BIRMINGHAM – The UAB women’s basketball team put up a strong all-around performance in its 71-58 victory over FIU Thursday night at Bartow Arena.
Rachael Childress led the Blazers in scoring for the 10th time this season with 19 points off 63.6 percent shooting from the field. Miyah Barnes added 17 points and two steals while Angela Vendrell was just shy of a double-double with 10 points and eight boards.
FIU (4-12, 1-4 C-USA) got off to a quick start in the first quarter shooting 50.0 percent from the field while the Blazers shot just 33.3 percent. The Panthers took the early 19-15 lead after 10 minutes of play.
UAB (10-7, 2-3 C-USA) answered back at the start of the second quarter with a pair of threes from Childress, a free throw from Barnes and a jumper from Vendrell. FIU responded with seven straight points before the Blazers kicked it into gear scoring 12 of the next 16 points in the game to take a 36-32 lead into halftime.
UAB opened the third quarter with four straight points from Vendrell. The Blazers then began a barrage of threes starting with Trista Magee and followed by back to back triples from Barnes. Barnes closed out the quarter by picking the pocket of a FIU player and finishing the fast break layup on the other end just before time expired. UAB held FIU to 10 points and 26.7 percent shooting in the third quarter to lead 53-42 with 10 minutes remaining.
The Blazers continued to add to their lead in the fourth quarter with a pair of baskets from Imani Johnson. Childress hit her fourth triple of the night with 5:55 remaining in the game to put UAB up 15. The Green and Gold finished the night shooting 50 percent in the fourth quarter to pull out the 71-58 win.
“I’m really pleased with our win,” said head coach Randy Norton. “After two losses on the road it’s always tough to get back going again but our girls found a way tonight. Really proud of the way Angela has been playing, and a lot of what she does doesn’t show up on the stats. She does so many different things for our team and she has really gotten confident with her shooting which is going to make our team better. I really believe our team is about ready to take off, tonight wasn’t easy but there are no easy games in Conference USA.”
The Blazers shot 45.5 percent on the night while owning the boards 37-31. FIU turned the ball over 12 times resulting in 19 points for UAB. Jiselle Thomas led the Panthers with 19 points and nine rebounds off the bench.
UAB returns to action Saturday afternoon at 2 p.m. at Bartow Arena to face Florida Atlantic on Family Day. Families are encouraged to come as there will be pregame inflatables and family portraits offered on the concourse. Use promo code ‘wbbfamily’ to get four tickets for $10 on UABSports.com.
Secure your women’s basketball season tickets by purchasing the 2019-20 Gold Card for $65 here. The Gold Card is an exclusive offer that grants you admission into all women’s basketball, men’s and women’s soccer, volleyball, baseball and softball events for the upcoming academic year. Contact the UAB Ticket Office at (205) 975-UAB1 for more details.
For more information on the UAB women’s basketball team, follow the Blazers on Twitter (@UAB_WBB) and Instagram (UAB_WBBall).
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