Old Dominion (11-6, 7-4) vs. UAB (17-4, 10-3)
Bartow Arena, Birmingham, Alabama; Saturday, 4 p.m. EST
BOTTOM LINE: UAB looks for its fourth straight win over Old Dominion at Bartow Arena. The last victory for the Monarchs at UAB was a 70-59 win on Feb. 7, 2019.
STEPPING UP: Tavin Lovan is averaging 13.2 points to lead the way for the Blazers. Michael Ertel has paired with Lovan and is maintaining an average of 12.5 points per game. The Monarchs are led by Kalu Ezikpe, who is averaging 11.5 points and 6.4 rebounds.
KEY FACILITATOR: Lovan has accounted for 40 percent of all UAB field goals over the last three games. The junior guard has 21 field goals and 10 assists in those games.
PERFECT WHEN: The Blazers are 15-0 when holding opponents to 46.2 percent or worse from the field, and 2-4 when opponents shoot better than that. The Monarchs are 5-0 when the team blocks at least five shots and 6-6 when they fall short of that total.
THREAT BEHIND THE ARC: UAB’s Jalen Benjamin has attempted 138 3-pointers and connected on 33.3 percent of them, and is 9 for 28 over his past five games.
DID YOU KNOW: The UAB defense has allowed only 59.5 points per game to opponents this season, ranking the Blazers fifth among Division I teams. The Old Dominion offense has averaged 69.6 points through 17 games (ranked 216th, nationally).
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