UAB Defeats USF, 109-106 in Double Overtime
By Steve Irvine
BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA - January 4, 2026
UAB basketball head coach Andy Kennedy often uses the postgame stat sheet to break down what happened in a game. He did that again on Sunday afternoon in Tampa but it was a stat created by Kennedy himself that best explained how the Blazers emerged with a 109-106 double overtime victory over South Florida in an American Conference game at the Yuengling Center.
“We won the most important category and that was the one of determination,” Kennedy said on his postgame appearance with David Crane and Steve Mitchell on the Blazer Sports Network from Learfield.
Yep, determination was a big factor on Sunday afternoon.
How else do you explain UAB digging out of an 11-point hole late in the second half and answering every overtime roadblock?
How else do you explain Daniel Rivera, a 49 percent free throw shooter coming into the game, calmly hitting a pair of free throws with 3.6 seconds left to send the game into the first overtime?
How else do you explain Quaran McPherson not only knocking down four 3-pointers but also drilling an off-balance 17-footer at the end of the first overtime to ensure an extra five minutes?
How else do you explain playing the second overtime with the entire front line of Daniel Rivera, KyeRon Lindsay-Martin and Evan Chatman sitting on the bench with five fouls each?
How else do you explain Ahmad Robinson playing an integral role on an afternoon when he was 1-for-15 from the field?
How else do you explain Robinson and Jacob Meyer, who are listed at 5-10 and 6-2 on the roster, going up against a much larger USF front line and rooting out a combined 19 rebounds?
How else do you explain Chance Westry willing his way to 24 points and six assists and serving as the “big man” at 6-foot-6 in the second overtime?
“I thought we were the most determined team and really, really proud of their fight,” Kennedy said after his team improved to 10-5 overall and 1-1 in American Conference play after handing USF its first home loss of the season.
UAB struggled to get going early, partly because USF’s Wes Enis got going from outside the 3-point stripe and 6-foot-10 Izaiyah Nelson controlled the inside. Enis, a transfer from Division II Lincoln Memorial, had 13 points and three 3-pointers in the first half while Nelson had 11 points and five rebounds. USF led by as many as seven points in the first half but UAB was able to end the half with just a two-point deficit, largely thanks to McPherson.
Entering Sunday’s game, McPherson was 2-for-12 on 3-pointers. On Sunday, he all three of his 3-pointers in the first half and made his fourth long-range attempt early in the second half. Overall, McPherson finished with 17 points on 6-of-8 shooting from the field, 4-of-5 from 3-point and 1-of-3 from the line in his first start of the season.
“Coach Bartow used to talk about trusting your gut, trusting your instincts,” Kennedy said. “I went with him in the (starting) lineup because I just felt like he's always got good energy and he's always positive. I need him just to talk to me every once in a while. But man, I thought he gave us a great lift early. Big shot to get us to another OT.”
Before that big shot, however, USF took control of things and built a double-digit advantage behind Enis, who finished with 33 points and 10 3-pointers. The lead spiked at 11 points twice in the final 5:43. The last 11-point lead came at 76-67 with 5:08 left on a Nelson putback. But UAB was not done. Meyer started the comeback with a 3-pointer and Rivera followed with a dunk after a USF turnover. In those final five minutes, UAB outscored USF, 16-5, with all the Blazer points coming from Meyer and Rivera.
The teams traded the lead several times in the first overtime before USF (8-6 overall, 0-1 American Conference) carved a 94-91 lead with two free throws by Nelson with 54 seconds left. Salim London cut into the deficit with driving the baseline for a second-chance layup and USF made 1 of 2 free throws. McPherson then sent the game into a second overtime after taking a pass from Robinson and hitting the jumper.
USF scored the first three points of the second overtime but Robinson tied the game with a 3-pointer, his only made field goal of the game, with 4:11 left. UAB scored the next six points, with Westry providing the first four, to take a 104-98 lead with 2:22 remaining. UAB had trouble closing out the game, partly because of missed free throws, and USF pulled within one point – at 107-106 – with 11 seconds left. Robinson took the inbounds pass against the full-court pressure and threw the ball wildly. However, Meyer hustled to get the loose ball and dunked on the other end for the final points.
“You know, I told Bryan Hodgson, their coach, after the game, remember last year we were up like 20-something and they came back and beat us when he was at Arkansas State,” said Kennedy, who team was outrebounded, 61-49, but won points in the paint, 56-44. “That was probably about as improbable as us winning today.”
UAB returns home to continue American Conference play against FAU on Wednesday at Bartow Arena.