UAB MBB Beats Rice to Advance to Semifinal

Thursday, March 9

Frisco, Texas

8:30 p.m.

UAB

-248,146 CUSA

No. 6 Rice

-1815,812 CUSA

Rice

UAB

Photo by: Brantley Bargerhuff

UAB MBB Beats Rice to Advance to Semifinal

3/10/2023 1:52:00 AM | Men's Basketball

Box Score Postgame Press Conference

FRISCO, Texas – No. 3 seed UAB men's basketball (24-8, 14-6 C-USA) beat No. 6 seed Rice (18-15, 8-12 C-USA) in the Conference USA Tournament quarterfinal, 87-60. Jordan Walker led the way with 27 points while shooting 7-for-11 from three while KJ Buffen added 16 points and Trey Jemison picked up his ninth double-double of the season with 12 points and 10 boards.

The Blazers jumped ahead 12-5 to open the game with four different players getting on the board early. Rice was able to go on an 11-0 run over the next three minutes to take their first lead of the game.

UAB answered right back with a 16-2 run of its own to gain control of the contest as Walker became more involved with a pair of threes. Leading 32-30 late in the first half, the Blazers closed the period on an 8-0 run. Walker knocked down a trio of free throws before KJ Buffen hit his first triple of the night. The half ended emphatically for the Blazers when Eric Gaines was able to steal the ball, move up the court and throw a lob to Tony Toney for the alley oop slam, giving UAB a 40-30 advantage at the break.

Early in the first half, Jordan Walker scored 12 straight UAB points to extend the Blazers' lead and put the game out of reach. He scored 15 points in the second half on 4-for-6 shooting over only 10 minutes.

In the second half, the Blazers led by as many as 32 points. Four players finished in double figures while UAB won the turnover and rebounding battles.

NOTES

The Blazers have won their opening game at the Conference USA Tournament in six consecutive seasons.
UAB has won 11 of its last 12 games, including each of the last seven games.
Jordan Walker matched his three-point total from last season of 116, which is tied for third in UAB history for a single season.
His 606 points this season are tied for 10th in program history with Steve Mitchell.
Trey Jemison picked up his ninth double-double of the season with 12 points and 10 boards.
Jemison's 267 rebounds this season rank ninth in program history for a single season.
Eric Gaines finished with 10 points, six rebounds and six assists.
KJ Buffen added 16 points for his fifth double digit effort over the last six games.

UP NEXT
The Blazers will take on No. 2 seed North Texas on Friday at 2 p.m. CT at the Ford Center at The Star. The contest will air on CBS Sports Network.

TICKETS
Season tickets for the 2023-24 UAB men's basketball season are now available starting as low as $110. Season ticket packages will feature all home games during UAB's inaugural season in the American Athletic Conference and provide the most cost-effective way to attend games at Bartow Arena. Fans may renew season tickets, purchase new season tickets or request more information on season ticket options here. For more information about season ticket pricing, call the UAB Athletics Ticket Office at (205) 975-UAB1.

FOLLOW THE BLAZERS
For more information on the UAB men's basketball team, follow @UAB_MBB on Twitter and Instagram.