The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
UAB
SMU
UAB Races Past SMU, 67-53
1/19/2011 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Jan. 19, 2011
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) - Jamarr Sanders scored 22 points to lead UAB over SMU 67-53 on Wednesday night.
"I thought we played well," UAB head coach Mike Davis said. "We only had one day of preparation for these guys. They are a very physical team to play against because of the style of game they play. Overall though, I am pleased with our performance tonight."
Sanders was 4 of 10 from 3-point range as the Blazers made 8 of 24 (33.3 percent) for their second win in a row. He has now reached at least 20 points in six of UAB's last seven contests.
Cameron Moore added a double-double for UAB (13-4, 3-1 Conference USA) with 12 points and 13 rebounds. Aaron Johnson chipped in 14 points and Ovie Soko added 12 points for the Blazers.
"Jamarr (Sanders) shot the ball well," Davis said. "Ovie (Soko) was back to being Ovie, and we need him to be a really good basketball player for us to be a really good basketball team. He hasn't played well lately, but tonight was a good start for him."
UAB made 7 of 16 from behind the arc in the first half (43.8 percent) to lead 34-25 at halftime. The Blazers then shot 54.5 percent from the field in the second half (12 of 22), while holding the Mustangs to 10-of-27 shooting (37 percent), including 1 of 7 form 3-point range (14.3 percent) in the final 20 minutes.
Papa Dia had a double-double for SMU (10-8, 1-3) with 16 points and 10 rebounds. Rodney Clinkscales also had 16 points for the Mustangs.
The Blazers' defense held Robert Nyakundi, who entered the contest as the conference's top three-point shooter, to six points on 3 of 8 shooting from the floor and 0 of 3 from beyond the arc.
"To me, you could make a case that UAB is the best team in the league," SMU head coach Matt Doherty said. "To win on the road, you have to be sharper, and we weren't that sharp. But they're a very good team. (Jamarr) Sanders is an unbelievable guard, and when you put he and Aaron Johnson in the backcourt together, that may be the best backcourt that we'll see all year."
UAB will next be in action when it hosts Memphis on Saturday night at 6 p.m. It will be televised nationally by ESPN 2. Tickets are $27 for lower level reserved seats and $22 for upper level reserved seats. They can be purchased online at UABSports.com or by calling 205-975-UAB1 (8221).
The game, sponsored by UAB Medicine, recognizes former UAB Men's Basketball Coach and Athletics Director Gene Bartow for his decades of commitment to UAB and intercollegiate sports. It also is designed to raise awareness of the importance of supporting cancer research and patient programs at UAB. Bartow, who retired from collegiate coaching in 1996, is undergoing treatment at the UAB Comprehensive Cancer Center for stomach cancer. He will attend the game.
UAB Athletics will donate $2 for every ticket sold (excluding season tickets) to the Coach Gene Bartow Fund for Cancer Research. Bartow has been battling cancer since April 2009, and the fund was established in his honor at the first Bartow Classic in December 2009.
