The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
UAB
Memphis
Memphis Holds Off UAB, 62-58
2/16/2011 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Feb. 16, 2011
Final Stats |
AP Photo Gallery 
MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) - Will Barton scored 17 points, Joe Jackson added 12 and Memphis earned its 11th straight win over UAB with a 62-58 victory on Wednesday night.
Charles Carmouche finished with 10 for the Tigers (20-6, 8-3 Conference USA), who held on down the stretch despite hitting only 4 of 7 free throws in the final 43.9 seconds.
Ovie Soko led the Blazers (18-7, 8-4) with 18 points on 7-of-13 shooting. Aaron Johnson and Anthony Criswell had 12 points apiece. Criswell's point total was a career-high.
Johnson, who is second in the nation in assists at 7.5 per game, had 10 assists in the game.
UAB has not won a game in the series since March 2, 2006, and has not won in Memphis in 12 years.
The Blazers were playing their second game without junior forward Cameron Moore, the team's leading rebounder and second-leading scorer, who suffered a hand injury in practice last Friday.
The loss didn't show as UAB outrebounded Memphis 37-29.
The teams stayed close throughout the game, with neither team going up by more than seven points. There were 14 lead changes and five ties.
Memphis carried a 28-24 advantage into the break when Barton's 3-pointer from the corner rattled around before dropping through with 1 second left in the half.
Barton led Tiger scorers with 10 points, while Criswell had six points for the Blazers. Johnson had five of UAB's six assists at the break.
Neither team shot particularly well in the half, UAB hitting a mere 38 percent (9 of 24), while Memphis was not much better at 44 percent (11 of 25).
Memphis was leading 23-18 after Joe Jackson's layup with 6:16 left in the half, but UAB hit a pair of 3-pointers to retake the lead.
Memphis could have extended the lead before the half, but muffed several shots at the rim. D.J. Stephens mishandled a breakaway as he was headed for a dunk, then the Tigers missed a trio of shots inside.
UAB came out with more intensity after the break, connecting from beyond the arc on three of its first four shots. That was part of a 16-2 rally, capped by Soko's inside basket for a 40-33 lead.
Memphis responded with a 16-4 run to erase that advantage.
UAB would get within one possession on a couple of occasions in the final minutes, but Memphis never relinquished the lead.
