Jan. 24, 2003

Men's Basketball Contact: Aaron Jordan

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. ----- The UAB men's basketball team will return to action after a week off when they travel to New Orleans to face Conference USA National Division rival Tulane on Saturday, Jan. 25, at 2 p.m. The Blazers enter the game in sole possession of first place in the National Division with a 3-1 record and are 11-4 overall. The Green Wave are 7-10 on the season and 0-4 in C-USA.

Tulane enters Saturday's contest on a four-game losing streak and have dropped five of their last seven. Most recently, Tulane dropped a 93-84 decision at TCU on Wednesday. Waitari Marsh led the team with 20 points on the night. For the season Marsh is leading the team with 15.2 ppg. Brandon Brown (14.5), Brandon Spann (11.9) and Nick Sinville (10.4) also average double digits in scoring. Brown also leads the team in rebounds per game (7.2) and ranks second on team in assists (3.0) and steals (1.4) per contest.

Last time out, Morris Finley scored 19 points and Demario Eddins added 15 to lead UAB to an 84-71 victory over Southern Mississippi last Saturday night. Finley was held to four points in the first half, but the Blazers still took a 40-32 lead at halftime. Eddins scored all but two of his points in the first half, staking UAB to its early advantage. UAB built its lead to 20 points when Finley heated up in the second half. Cedric Davis was the third UAB player to score in double-digits, scoring 10 points. The Golden Eagles outrebounded UAB 38-30, but the Blazers used a pressing defense to force 24 Southern Miss turnovers and collected 14 steals.

Saturday's game marks the 18th time the Blazers and Green Wave have met. The two teams split last year, with each team winning on their home floors. The Blazers took an 80-63 decision in Bartow Arena, then Tulane returned the favor, taking an 83-72 decision in Fogleman Arena. However, the Blazers have won three of the last four meetings heading into the game.

The game can be heard live on 1070 WAPI-AM, with the pregame show beginning at 1:30 p.m. Gary Sanders will handle play-by-play, Matt Coulter will be the color analyst and Jon Gentile will produce the broadcast. The postgame show will follow immediately after the game. The game can also be heard by accessing the UAB athletic website (www.uabsports.com).