UAB Blazers
Record: 19-15, 12-6 C-USA
Head coach: Jerod Haase (3rd season)
Season summary: UAB, a team mostly consisting of underclassmen, has earned its first NCAA appearance since 2011. Led by junior guard Robert Brown, who delivered a game-high 22 points, the Blazers captured their first Conference USA tournament championship March 14, downing Middle Tennessee 73-60.
The Blazers, averaging 68.9 points per contest but allowing 67.7, failed to defeat any of the four ranked teams they battled this season, making first NCAA game, against No. 3 seed Iowa State in Louisville, Ky., Thursday, look like an almost insuperable challenge.
How they make a run: Although Brown transferred from Virginia Tech during the 2012-2013 season, he couldn’t play last year due to NCAA transfer rules. But the 6-foot-5 guard’s averaging 13.1 points and 3.7 rebounds per contest and the squad will need a big performance from its star guard to knock off the Cyclones.
How they falter: If Brown doesn’t put up decent scoring numbers, Georges Niang and Iowa State will run away with the game, as no other Blazer is averaging double figures. And even when the Brown native delivered a career-high 27 points against Illinois State Dec. 7, the inexperience of the team was a determining factor in its 78-74 loss.
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