23-11; 12-6, Fourth and American Athletic Conference tournament champions
You can’t always get what you want; sometimes, you have to wait a season or two. UAB has won 20+ games in eight of the past ten seasons, and in head coach Andy Kennedy’s second season, they returned to the NCAA Tournament. Then, last year, in his third season the Blazers won 29 games. Even so, they took a backseat to Florida Atlantic for the regular season Conference USA title, and missed out on an NCAA Tournament bid. Not exactly the following act for which fans in Birmingham had hoped.
So Kennedy loaded up a talented new crew to chase greater success after his veteran crew graduated. It took a bit for the pieces to start percolating, but once Kennedy & Co realized that they’d found a new fire-breather, things began clicking. Following a run through their new league’s conference tournament, the Blazers are back in the Big Dance; it’s nice that dragons can be so patient, eh?
UAB began the year 4-5, but they finished 19-6. What changed and allowed for the reversal? Simple: newly-arrived junior college transfer Yaxel Lendeborg had spent a month acclimating to his new digs. By mid-December, he was well on his way towards becoming an all-conference player and the American Athletic Conference’s Defensive Player of the Year. A long and bouncy defender who became arguably the AAC’s top rim protector, Lendeborg pretty clearly became the league’s top rebounder. With every board he snags, Lendeborg extends the new all-time single season record he’s set for rebounds. A strong passer who can also shoot it out to the three point arc, Lendeborg is a complete post player. Over the final 25 games of the season, he has averaged 15.9 points, 11.8 rebounds, 2.4 assists, and 2.2 blocks on 53.4% shooting from the floor. Over UAB’s three wins in the AAC tournament, Lendeborg posted 15 points and 13.7 per tilt, and was named the event’s MVP.
The Blazers have a quality point guard to match with their new lost star. Eric Gaines, Jr, is a floor general who’s much more comfortable attacking the basket off of the bounce than launching jumpers, and he does a whole lot of damage on his way to the rim. As the disruptive leader of UAB’s perimeter defense, Gaines is as much a force of chaos to opponents as Lendeborg is around the basket. The AAC leader in steals, Gaines finished ninth in the whole country in thefts. Kennedy gets all eight of the guys in his rotation involved, and in many ways former LSU Tiger Gaines and original Blazers Efrem ‘Butta’ Johnson and Tony Toney have been the backbone of the backcourt with their two-way work. Toney’s role has diminished a bit with the search for shooting, but he’s been with the Blazers since Kennedy arrived and brings useful toughness. Toney is a terrific and energetic defender who will guard just about anybody and make their night difficult
Johnson led the Blazers in made triples, breaking out as a key scorer in his second season. He also hit a corner three to beat Alcorn State in November, and then knocked down another jumper to secure a win at UTSA in January. Proven clutch during the regular season Johnson was smooth yet again scoring a career-best 21 points in the AAC tournament semifinals to boost UAB past top seed South Florida. Alejandro Vasquez and Daniel Ortiz have become a big part of UAB’s perimeter offense by providing reliable deep shooting to a team which doesn’t have an overabundance of jump shooters. Together, they’ve made 88 triples this year. Vasquez in particular, who had been a fairly one-dimensional bomber a couple of years ago at St. Bonaventure, has grown into a quality scorer who stretches the floor..
Javian Davis was a key part of the rotation last year, and returned this fall as by far UAB’s most seasoned post player. He worked hard this past summer to shed weight, become more nimble, and stay in better position, the efforts paid off in a career year for Davis. He’s stout on the glass and a proven tough defender against the biggest bigs in the American. Chris Coleman has joined up as a junior college veteran, and is more of a combo forward. He can move well, and after the new year he proved capable of playing serious minutes; over UAB’s last 18 games, Coleman has averaged 9.7 points, 5.0 rebounds, and nearly a block per game. Kennedy occasionally goes with a bigger lineup featuring Davis and Lendeborg, or he can swap Coleman in as a wing forward to cause matchup problems. Coleman can score on quick paint touches and has some range to his jumper, but isn’t a finished product offensively. He’s got a seven foot wingspan, which helps defensively.
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