Men’s Basketball Welcomes UAB to Tudor Fieldhouse

HOUSTON — Rice welcomes reigning Conference USA champion UAB to Tudor Fieldhouse this Saturday, Jan. 28. Tip-off is scheduled for 2 p.m. CT and it will be streamed by ESPN+.

Game 21
What: Rice (15-5, 6-3) vs. UAB (14-7, 5-5)
When: Saturday, January 28 at 2 p.m.
Where: Houston, Texas
Stadium: Tudor Fieldhouse (5,208)
Stream: ESPN+
Listen: RiceOwls.com
Live Stats: RiceOwls.com
Series Information: UAB leads 18-3 (7-2 in Houston)

Scouting Rice
• Rice enters Saturday's game with a 15-5 record and 6-3 in Conference USA. The Owls have won four straight games and nine of their last 11 after defeating Charlotte on Thursday, 65-63.
• Junior guard and Preseason All-Conference USA honoree Quincy Olivari leads the team and is second in C-USA with 19.6 points per game. He's also third on the team in rebounds per game (5.7) while placing third in the league in three-pointers made per game (2.7), sixth in three-point field goal percentage (.373), and seventh in free throw percentage (.807) and field goal percentage (.439).
• Junior guard Travis Evee is seventh in the league with 15.9 points per game. He's also fourth in free throw percentage (.841) and three-point field goal percentage (.379), and fifth in three-pointers made per game (2.5).
• Junior forward Max Fiedler is scoring 10.9 points per game while leading the country in field goal percentage, connecting on 76.9% from the field. He's also leading C-USA with 5.3 assists per game, and is second with 8.1 rebounds per game and five double-doubles.
• Freshman guard Mekhi Mason is fourth on team with 9.8 points per game, 3.2 rebounds per game and 2.1 assists per game.
• Sophomore guard Cameron Sheffield is scoring 7.7 points per game while placing second on the team and eighth in C-USA with 6.4 rebounds per game.
• Rice is scoring 80.7 points per game, which is second in Conference USA and 20th in the country, while allowing 73.1.
• The Owls are connecting on a league-best 48.8% from the field, which is 15th in the nation, including 36.1% from three. Their opponents are hitting 45.0% from the floor and 33.5% from behind the arc.
• Rice is also outrebounding its opponents, 36.9-to-33.0.
• Rice leads the conference in assists per game (17.1), which is also 16th in the country, and is third in three-pointers made per game (8.8).
• Head coach Scott Pera is in his sixth season leading the Rice men's basketball program.

Scouting UAB
• UAB enters Saturday's game with a 14-7 record and 5-5 in Conference USA. The Blazers have lost five of their last seven games despite defeating Louisiana Tech on Thursday, 65-59.
• Senior guard Jordan Walker is the second leading scorer in the country, averaging 23.8 points per game. He's also fourth in the nation in three-pointers per game (4.4) while placing second in league in three-point percentage (.400), third in free throw percentage (.866), fourth in assists per game (4.3) and eighth in field goal percentage (.420).
• Sophomore guard Eric Gaines is second on the team with 12.9 points per game. He also leads the team and is third in the league with 4.7 assists per game while placing ninth in free throw percentage (.747).
• Senior forward KJ Buffen is third on the team with 10.0 points and is tied for fourth in the league with 7.1 rebounds per game.
• Senior center Trey Jemison is scoring 9.1 points per game while leading C-USA with 8.3 rebounds per game.
• UAB leads the league in scoring with 82.6 points per game while allowing 71.3.
• The Blazers are connecting on 45.3% from the field and 35.0% from three. Their opponents are hitting just 41.6% from the floor and 34.0% from behind the arc.
• UAB leads the league and is third in the nation in rebounds per game with 41.3, while its opponents are pulling down 35.0.
• The Blazers are also second in the conference in assists (15.4) and third in steals (8.4).
• Head coach Andy Kennedy is in his third season at the helm of the UAB men's basketball program where he owns a 63-22 record. In 16 seasons as a head coach, Kennedy is 329-191.

Rice-UAB Series History
• Rice and UAB will meet for the first time this year and the 22nd time overall.
• Rice is looking for just its fourth victory in the series, as UAB holds an 18-3 advantage.
• In games played in Houston, Rice is 2-7, but the Owls will be going for their second straight victory over the Blazers at Tudor Fieldhouse.
• The teams will meet for a second time on Feb. 23 in Birmingham.

Next Up
• Rice begins a stretch of three out of four road games when it travels to Ruston, La., next Thursday, Feb. 2, to face Louisiana Tech. Tip-off is scheduled for 6 p.m. and the game will be streamed by ESPN+.

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