The Blazers (14-12, 7-8) defeated the UTSA Roadrunners (6-20, 3-12) 57-50 on Wednesday night in large part due to their defense and the performances of Emily Klaczek and Margaret Whitley.
Whitley and Klaczek both finished in double figures, providing huge boosts of momentum and confidence to the Blazers with their shots from deep.
Klaczek, who struggled to find her rhythm against Rice on Monday, started the scoring for the Blazers in this contest. She would have seven of UAB’s nine points in the first quarter.
While Klaczek was able to get in a groove early, the rest of the Blazers struggled on the offensive end. UAB relied on their defense to stay in the game, forcing turnovers and rebounding well.
UAB found themselves trailing 13-9 about midway through the second quarter when Margaret Whitley made a three to spark a 9-0 run for the Blazers. UAB would not trail again for the rest of the game.
While they never surrendered the lead, the Blazers struggled to pull away from a scrappy UTSA team led by leading scorer Elyssa Coleman. With just over three minutes left in the game, the Roadrunners tied the game at 48 with a layup by Jadyn Pimental.
Again, the stifling defense of the Blazers would prove too much for UTSA, as the Blazers would finish the game on a 9-2 run and hold the Roadrunners to just one of five shooting down the stretch.
Despite the win, the Blazers’ offensive woes continued. UTSA made it tough for the Blazers all game with a stifling defense, holding them to just 31 percent shooting from the field.
Perhaps the biggest reason the Blazers snapped their four-game skid was their ability to take care of the basketball. Turnovers have plagued UAB in their last few games, but the Blazers only committed 10 in this matchup.
UAB would force 14 turnovers and UTSA to just 32.3 percent shooting for the game, making big stops in the game’s most crucial moments.
While it was never easy for the Blazers, they were able to get back on track after a hard-fought battle with UTSA.
Coach Randy Norton attributes the win to the determination of his team.
“I thought our girls were just gritty as all get out,” said Norton. “They wanted it so bad, they wanted to win this game and they were able to do it with their defense.”
UAB will play again on Saturday against UTEP at Bartow Arena. The game is set to tipoff at 2 p.m. and will be available to stream on CUSA.tv.
