2018–19 UAB Blazers men's basketball team

The 2018–19 UAB Blazers basketball team represented the University of Alabama at Birmingham during the 2018–19 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Blazers, led by third-year head coach Robert Ehsan, played their home games at the Bartow Arena as members of Conference USA. They finished the season 20–15, 10–8 in C-USA Play to finish in 5th place. They defeated Middle Tennessee and UTSA to advance to the semifinals of the C-USA tournament where they lost to Old Dominion. They received an at-large bid to the College Basketball Invitational where they lost in the first round to Brown.

2018–19 UAB Blazers men's basketball
CBI, First Round
Conference	Conference USA
Record	20–15 (10–8 C-USA)
Head coach	Robert Ehsan (2nd season)
Assistant coaches	Turner Battle Dannton Jackson Kevin Devitt
Home arena	Bartow Arena
Seasons ← 2017–18 2019–20 →

2018–19 Conference USA men's basketball standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		PCT			W		L		PCT
Old Dominion †	13	–	5		.722			26	–	9		.743
Western Kentucky	11	–	7		.611			20	–	14		.588
Southern Miss	11	–	7		.611			20	–	13		.606
UTSA	11	–	7		.611			17	–	15		.531
UAB	10	–	8		.556			20	–	15		.571
Marshall	11	–	7		.611			23	–	14		.622
FIU	10	–	8		.556			20	–	13		.606
Louisiana Tech	9	–	9		.500			20	–	13		.606
Florida Atlantic	8	–	10		.444			17	–	16		.515
North Texas	8	–	10		.444			21	–	12		.636
Rice	8	–	10		.444			13	–	19		.406
Middle Tennessee	8	–	10		.444			11	–	21		.344
Charlotte	5	–	13		.278			8	–	21		.276
UTEP	3	–	15		.167			8	–	21		.276
† 2019 C-USA tournament winner

Previous season

The Blazers finished the 2017–18 season 20–13, 10–8 C-USA play to finish in sixth place. They defeated Florida Atlantic in the first round of the C-USA tournament before losing to Western Kentucky. Despite winning 20 games, they did not participate in a postseason tournament.

Offseason

Departures

Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Reason for departure
Nick Norton	2	G	5'10"	166	Senior	Bloomington, IL	Graduate transferred to Drake
Chris Cokley	3	F	6'8"	238	Senior	Savannah, GA	Graduated
Deion Lavender	5	G	6'4"	190	RS Junior	Alton, IL	Graduate transferred to Valparaiso
Hunter Reynolds	12	G	6'0"	161	Freshman	Knoxville, TN	Walk-on; left the team for personal reasons
Nate Darling	13	G	6'5"	190	Sophomore	Halifax, NS	Transferred to Delaware
Thomas Smallwood	33	F	7'0"	243	Junior	Bordeaux, France	Graduate transferred to Chattanooga
William Lee	34	F	6'9"	206	Senior	Plantersville, AL	Graduated

Incoming transfers

Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Previous School
Tyreek Scott-Grayson	0	G	6'5"		Sophomore	Severn, MD	Junior college transferred from State Fair CC
Jeremiah Bell	2	G	6'0"	171	Senior	Louisville, KY	Transferred from Milwaukee. Under NCAA transfer rules, Bell will have to sit out for the 2018–19 season. Will have one year of remaining eligibility.
Willesley Butler	12	F/C	6'8"	230	Junior	Troy, NY	Junior college transferred from Pensacola State College
Will Bathurst	25	G	6'3"	188	RS Senior	Olean, NY	Transferred from Cornell. Will be eligible to play immediately since Bathurst graduated from Cornell.
Nolan Bertain	32	G	6'4"	185	Sophomore	Portland, OR	Junior college transferred from Casper College

Incoming recruits

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes

Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	Commit date
Jude Akabueze #24 C	Farmington, WV	North Marion High School	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	208 lb (94 kg)	Nov 19, 2017
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 80
Tamel Pearson #31 C	Chicago, IL	Morgan Park High School	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	N/A	Sep 4, 2017
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 80
Tavin Lovan SG	Franklin, KY	Hargrave Military Academy	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	186 lb (84 kg)	Apr 6, 2018
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN grade: NR
Overall recruiting rankings:
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2018 Team Ranking". Rivals.com.

