The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
UAB Opens Rainbow Classic Against ACC's Clemson
12/20/2004 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Dec. 20, 2004
HONOLULU, Hawaii - As UAB's football team prepares for Friday's Sheraton Hawai'i Bowl, the Blazer men's basketball squad opens play in another event in Honolulu sponsored by a hotel chain. Mike Anderson's club (5-2) opens the 41st Annual Outrigger Hotels Rainbow Classic at 5 p.m. HT/9 p.m. CT on Tuesday against Clemson. The winner advances to Wednesday's winner's bracket game against the winner of the late Tuesday opening round game between Southern Cal and Indiana State at 5 p.m. HT/9 p.m. CT. The loser falls into consolation bracket play against the USC-ISU loser at 1:30 p.m. HT/5:30 p.m. CT on Wednesday.
UAB hopes to rebound from last Friday night's 96-81 road loss at Richmond. Clemson is 7-1 on the season with wins over South Carolina and Ohio State, among others. The Tigers' only loss was a 79-70 decision at Boston College on Nov. 26.
"They are yet another very good basketball team we will have to play very well in order to beat," Anderson said. "They are very similar to us in that they force a lot of turnovers and have very athletic players. I think that will make it a fun and exciting game. They also have a deep bench, so I feel like whichever team gets the most out of their bench is going to probably be the winner of this one. It's going to be a good test for our team."
Demario Eddins had the first UAB double-double of the season with 19 points and 10 rebounds against Richmond, but the Blazers couldn't shake some hot second-half shooting from the Spiders, who remained unbeaten at home on the year.
"We'll see how our team responds to the (Richmond) loss," Anderson admitted. "We bounced back from the Oklahoma State game well (with a win over Belmont), so I hope that happens again. The biggest thing we have failed to do in our two losses is be consistent from one half to another. We've had a drop off in the second half. Hopefully, we've corrected that. You have to put two strong halves together in order to play the brand of basketball we're accustomed to playing."
Donell Taylor continues to lead the Blazer offense, averaging 15.9 points per game. Eddins (13.0 ppg.) and Ronell Taylor (11.0 ppg.) also average double-figures. The match up against Clemson pits two of the most prolific thieving teams in the NCAA against one another. In the latest NCAA statistics, Clemson ranks first in Division I with 13.5 steals per game while UAB is third at 13.3.
The Blazers also have some history on their side against the Tigers. UAB won the only other meeting between the two, a 65-64 victory in the 1993 NIT in Bartow Arena. The Blazers are also Hawai'i veterans as a program, appearing on the islands 11 times in the school's 26-year athletic history. UAB is 16-6 all-time in Hawai'i and took third place in the 1983 Rainbow Classic, beating Pacific, losing to SMU, then beating Tennessee in the consolation game.
UAB Men's Basketball Game Notes in PDF Format
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