturday, January 24, at 2 p.m. CST.
