Did UAB Blazers' Efforts at Bartow Arena Outshine Wichita State Shockers?
The University of Alabama at Birmingham Blazers faced a challenging contest against the Wichita State Shockers, concluding with a score of 68-65. The Blazers now stand with their season record affected by this recent encounter, while the Shockers added another victory to their tally.
The game unfolded at Bartow Arena, where fans witnessed an intense battle that saw six lead changes and was tied three times. The home team Blazers started strong in the first quarter with 17 points but were outscored by the Shockers who put up 25 points in the final quarter. Despite a hard-fought match, it was not enough to secure a win for the Blazers.
The UAB Blazers showcased resilience throughout the game. Their offensive efforts resulted in 23 field goals made from 60 attempts, translating to a shooting accuracy of 38 percent from the field. From beyond the arc, they managed to sink nine out of 29 attempts, marking a three-point shooting percentage of 31 percent. At close range, they achieved a two-point shooting percentage of 45 percent with 14 shots made from inside.
On defense and rebounding fronts, UAB pulled down a total of 35 rebounds – nine offensive and nineteen defensive – supplemented by an additional seven team rebounds. However, they were unable to register any blocks during playtime and recorded eight steals alongside fourteen assists.
Free throws often make or break games; for UAB this aspect proved challenging as they only converted ten out of sixteen free throw attempts which is about sixty-two percent success rate – leaving crucial points off their tally.
Turnovers were an issue for both teams as each gave up possession nineteen times; however, UAB capitalized slightly less on these opportunities scoring fourteen points off turnovers compared to sixteen by Wichita State. The assist-to-turnover ratio stood at approximately zero point seventy-eight for UAB indicating room for improvement in ball handling efficiency.
The Wichita State Shockers displayed commendable performance on their end too. They had better success rates across various metrics: forty-six percent field goal accuracy (26 made out of fifty-seven), forty-nine percent two-point shot success (19 made out of thirty-nine), and thirty-nine percent efficiency from three-point land (seven made out eighteen). Their free throw precision was notably high at ninety percent making nine out ten shots taken.
Defensively speaking, Wichita State gathered thirty-six rebounds including twenty-five defensive ones along with two blocks and nine steals contributing significantly towards their win margin over UAB's sixty-five points total score against them.