We’ll start this off by acknowledging that Mike Davis is a good coach. He played under C. M. Newton and Wimp Sanderson at Alabama and coached under Bob Knight at Indiana—three living legends of college basketball.

Davis authored the biggest single-season improvement in victories in UAB history (from 15 his first year to 23 his second). He is a proven recruiter who’s bringing in a class of four freshmen, a JUCO transfer, and a D-I transfer who is eligible after sitting out last year.

But I’m here to tell you that in 2009-’10, there are no rabbits to pull out of his hat. The Blazers are going to struggle.

Gone are more than 90 percent of the Blazers’ points and rebounds from a season ago.

Paul Delaney III, Lawrence Kinnard, and Robert Vaden—who were 2008 All-Conference USA selections—have moved on. Delaney & Vaden were second team All-CUSA, and Kinnard was tabbed for the third team.

Delaney blossomed into a star, responsible for 16.1 ppg, 4.4 rpg, and 3.5 apg. When Kinnard departed, he took 14 points and 9.2 rebounds per contest (and 13 double-doubles) with him. Swingman Vaden’s 17.6 ppg, 4.9 rbg and 2.1 apg will be missed.

Not to be overlooked, however, were the contributions from Channing Toney, the other starting guard who was the consummate “glue guy” that all good teams have. He tied with Delaney for third on the team in three-pointers made at 22, behind only Vaden (112) and Kinnard (45) on the team.

After all of the dissension and injuries that befell UAB, leaving the team with just nine players total over the last 24 games (and a mere five scholarship holders), Mike Davis somehow piloted the Blazers to a 22-12 season, with a first round loss to Notre Dame in the NIT. It marked the team’s sixth postseason appearance in seven years.

Don’t expect anything close to that this year, due to the heavy losses in personnel that were suffered. It might take Davis another year or two of recruiting to get the cupboard filled once more.

One of the team leaders is probably going to be 6’8”, 230-pound senior forward Howard Crawford, a native Alabamian who has been overshadowed by the stars he was recruited to support. After scoring 7.9 ppg and contributing 3.5 rpg, he provides leadership and perhaps the only proven quantity on this edition of the Blazers—for better or for worse.

Elijah Millsap, a muscular (6’6”, 211) guard who sat out last year after transferring to UAB from Louisiana-Lafayette, showed great promise two years ago by averaging 9.4 points and 5.4 rebounds per outing while starting 22-of-30 contests as a sophomore. He was Sun Belt Freshman of the Year in 2007-‘08.

Joining them in the lineup will be the only other starter returning from last year: point guard Aaron Johnson (pictured), a jitterbug who’s short in stature (5’8”, 175) but incredibly quick, rugged and adept at penetrating the lane. His 3.6 ppg & apg must each rise dramatically.

Where’s the beef? Crawford wasn’t much of a banger last year, yet no one who is coming in looks to provide interior size and toughness. The last returning letter winner, sophomore forward Cameron Moore, is thin at 6’9”, 205 but looks to be in line to start. He led the team in field goal percentage (.574) in limited action.

Moore will be challenged for minutes by Anthony Criswell, who is pretty much the same player, only thinner and a freshman. Criswell averaged 17 points, 10 rebounds a game and was named All-State in Oklahoma; he will need to add weight and strength if he wants to be a factor.

Scouts who got out to Hampton Roads, VA came away saying great things about Ovie Soko from London, England, who came to this country via a foreign exchange program. The 6’8”, 215-pound live body was a power forward originally but is going to play small forward on the next level. He averaged 14.5 ppg, 7.5 rpg, 4 apg, and 1 block per game.

Only having two years of American basketball competition under his belt hurts his cause.

The most promising signees for Mike Davis were in the backcourt: Dexter Fields, Jamarr Sanders, and Robert Williams.

