The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
UAB
Kent State
UAB Falls to Kent State
11/14/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Nov. 14, 2009
Final Stats | UAB-Kent State box score (PDF)
KENT, Ohio - Kent State's Mike McKee scored a game-high 19 points off the bench and Rodriquez Sherman added 17 points to lead the Golden Flashes to a 72-65 win over UAB in the second round of the Hispanic College Fund Classic on Saturday night.
The Blazers (1-1) were led by junior Elijah Millsap's 18 points, 16 of which came in the second half, while senior Howard Crawford collected 17 points and seven boards in the losing effort.
"We took too many quick shots," UAB head coach Mike Davis said. "We had a one-point lead in the second half and didn't execute when we needed to. This was a tough game against a good team. We have another tough game Sunday, so we have to prepare and get ready to play."
First half foul trouble kept Millsap, UAB's leading scorer, on the bench for all but eight minutes, as the junior finished the opening half with only two points. With the score tied at 22-22, the Golden Flashes used a 13-2 run to end the half and held a 35-24 lead at the break.
The Golden Flashes (2-0) extended their lead by 14, 41-27, at the 17:54 mark. With the Blazers trailing by 10, 49-39, with 12:28 remaining, UAB would outscore Kent State, 13-2, over the next 4:13 to claim a 52-51 lead with just under eight minutes left in the contest. Senior center Kenneth Cooper connected on an old fashioned three-point play to give UAB the lead, which marked the Blazers' first lead since a 2-0 advantage to start the game.
However, Kent would respond with an 8-0 spurt to take a 59-52 lead and never looked back.
Sophomore forward Cameron Moore collected five points and nine boards, helping the Blazers to a 35-29 advantage on the boards. UAB had a 32-16 edge in points in the paint and collected 14 offensive boards to help it to a 21-6 advantage on second-chance points.
UAB will close out the Classic on Sunday when it takes on crosstown foe Samford on Sunday at 2 p.m. ET (1 p.m. CT). It marks the fourth time the two teams have met on the hardwood and the first time since 1983. The contest can be heard on the UAB flagship station, WUHT 107.7 FM.
