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Tulsa
UAB
Tulsa Falls To No. 25 UAB 65-55
1/26/2010 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Jan. 26, 2010
Box Score |
Box Score 
| Box Score
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP)--Elijah Millsap had 19 points and 12 rebounds and helped pull No. 25 UAB out of a lengthy offensive funk and lead the Blazers to a 65-55 victory over Tulsa on Tuesday night.
The Blazers (18-2, 6-0 Conference USA) blew a 16-point halftime cushion but rebounded from a 12-minute span without a basket in time to survive a matchup of the only two remaining CUSA teams without a league loss.
Millsap broke that frigid spell with a basket and free throw with 6:16 left to halt a 19-2 run that had given the Golden Hurricane (16-4, 5-1) a 46-44 lead. Then he added a one-handed fastbreak dunk off a bounce pass from Aaron Johnson a minute later and was fouled then, too.
George Drake hit eight straight free throws in the final 5:39 and finished with 17 points. The Blazers made their first 16 attempts from the foul line after halftime to hold on when the jump shots stopped falling.
Jamarr Sanders added 12 points for the Blazers, who went 19 of 20 from the line in the second half
They shot 55 percent to take a 38-22 halftime lead, but made just 4 of 19 attempts after that (21 percent).
Jerome Jordan led Tulsa with 20 points and eight rebounds. Ben Uzoh added 17 points and made all three of the Golden Hurricane's 3-pointers. No. 2 scorer Justin Hurtt missed all seven field goal attempts and finished with two points, nearly 13 below his season average.
Tulsa shot 38 percent and had 17 turnovers, 14 in the first half.
After briefly taking the lead, the Golden Hurricane didn't manage another basket until UAB had already put the game out of reach with a 16-4 run.
The Blazers have won seven straight games and finished with a more comfortable win after the last three had come by a total of four points in the school's best start. They re-entered the Top 25 this week for the second time this season, having quickly lost to Virginia after that first appearance.
This one didn't come without a scare. Bishop Wheatley scooped up a loose ball under the basket for a layup, his only basket of the game, for a 46-44 lead with 6:31 left.
Millsap's answering drive ended an 11:57 drought without a field goal.
UAB scored just six points in the first 13 minutes of the second half and made one of their first 15 shots.
Tulsa was off to its best start since going 29-3 on its way to a run to the round of eight in the NCAA tournament in the 1999-2000 season.