Fields is a smallish (6’2”, 190) combo guard out of Orlando, FL. An accomplished scorer and a good rebounder for his size (17.7 ppg, 3.0 rpg), he’s not a true point but is talented enough to earn minutes for himself in the rotation. UAB beat out Alabama, Central Florida, Florida International, and LSU (among others) for his services.

Sanders, born in nearby Montgomery, AL, spent two years refining his craft at Northwest Florida State College, averaging 18.6 ppg, 4.9 rpg and 4.7 apg. He’s got good size (6’4”, 200), great shooting ability (53 percent overall, and 44 percent from deep), is physical, and is expected to see minutes at both guard positions and perhaps even at small forward.

Williams is an intriguing two-guard from Greeneville, MS. He is a very physical guard with good size, (6’4”, 200) who dominated other players from his area (20.1 points, 12.3 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per contest) but is relatively untested and unknown on a national level.

All-in-all, it makes for an enticing influx of ballers...but not necessarily a winning one. Anything close to a winning season will be an accomplishment. Next year, they could be formidable.

UAB 21-11 (11-5 Conference USA)

Under former Indiana head coach Mike Davis, now in his second season at UAB, the Blazers have become one of only two or three teams to legitimately pose a threat to Memphis’ dominance of Conference USA.

The Blazers are coming off a tough loss in the Conference USA tournament semifinal where they fell to Tulsa 70-67.

Despite the loss, UAB has won 12 of its last 16 games and comes to South Bend with a great deal of confidence.

The Blazers are led by senior Robert Vaden who averaged 17.5 PPG and five rebounds. The athletic 6'5" guard/forward is effective off the ball, but can also handle and distribute the rock.

Vaden is part of a trio of Blazers named All-Conference USA, who have over 1,000 career points. Guard Paul Delaney III averaged 16 PPG and three-and-half assists. Forward Lawrence Kinnard added 14.2 PPG to go along with nine rebounds.

Together, they form a potent “Big Three” that poses problems for the Irish both inside and out.

Notre Dame 18-14 (8-10 Big East)

Notre Dame is a team trending very much in the opposite direction. While UAB has won 12 of 16, the Irish lost 11 of the final 17 games, albeit against much stronger competition.

Obviously, for the Irish it all starts with junior forward Luke Harangody. The Irish big man averaged 23.3 PPG and 12 rebounds. He scored in double figures in all but two games this season.

In the post, Lawrence Kinnard will give up some 45 pounds to Harangody and an immeasurable amount of heart and toughness. Not to say he lacks those qualities, but Harangody is a truly special player and has them in abundance.

Even when their big man delivers, which he clearly does virtually every game, the Irish go as their shooting goes.

When Notre Dame’s trio of outside shooters in Kyle McAlarney, Ryan Ayers, and Tory Jackson are hitting their shots, things go well.

All three averaged double figures in scoring this season and the team shot an impressive 40 percent from behind the three-point arc. Most of that however, is thanks to McAlarney’s impressive 113 made three-pointers.

Prediction

Notre Dame has a perceived depth problem this season. Whether that problem is real or imagined, coach Mike Brey certainly believes it. The aforementioned Irish players each logged over 1,000 minutes this season. The top man after that minutes-wise is senior Zach Hillesland with 750.

No one else on the team has more than 500 though freshman guard/forward Tyrone Nash has come off the bench down the stretch to help some.

The Irish horses were ridden hard and put away wet this season, and that will catch up with them in this one.

If anyone gets worn down or in foul trouble, there isn’t anyone to turn to on Mike Brey’s bench. Even if there is, he probably wouldn’t put them in.

UAB is a talented and well-coached team fully capable of pulling the “upset” in this one. I put that in quotations because I think the Blazers are the better team.

A fired up home crowd at the Joyce Center could give the Irish a lift. ND was 13-3 at home this season, but it’s Notre Dame on St. Patrick’s Day…there are other things to do.

