The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
UAB
Samford
UAB Women's Basketball Falls To Samford, 70-41
12/6/2014 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Final Stats | Box Score 
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The UAB women's basketball team suffered its first loss to cross-town rival Samford, 70-41, on Saturday afternoon at the Pete Hanna Center.
"I am really disappointed in our team today," head coach Randy Norton said. "You can't win games when you shoot 27 percent from the field. The biggest thing with our team is we are going to have to find a way to score the basketball. I thought our defense was pretty solid in the first half, but we had too many breakdowns in the second half. We just have to go back to work next week."
UAB (4-3) and Samford (5-3) played a tight first half that saw four ties and five lead changes, but the Bulldogs had a big second half shooting 46 percent from the field and 80 percent from 3-point range.
The Blazers finished 27 percent from the field and 30 percent behind the arc. UAB's bench outscored Samford's, 12-10, as all 13 players eligible to play saw action on the afternoon.
Senior Miranda Burroughs led the team with eight points, finishing 3-of-4 from the field and 2-of-3 behind the arc. Sophomore Janeka Williams and senior Chelsee Black each added seven points.
Defensively, senior Janae Smith led the Blazers with seven rebounds and added four blocks. Junior Bianca Dufelmeier brought down five boards off the bench.
Williams opened the game with a 3-pointer and a three by Black put UAB in front 6-4 early in the game. Six different players scored UAB's first six baskets of the game as the teams traded the lead back and forth for much of the first half.
A jumper by Dufelmeier gave the Blazers a three point lead, 19-16, with 6:22 to play before Samford hit four-straight 3-pointers for a 12-2 run that gave the Bulldogs a 28-21 lead. UAB took advantage of several fouls, closing out the half 4-for-4 from the free throw line to trail, 30-25, at halftime.
In the second half, Samford extended its lead to 41-29 with 13:45 remaining. The Blazers cut it back to 10 down, 46-36, after two free throws from freshman T'erra Lewis. However, UAB would hit a scoring drought over the next seven minutes, scoring just one point from the free throw line to the Bulldogs' 17.
Junior Lauren McGraw hit two free throws and made a layup in the final two minutes for the Blazers to make it 67-41. Samford's Hannah Nichols, who led all players with 19 points, hit her third 3-pointer of the game as the Bulldogs took the win, 70-41.
UAB will have a week off before it travels to Tucson, Ariz. to take on the Arizona Wildcats on Sunday, Dec. 14 at 12 p.m. MST.
For the latest news on Blazer sports, follow the UAB Athletics Twitter account: @UABathletics. For women's basketball news, follow @UAB_WBB.
