Box Score HIGHLIGHTS | PHOTOS
HUNTSVILLE | Winning for the fourth time in its last five games, the University of Alabama in Huntsville men's basketball team began conference play with a hard-fought 84-80 win over visiting West Alabama on Saturday evening at Kelly Court at Spragins Hall. The Chargers improve to 5-3 (1-0 Gulf South Conference) with the victory, and UWA slips to 3-4 (0-1 GSC).
 
Wayne Dedrick scored 26 points to lead the Chargers in scoring, while Conner Blasi notched a double-double with 22 points and 10 rebounds. Also recording a double-double – the first of his career – was Greg Gardner who scored 11 while dishing out 11 assists.
 
UWA started the contest strong and built up a seven-point lead at 19-12 at the 11:35 mark of the opening half, but UAH responded with a 16-9 run – a stretch that included a thunderous, game-tying dunk by Blasi – to move ahead 28-25 with 6:38 left in the period.
 
After the Tigers briefly regained the advantage at 30-28, a Blasi 3-pointer – the second of the season for the player who usually lives inside the paint – began a run of nine straight points for the senior, and that strong play would help propel the Chargers to a 44-38 advantage at the half.
 
In the second half, a Taylor Chapman layup near the midway point of the stanza produced the largest lead of the night for the Chargers at 69-57.
 
West Alabama proceeded to then score the next eight points to make it a four-point game at the 8:29 mark, but UAH's strong night at the free throw line turned the tide for the next few minutes as Ronnie Mack hit a pair of freebies and Dedrick hit four straight to push the lead back out to double digits at 75-65 with 6:47 left in the game.
 
Not going away, the visitors would pull to within two at 82-80 with 10 seconds left, but Gardner sank a pair of shots at the charity stripe on UAH's ensuing possession to seal the victory.
 
The Chargers shot the ball well on the night, shooting more than 60 percent for much of the contest before finishing at nearly 55 percent, and with Dedrick hitting three from downtown, UAH was 7-for-15 in 3-point shooting.
 
Rebounds for the contest were even at 31 for each team, and as an indication of the physical nature of the contest, UAH scored 42 points in the paint while UWA's inside game produced 32 points.
 
UAH will return to action on Thursday when conference play continues with Christian Brothers. The opening tip is slated for 7:30 p.m. at Kelly Court at Spragins Hall.