UAB 80
Notre Dame 74

No. 7 UAB Blazers (22-11, 11-5 C-USA) at No. 2 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (18-14, 8-10 BE)

NIT—First Round
Tuesday, Mar. 17—9:00 PM EST

Preview

To say that both of these teams are disappointed to be in the NIT and not in the NCAA's is an understatement.

UAB was a popular early-season sleeper pick within Conference USA. Many people believed that they had the talent to derail Memphis, but their season started to go off-track during their tough non-conference schedule.

At the start of conference play, the Blazers had amassed five losses, but they were all against respectable teams—Oklahoma, BC, Cincinnati, Louisville, and Butler. They finished in third in Conference USA, but they were five games behind C-USA perfect Memphis.

Notre Dame was picked in early Big East polls to finish among the best of the Big East. Unfortunately they found themselves grouped with Providence and Cincinnati after losing seven straight games in January and February.

It became clear towards the end of the season that the only way for them to dance was to win the Big East Tournament, a dream that was promptly crushed by West Virginia.

Both of these teams have very talented players on their squads who should match up very well. Both are going to be frustrated with how their seasons turned out, so look for a great dogfight of a game.

By The Numbers

Stat Leaders

Prediction

Want to see Ryan's FREE Pick Against the Spread? Please head over to CBBPlace.com!

The UAB Blazers for only the third time in their history have now started the season 4-0. The first time since the 2004-2005 season.  What is most impressive about the fast start is that none of the games have been played at Bartow Arena where UAB has an all time .822 winning percentage. 

The four wins have came at Troy, vs Santa Clara in Tucson, at Arizona and at Old Dominion.  After the two wins at Arizona in the Pre-Season NIT, UAB will face Oklahoma on Wednesday night and either Purdue or Boston College on Friday.  If UAB can manage to get two wins in New York this week this would really help out on the tournament resume, as playing in C-USA big time wins are hard to come by besides Memphis.

Another factor in the fast start for UAB is they are getting scoring from more than one player. Where Robert Vaden, Paul Delaney, and Lawrence Kinnard are all averaging double digit points a game. Newcomer to the Blazers Terrence Rodderick is playing a huge role as the team's sixth man where he is getting 8.3 points and five rebounds a game. 

The lack of size down low has not hurt UAB as much as most thought it would early on with the great guard play and being able to double team down low and still covering the perimeter.  That all could change this week, with probably the best big man in the country waiting on them at the Garden in Blake Griffin where in four games he is averaging 26 points and 20 rebounds a game. 

For UAB to come home from New York 6-0, its pretty simple on what has to be done they must contain the big man from Oklahoma and make their outside shots. Its going to be impossible to stop him, Griffin will get his. The question is how many will he get?

Oklahoma is not very deep on the bench so getting OU in foul trouble early and into the Sooner bench could help UAB take advantage of the mismatches there.  Kinnard and Delaney could cause fits for Oklahoma players trying to go man against them. If Vaden can continue his hot shooting from Saturdays game UAB could earn a huge victory and a real boost in the national scene and an early big time RPI win.

UAB, 1-0, travels to Tucson, Ariz., to play in the first round of the Dick's Sporting Goods NIT Season Tip-Off Tournament vs. Santa Clara, 1-0, on Mon., Nov. 17 at 7 pm.

Opening

The Blazers opened the season by beating Troy on Saturday 87-66. Paul Delaney led all scorers with 24 points, hitting nine of 11 from the free throw line. Lawrence Kinnard added 22 points and 13 rebounds. UAB now has their sights set on the NIT Tournament.

UAB opens up first round play vs. Santa Clara out of the WCC, who last year made it to the semifinals of the WCC, losing to Gonzaga by four.  This year Santa Clara won their first game over Cal State East Bay 68-40. Senior John Bryant had his 25th double-double of his career with 19 points and 11 rebounds.

