Blazers Use Late Run to Put Away Louisiana in Paradise Jam

By Steve Irvine

BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA - November 26, 2024

Not a whole bunch went right for UAB in the Blazers time in the Paradise Jam. But, thanks to their final 11 minutes in the U.S. Virgin Islands, the Blazers will come home with a victory.

The Blazers used the late-game rally to turn an eight-point deficit into a 98-86 victory over Louisiana in Monday afternoon’s seventh-place game. The win salvaged a difficult tournament that began with losses to Longwood and Illinois State.

It appeared that UAB was headed toward its third consecutive defeat as Monday’s game approached the midway point of the second half. The Blazers had little success in slowing down Louisiana’s transition game and couldn’t keep the Ragin’ Cajuns from taking shots deep in the paint. Louisiana also had some timely 3-pointers, including one by Kyndall Davis that gave his team a 67-59 lead with 10:43 remaining.

The Blazers then flipped the script. Over the next eight minutes, UAB outscored Louisiana, 30-9, to build a double-digit advantage. The Blazers first lead in the second half came when Tyren Moore’s 3-pointer, after a nice extra pass from Ja’Borri McGhee, made it 75-73 with 6:48 left in the game. UAB quickly built the lead to eight points after dunks by Lendeborg and McGhee and a layup by Alejandro Vasquez. When Louisiana stopped the run with a 3-pointer, Vasquez countered on the next UAB possession with a 3-pointer of his own, once again coming after a McGhee assist. The Blazers cruised to the victory after that.

“I thought guys were active down the stretch, a real sense of urgency,” said UAB head coach Andy Kennedy, whose team improved to 4-4. “Just happy to, they say monkey on your back, I felt like we had a 10,000-pound gorilla, man. I mean, our guys were playing so tight, so uptight, doing uncharacteristic things, pointing fingers. So today was huge for us to exhale, get off this island with the win, regroup, and go home where we've got our last five non-league games, all in Bartow Arena.”

Vasquez had a big hand in the outcome with a game-high 25 points while adding four rebounds, a block and a steal. He was 8-of-19 from the field and made all seven free throws. He was just 2-of-9 on 3-pointers but both of his makes from long range came in the second half. On Saturday, in an 84-83 loss to Illinois State, Vasqez had 19 points, including three 3-pointers. Coming into the tournament, his only double-digit scoring game came when he had 10 points in the season opening loss to Vermont.

Moore and McGhee also stepped up with big plays in the second half. McGhee, who is becoming one of UAB’s more consistent players, had 11 points, five rebounds, seven assists, two steals and two turnovers. Moore, who had perhaps his most complete game in a UAB uniform, had 11 points, including going 3-of-4 on 3-pointers, two rebounds, four assists and three steals.

Lendeborg had 20 points and six rebounds. Christian Coleman had 16 points, 11 rebounds, an assist, a blocked shot and a steal. Both helped UAB outrebound Louisiana, 41-31 overall and 20-11 on the offensive end. UAB outscored Louisiana, 26-9, on second chance points.

UAB’s next game is next Sunday against former C-USA foe Middle Tennessee with tip-off scheduled for 3 p.m. The Blue Raiders are 5-2 after losing to Bradley in the Myrtle Beach Invitational championship game. UAB’s women’s basketball team will open the doubleheader with a game against another former C-USA foe, Southern Miss, with tip-off slated for 11 a.m.