Jan. 19, 2007

Southern Miss Game Notes
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BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - For the first time in 10 days and just the seventh time in 19 games this season, the UAB men's basketball team will return to the friendly confines of Bartow Arena, where it will take on longtime rival Southern Miss on Saturday, Jan. 20, at 1 p.m. CT. The Blazers will be looking for their 20th consecutive home victory when they take on Southern Miss. The mark would tie a school record which was set during the 1980-81 and 1981-82 seasons. The streak is currently the eighth-longest in the nation.

It is the 25th time the two teams have met on the hardwood, with the Blazers holding a 16-8 advantage, including winning four straight in the series.

The radio broadcast can be heard on the Blazers ISP Sports Network, beginning with the pre-game show at 1:30 p.m. CT. Birmingham and Huntsville listeners can follow all the action on WYDE 101.1 FM. The broadcast can also be heard on WIQR 1410 AM in Montgomery/Prattville and 98.3 FM WTRB in Ashland/Talladega.

Scouting Southern Miss
Southern Miss enters Saturday afternoon's contest sporting an 11-5 overall record on the season, and are 1-2 in C-USA play. The Golden Eagles are coming off a 68-50 loss at UTEP last Wednesday night. The loss marked Southern Miss' second consecutive defeat, and third loss over its last four contests.

The Golden Eagles are led on the year by freshman guard Jeremy Wise, who leads the team with 15.5 points and 2.7 assists per game. He is the lone player to average double figure scoring. Sophomore guard Courtney Beasley is one of the top contributors to the team, and ranks second in scoring (9.0 ppg) and third rebounding (4.4 rpg). Junior forward/center Demar Dotson and junior center Gjio Bain are tied for the team lead in reboudning, both entering Saturday's game with an average of 5.1 boards a contest.

Head coach Larry Eustachy is in his third year at the helm of the Southern Miss basketball program. Eustachy has compiled a record of 32-43 (.427 while with the Golden Eagles, and a 292-188 (.608) overall record in 16 seasons as a head coach.

Scouting UAB
UAB will enter its contest against Southern Miss with an overall record of 10-8, and a 2-2 mark in league play. The Blazers opened league play with three of their first four contests on the road, losing two of them. Most recently, UAB dropped a 79-54 decision at Memphis last Tuesday night. Junior guard Paul Delaney III, a two-time recipient this season of the Conference USA Player of the Week, leads the Blazers in points (17.3) and assists (5.7) per game, while also ranking fourth on the team with 4.8 boards a contest.

Along with Delaney, senior guard Wen Mukubu and sophomore forward Lawrence Kinnard are also threats on offense. Mukubu averages 14.1 points per contest and a team-best 48.1 percent from beyond the arc. Kinnard ranks third on the team with 12.8 points per game, and also pulls down a team-leading 5.8 rebounds a game.

UAB head coach Mike Davis enters the game against the Golden Eagles with an overall record of 125-87 (.590) in his seventh season as a head coach, and is 10-8 (.556) in his first season at UAB.

A UAB Win Would:
• Improve UAB's record to 11-8 overall and 3-2 in Conference USA play.

• Mark the 20th consecutive home victory for the Blazers dating back to last season, a mark that would tie the school record for consecutive home wins set during the 1980-81 and 1981-82 seasons.

• Earn the Blazers their fifth consecutive win in the series.

• Mark the 126th win in coach Mike Davis' career (213 games).

Last Time Out
Robert Dozier had 15 points and eight rebounds to lead No. 17 Memphis to its sixth straight victory, 79-54 over UAB on Tuesday night. The Tigers used a 12-0 run midway through the first half to erase an early deficit and were never threatened in the second half. Jeremy Hunt added 14 points for Memphis, while Willie Kemp had 12 going 4-of-7 from 3-point range. Wen Mukubu led UAB with 18 points, including a four-point play midway through the second half. Lawrence Kinnard scored 13 points, while leading scorer Paul Delaney III finished with 12, 5.6 under his season average. The Blazers have now lost eight straight on the road against the Tigers, including a 57-46 decision in last season's C-USA tournament championship game. Memphis shot 53 percent from the field in the first half, including 5-of-12 from 3-point range. UAB, which was shooting 62 percent before Memphis' run, ended up hitting 44 percent after making only four of its final 14 shots before halftime. Memphis finished shooting 49 percent for the game, while UAB was at 44 percent. Memphis dominated the boards 42-22.