History

UAB has met Santa Clara two times before. The last meeting came in Birmingham in 1994, where SCU won 80-65 in the Blazer Classic. The other meeting was in 1991 in the Cable Car Classic, where the Blazers won.

Probable Starting Lineups

Blazers

Paul Delaney G

Lawrence Kinnard F

Robert Vaden G

Channing Toney G

Aaron Johnson G

Broncos

John Bryant C

James Rahon G

Michael Santos G

Perry Petty G

Ben Dowdell F

The winner of this game will advance to the second round of the NIT Tip-off and face the winner of Arizona/Florida Atlantic, while the loser will also face the loser of that game. Winners play at 10:30 on ESPN 2, and the losers play at 7:30.

Every day, I will give a new reason to be pumped for the upcoming college basketball season. Here's the 71st reason to be excited for college basketball season.

Every year, there's a team that exceeds all expectations and becomes one of the premier teams in the country. 

Drake did it in 2008. They went 17-15 in 2007 and then 28-5 in 2008. They were widely considered one of the worst teams in the Missouri Valley and then promptly won the conference.

In 2007, Butler was coming off a solid 20-win season, but to start the 2007 season, the Bulldogs went on one of the most ridiculous runs. They took down power-conference team after power-conference team on the way to a preseason NIT title.

And, of course, in 2006, George Mason made probably the most unexpected run by a Cinderella in all of NCAA history, until Fresno State's recent College World Series title.

So, in 2008, who's going to take the title of the unknown Cinderella? Who will take the title for mid-major program that 90 percent of America can't identify its location on a map?

There are several candidates out there, some with experience in March, while some will truly come out of nowhere.

The Belmont Bruins jump out as a team that could make some noise during the regular season and potentially in the first round of the tournament. They've made three NCAA tournaments in the last seven years and bring back four starters that played key roles in the Bruins' last-second loss to Duke in the first round of last year's NCAA Tournament.

Belmont loses its leading scorer, but brings back its next four best players. Two new freshmen, Brandon Baker and Drew Hanlen, will also improve the Bruins.

What Belmont doesn't have going for them is the low RPI they are destined to have after playing a full conference schedule in the Atlantic Sun conference. They are almost guaranteed to get a 15 or 16 seed, no matter what they do, unless the Bruins knock off a top-tier team during the non-conference slate.

Utah, once basked in glory during the 1990s, a run that ended in a national-title game loss to Kentucky in 1998.

In 2008, the Utes finished 18-15 and under .500 in the conference, but what Utah does have going for them is the return of all five starters. Utah has those wonderful buzzwords: senior leadership. Shaun Green and Lawrence Borha both started throughout the 2008 season and return for 2009 as seniors.

Coach Jim Boylen also has one of the best players in the conference, as well as the tallest in 7'1'' center Luke Nevill. He could be one of those unknown players the country falls in love with come March. Nevill also projects to potentially be a first-round pick in the 2009 draft.

The University of Alabama-Birmingham could finally challenge Memphis for Conference USA supremacy. UAB features a trio of very dangerous players that could give the Tigers fits.

When Robert Vaden pulled his name out of the draft, UAB got one of the most explosive players in the country. He repeatedly took over games and sent teams scurrying out of the gym with devastating losses (go ask Kentucky what they think of Vaden).

On top of Vaden, UAB features Paul Delaney, who returns for a fifth and final season after blowing out his knee four games into the 2008 campaign. He averaged 15.5 points in 2007 and will be a very nice compliment to Vaden.

The wild card to UAB's success will be a player I watched tear my alma mater apart in high school. Terrence Roderick reportedly barely graduated from William Allen High School in 2006 and fell off the national basketball radar when he went to a year of prep school before transferring to UAB.

Long story short, he got his grades up and is now a member of the Blazers. He's a great talent (11th best prep-school recruit) and could contribute immediately.

So, reason number 71 to be pumped for the College Basketball season is the emergence of a new Cinderella that will capture the hearts of millions in March.