South Florida Fends Off UAB Upset Bid
CINCINNATI (AP) � Altron Jackson scored 19 points, including a 3-pointer
that gave South Florida the lead for good, and the Bulls held on to beat
Alabama-Birmingham 65-62 in the first round of the Conference USA tournament
Wednesday night.
Jackson's shot gave South Florida a 61-59 lead. Jackson and
Greg Brittian each made a free throw to offset Eric Batchelor's short jumper
in the final half-minute, and Brian Swift added two free throws for South
Florida with one
second left.
B.B. Walden had 13 rebounds and 12 points for South Florida
(19-11), which will play regular-season champion Cincinnati in the
quarterfinals Thursday night.
Eric Bush had a career-high 21 points for UAB (13-17),
including 14 in the second half. P.J. Arnold added 13 and Will Campbell had
11.
There were 14 lead changes and six ties, including the
halftime score of 25-all.
Morris Finley, who averaged 11.4 points a game during the
regular season, recovered from a scoreless first half to score five in a row
and give UAB a 32-26 lead two minutes into the second half. But South
Florida fought back to
take a 37-36 lead on Reggie Kohn's long 3-pointer less than three minutes
later.
Jackson, the conference's all-time career scoring leader,
was limited to eight points in the first half but scored seven during a
five-minute, 15-5 run that left the Bulls with their biggest lead, 52-43,
with 9:28 left.
UAB regained a 57-56 lead with 3:26 to go as Bush capped a
14-4 run with two free throws.
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02/23/2007 10:50:08 AM