Recruiting class of 2019

US college sports recruiting information for 2019 recruits
Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	Commit date
Jahein Spencer SG	Napoleonville, LA	Assumption High School	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	205 lb (93 kg)	Aug 3, 2018
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: NR
Jalen Benjamin PG	Norcross, GA	Meadowcreek High School	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)	135 lb (61 kg)	Aug 28, 2018
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: NR
Overall recruiting rankings:
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2019 Team Ranking". Rivals.com.

Roster

2018–19 UAB Blazers men's basketball team
Players	Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown G 0 Tyreek Scott-Grayson 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 170 lb (77 kg) So Suffield Academy State Fair Community College Brick, New Jersey G 1 Zack Bryant 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 183 lb (83 kg) So Providence School Hastings, Florida G 1 Jeremiah Bell  6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Sr Boyle County High School Milwaukee Louisville, Kentucky G 3 Tavin Lovan 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 196 lb (89 kg) Fr Franklin-Simpson High School Franklin, Kentucky G 4 Anderson McCoy (W) 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) 166 lb (75 kg) RS Jr Center Grove High School Ancilla College Indianapolis, Indiana F 5 Makhtar Gueye 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 200 lb (91 kg) RS Fr Aspire Academy Rufisque, Senegal G 10 Luis Hurtado 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 210 lb (95 kg) RS Fr The Sagemont School Mérida, Venezuela F 11 Tamell Pearson 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 212 lb (96 kg) Fr Morgan Park High School Chicago, Illinois F 12 Will Butler 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 255 lb (116 kg) Jr Redemption Christian Academy Pensacola State College Troy, New York G 15 Joshua Sippial (W) 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 165 lb (75 kg) Fr Loveless Academic Magnet Program Montgomery, Alabama G 21 Jalen Perry 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 197 lb (89 kg) Sr Ballard High School John A. Logan College Louisville, Kentucky F 23 Lewis Sullivan 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 231 lb (105 kg) RS Sr Hazel Green High School Hazel Green, Alabama G 25 Will Bathurst 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 188 lb (85 kg) RS Sr Olean High School Cornell Olean, New York G 32 Nolan Bertain 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 188 lb (85 kg) So West Linn High School Casper College Portland, Oregon F 34 Jude Akabueze 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 260 lb (118 kg) Fr North Marion High School Lagos, Nigeria	Head coach Robert Ehsan (UC Davis) Assistant coach(es) Turner Battle (Buffalo) Dannton Jackson (Xavier (LA)) Kevin Devitt (DePaul) Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible (W) Walk-on Injured Current redshirt Roster