UAB-Southern Miss A Year Ago
The Blazers won both games they played against Southern Miss a year ago. UAB captured an 87-73 victory on Jan. 28, 2006 in Bartow Arena, and followed that performance with an 87-50 victory in Hattiesburg, Miss. on Feb. 18, 2006. Wen Mukubu averaged 10.5 points in the two contests for the Blazers, while Mo Gibbs collected 7.5 ppg in the two contests.

Chasing A Record
Not only are the Blazers 6-0 in Bartow Arena this season, but they are riding a 19-game home winning streak, which ranks as the eighth-best streak in the country among Division I schools. When UAB takes the court against Southern Miss on Saturday afternoon, it will be looking to tie a school record with their 20th consecutive home victory. The streak, which dates back to a loss to Western Kentucky on Nov. 29, 2005, is currently the second-longest in school history. The Blazers captured the school record of 20 consecutive home wins during the 1980-81 and 1981-82 seasons. Last year, UAB rolled up a 14-1 home record, which tied the second-best season in history. The 2003-04 club was also 14-1 at home en route to its Sweet 16 appearance.

UAB enjoys impressive success playing in the friendly confines of Bartow Arena. In its 18 seasons serving as the home of the Blazers, Bartow Arena has helped the men's basketball team to an overall record of 220 wins against just 47 losses for a winning percentage of .825.

Bench Struggles
One of the reasons the Blazers dropped a 79-54 decision at Memphis last Tuesday night was the play of their reserves. The UAB bench was outscored 38-4 in the loss, marking the 14th time in 18 games this season the Blazer reserves were outscored by their counterpart. It also marked the fifth straight time and the ninth time over the last 11 games the Blazers were outnumbered in bench points. However, when the UAB reserves one-up the opposition, it is usually a good thing, as the Blazers are a perfect 4-0 this season when their bench outscores the opponents.

Home vs. Road
UAB enters its game against Southern Miss sporting a perfect 6-0 record on its home floor, compared to a 3-6 overall record in true road games. Part of the reason for the disparity is the way the Blazers shoot the ball at home versus road contests. When playing in Bartow Arena, UAB is shooting 46.0 percent from the floor and 38.2 percent from behind the arc, while averaging an impressive 79.0 ppg. However, those numbers drop significantly in road contests. In the nine true road games this season, the Blazers are shooting only 40.5 percent from the floor and 33.9 percent from three-point range, while averaging almost 19 points less per game (60.6 ppg).

Mo Better At Home
Senior guard Maurice Gibbs may be happier to return home more than any other of his teammates when his team takes the floor against Southern Miss on Saturday afternoon. In the Blazers' six home contests, the Carbondale, Ill. native is averaging 9.7 points and 4.2 rebounds per game, while shooting 52.5 percent from the floor and 45.8 from beyond the arc this season. However, those numbers drop drastically in road contests. In UAB's nine true road games on the year, Gibbs' contributions are nearly cut in half, falling to 4.7 points and 2.2 rebounds a game, while shooting 38.2 percent from the floor and 40.0 percent from three-point range.

Kinnard Heating Up
Sophomore forward Lawrence Kinnard has been one of the better players for the Blazers over the last six contests. The Memphis, Tenn. native leads UAB in scoring and rebounding during that stretch, averaging 16.7 points and 5.8 rebounds per contest. He is also leading the team in field goal percentage (56.9 percent) and three-point field goal percentage (53.1 percent). In fact, Kinnard has been a force to reckon with during conference play. Kinnard is tied for second among C-USA players in points per game, averaging 18.0 during league play.

Assist Leader
Junior guard Paul Delaney III has made a smooth transition to point guard this year, despite having never played the position in college. Entering Saturday's game against Southern Mississippi, Delaney leads Conference USA with an average of 5.7 assists per game. With his five assists in the loss at Memphis last Tuesday, Delaney increased his season total to 102 helpers this season. Delaney reached the century mark in assists for the first time in his career. Furthermore, it marks the seventh consecutive season a Blazer has boasted more than 100 dimes in a season. The last time a UAB player did not get at least 100 assists in a campaign came during the 1999-2000 season, when LeAndrew Bass led the team with 90 helpers on the year.