UAB’s Guard Rotation Key As Blazers Travel To Take On Rice
Photo courtesy of UAB Athletics
By Steve Irvine
BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA - February 19, 2025
How the game is going generally dictates the amount of playing time that UAB head coach Andy Kennedy gives to the point guard combo of Ja’Borri McGhee and Tyron Moore. The last two games are a good indication of how it works.
Largely because of his shooting, Moore got the bulk of the minutes during the Blazers loss at ECU on Feb. 11. He played 25 minutes and 12 of his 16 points came on 3-pointers. McGhee failed to score in 14 minutes on the floor in the game. Five days later, McGhee was perhaps the most effective UAB player on the court with 20 points, three assists and two steals while playing 32 minutes in the Bartow Classic victory over South Florida. Moore played just eight minutes in that game, hitting 1 of 2 3-point attempts.
There are times when they are on the floor together, but those two games are a clear snapshot of how the minutes will be split up between the two.
“We need Tyron's shot making and we need Ja’Borri’s defensive presence,” Kennedy said a few days before the win over USF. “So you try to see what's happening, really, with the other players. You know, a lot of it depends on how Butta (Johnson) and Tony (Toney) and AJ (Vasquez) are playing, not so much the front line. The front line is the front line, but if we're getting perimeter shooting from other components and we're really,really having a hard time keeping the ball in front of us, then you make sure to see Ja’Borri, assuming Ja’Borri’s making good decisions. I think a lot of it has to do with decision making as well. Who do you trust with the ball? Typically, they split those 40 minutes and it'll deviate really based on how they're playing and how they influence our team’s play.”
Both have played in 25 games with McGhee starting in each one and Moore getting three starts alongside McGhee. McGhee averages 9.8 points, 2.5 assists and 2.3 rebounds in 24.2 minutes per game. Moore averages 7 points and 2 assists in 18.3 minutes per game and has a team-best 41 3-pointers. McGhee had a season-high 25 points in a win over Auburn-Montgomery while Moore’s season high in points (22) and 3-pointers (six) came against Arkansas State.
UAB needs consistent play from both as they maneuver through the final part of the regular season schedule, beginning with Wednesday’s American Athletic Conference game at Rice, which tips off at 7 p.m. at Tudor Fieldhouse. The Blazers (16-9 overall, 9-3 AAC) are in a second place tie with North Texas in AAC play with six games left in the regular season. Memphis leads the conference with an 11-2 record.
Rice (12-14 overall, 3-10 AAC) have lost eight of the past nine games but the lone win was a 73-60 win on the road against an ECU team that beat UAB. The Owls are 6-6 at home this season and have close home losses to Memphis (86-83), North Texas (67-61), FAU (75-73) and Temple (73-70). Rice is 12th in the conference in scoring offense (70.81 ppg), 11th in field goal percentage offense (42.3 percent) and third in scoring defense (69.77 ppg) and field goal percentage defense (41.7 percent).
Trae Broadnax, a 6-foot-4 grad student, leads the Owls with 12.9 points 5.5 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game. Caden Powell, a 6-foot-10 post player, averages 9.9 points and 7.1 rebounds per game and Denver Anglin (54 3-pointers) and Alem Huseinovic (53 3-pointers) are dangerous outside threats.