Schedule and results

Date time, TV	Rank#	Opponent#	Result	Record	Site (attendance) city, state
Exhibition
Oct 18, 2018* 7:00 pm		Georgia Charity Exhibition Game	L 54–56		Bartow Arena (3,437) Birmingham, AL
Nov 1, 2018* 7:00 pm		Morehouse	W 75–54		Bartow Arena (2,828) Birmingham, AL
Non-conference regular season
Nov 6, 2018* 7:00 pm, CUSA.TV		Mercer	W 75–67	1–0	Bartow Arena (3,185) Birmingham, AL
Nov 14, 2018* 7:00 pm, CUSA.TV		New Orleans	W 75–68	2–0	Bartow Arena (2,874) Birmingham, AL
Nov 18, 2018* 4:00 pm, CUSA.TV		West Alabama AdvoCare Invitational non-bracket game	W 77–47	3–0	Bartow Arena (2,602) Birmingham, AL
Nov 22, 2018* 8:30 pm, ESPN2		vs. No. 14 Florida State AdvoCare Invitational quarterfinals	L 63–81	3–1	HP Field House (2,226) Lake Buena Vista, FL
Nov 23, 2018* 6:00 pm, ESPN3		vs. College of Charleston AdvoCare Invitational consolation semifinals	L 51–74	3–2	HP Field House (2,185) Lake Buena Vista, FL
Nov 25, 2018* 9:30 am, ESPNU		vs. Canisius AdvoCare Invitational	W 68–58	4–2	HP Field House (3,127) Lake Buena Vista, FL
Nov 29, 2018* 7:00 pm		at Alabama A&M	W 67–57	5–2	Elmore Gymnasium (2,109) Huntsville, AL
Dec 4, 2018* 7:00 pm		North Alabama	W 73–67	6–2	Bartow Arena (3,222) Birmingham, AL
Dec 8, 2018* 12:00 pm, ESPN3		at Memphis	L 76–94	6–3	FedEx Forum (14,652) Memphis, TN
Dec 15, 2018* 6:30 pm, CBSSN		vs. No. 8 Auburn Rivalry/Mike Slive Invitational	L 71–75 OT	6–4	Legacy Arena (15,856) Birmingham, AL
Dec 18, 2018* 3:30 pm		Alcorn State	W 76–49	7–4	Bartow Arena (2,299) Birmingham, AL
Dec 21, 2018* 7:00 pm		Troy	L 73–74	7–5	Bartow Arena (3,212) Birmingham, AL
Dec 29, 2018* 7:00 pm		Arkansas–Monticello	W 75–67	8–5	Bartow Arena (2,629) Birmingham, AL
Conference USA regular season
Jan 3, 2019 7:00 pm, ESPN+		Florida Atlantic	W 67–50	9–5 (1–0)	Bartow Arena (2,667) Birmingham, AL
Jan 5, 2019 7:00 pm, ESPN+		FIU	W 84–65	10–5 (2–0)	Bartow Arena (2,878) Birmingham, AL
Jan 10, 2019 6:30 pm, beIN		at Louisiana Tech	L 53–64	10–6 (2–1)	Thomas Assembly Center (3,081) Ruston, LA
Jan 12, 2019 4:00 pm, ESPN+		at Southern Miss	L 68–73	10–7 (2–2)	Reed Green Coliseum (2,886) Hattiesburg, MS
Jan 17, 2019 7:00 pm		UTEP	W 76–63	11–7 (3–2)	Bartow Arena (2,927) Birmingham, AL
Jan 19, 2019 7:00 pm, ESPN+		UTSA	W 83–73	12–7 (4–2)	Bartow Arena (3,256) Birmingham, AL
Jan 24, 2019 7:00 pm, beIN		at North Texas	W 52–49	13–7 (5–2)	The Super Pit (4,368) Denton, TX
Jan 26, 2019 7:00 pm, ESPN+		at Rice	W 89–86	14–7 (6–2)	Tudor Fieldhouse (1,731) Houston, TX
Jan 30, 2019 6:30 pm, ESPN+		at Middle Tennessee	L 65–71	14–8 (6–3)	Murphy Center (3,963) Murfreesboro, TN
Feb 2, 2019 7:00 pm, ESPN+		Middle Tennessee	L 78–79	14–9 (6–4)	Bartow Arena (4,075) Birmingham, AL
Feb 7, 2019 7:00 pm, ESPN+		Old Dominion	L 59–70	14–10 (6–5)	Bartow Arena (3,276) Birmingham, AL
Feb 9, 2019 7:00 pm, ESPN+		Charlotte	L 62–69	14–11 (6–6)	Bartow Arena (3,601) Birmingham, AL
Feb 14, 2019 7:00 pm, CBSSN		at Marshall	W 77–68	15–11 (7–6)	Cam Henderson Center (5,521) Morgantown, WV
Feb 16, 2019 1:00 pm, Stadium/Facebook		at Western Kentucky	W 68–60	16–11 (8–6)	E. A. Diddle Arena (6,839) Bowling Green, KY
Feb 23, 2019 2:00 pm, Stadium		at Southern Miss	W 76–72 OT	17–11 (9–6)	Reed Green Coliseum (4,456) Hattiesburg, MS
Feb 28, 2019 6:30 p.m., beIN		Western Kentucky	L 67–73	17–12 (9–7)	Bartow Arena (3,021) Birmingham, Al
Mar 3, 2019 2:00 pm		at UTSA	L 70–76	17–13 (9–8)	Convocation Center (1,259) San Antonio, TX
Mar 9, 2019 2:00 pm		Old Dominion	W 64–50	18–13 (10–8)	Bartow Arena (2,868) Birmingham, Al
Conference USA tournament
Mar 13, 2019 6:30 pm, ESPN+	(5)	vs. (12) Middle Tennessee First Round	W 70–61	19–13	Ford Center at The Star (2,704) Frisco, TX
Mar 14, 2019 6:30 pm, Stadium	(5)	vs. (4) UTSA Quarterfinals	W 85–76	20–13	Ford Center at The Star  Frisco, TX
Mar 15, 2019 12:30 pm, CBSSN	(5)	vs. (1) Old Dominion Semifinals	L 59–61	20–14	Ford Center at The Star  Frisco, TX
College Basketball Invitational
Mar 20, 2019* 6:00 pm, ESPN+		at Brown First round	L 78–83	20–15	Pizzitola Sports Center (683) Providence, RI
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Central Time.

Source^[1]

References

1. UAB Official Athletic Site – Men's Basketball