Troy University Athletics
Trojans Travel For Return Match with UAB
12/19/2008 6:00:00 AM | Basketball (M)
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. ? The Troy Trojans Men's basketball will travel north up Interstate 65 for a return match from their season opener with UAB on Saturday afternoon at 1 pm at Bartow Arena.
Troy (4-6, 1-1 SBC) was defeated by the Blazers in the November 15 match-up at Trojan Arena, 87-66. In the game, Troy trailed by just two points at halftime, but was outscored by the Blazers 51-32 in the second half as it shot just 31.7 percent from the field.
The Trojans are led offensively by junior Richard Delk. The Jackson, Tenn. native averages 13.6 points per game and is second on the squad with 4.7 rebounds per contest. He has started every game this year for Troy and scored in double-figures in seven of 10 contests.
Michael Vogler, who did not play in the season-opener, leads the team and the Sun Belt Conference in assists with 7.1, while seven-footer Tom Jervis grabs 6.5 rebounds per game to lead the team and is one of five Troy players average more than eight points per game.
Don Maestri is in his 27th year as the head coach of Troy and he holds a 440-318 record during that span. Assistant coach David Felix has been with the Trojans for 28 years.
Troy got back on the winning path in its last game, picking up a big Sun Belt Conference win over Florida Atlantic at home, 94-87.
UAB (6-3, 0-0 CUSA) enters the contest on the heels of a blow-out win over in-state rival Jacksonville State, 75-48, and in the midst of some personnel changes.
On Wednesday, the Blazers lost four scholarship players, but gained two more. UAB will be without guards Ed Berrios and Terrence Roderick for the remainer of the season, along with forward Jeremy Mayfield.
Indiana transfer Armon Bassett also left the team, but the squad gained senior guard Mike Davis, Jr. and will welcome football player Mike Jones to the roster.
Berrios (five points, three rebounds) and Roderick (17 points, eight rebounds, four assists) both played in the season's first meeting between the Trojans and UAB.
Mike Davis is the head coach of the Blazers, and he holds a 44-30 record in three seasons in Birmingham.
UAB features three players scoring 16-plus points per game (Robert Vaden ? 19.7, Lawrence Kinnard ? 18.8 and Paul Delaney III ? 16.5). Vaden was recently named to the Naismith Trophy watch list and Kinnard tallied a double-double (22 points, 13 rebounds) in the two team's first meeting.
Vaden was honored as the Preseason Player of the Year in Conference USA and so far this season Troy is the only team to hold him to single-digit scoring and not allow him to convert a three-point attempt. He has scored 18 or more points in every other contest and is shooting 37 percent from beyond the arc.
Tip-off for Saturday's game is set for 1 pm and the game can be heard via the Troy ISP Network with Barry McKnight bringing you all the action. Live stats will also be available at the link above.
