The UAB Blazers men's basketball team represents the

University of Alabama at Birmingham The University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) is a Public university#United States, public List of research universities in the United States, research university in Birmingham, Alabama. Developed from an academic extension center established i ...

(UAB) in the

NCAA Division I NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest level of College athletics, intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major ...

men's

college basketball In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...

, and have competed in

Conference USA Conference USA (C-USA or CUSA) is an intercollegiate athletic conference whose current member institutions are located within the Southern United States. The conference participates in the NCAA's Division I in all sports. C-USA's offices are l ...

(C-USA) since 1995.

History

The

UAB Blazers The UAB Blazers are the varsity intercollegiate athletic programs that represent the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB). The school is one of the fourteen member institutions of Conference USA (C-USA) and participates in Division I of th ...

started their athletics program with the creation of men's basketball in 1978. Setting high standards from the start, UAB was able to lure

Gene Bartow Bobby Gene Bartow (August 18, 1930 January 3, 2012) was an American men's college basketball coach. The Browning, Missouri, native coached 36 years at six universities after coaching two high schools in Missouri for six years. In 1972 Bartow coac ...

away from his post as the head coach at

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...

to start the Blazer program. Known as the "Father of UAB athletics," Coach Bartow was able to guide the Blazers to early success by reaching the NCAA tournament in just their third season of existence. Since their inaugural season, the Blazers have made 15 appearances in the

NCAA men's basketball tournament The NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament, branded as NCAA March Madness and commonly called March Madness, is a single-elimination tournament played each spring in the United States, currently featuring 68 college basketball teams from ...

, and 12 appearances in the

National Invitational Tournament The National Invitational Tournament (NIT) is a men's college basketball tournament operated by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Played at regional sites and traditionally at Madison Square Garden (Final Four) in New York City ...

. UAB has been productive in its NCAA tournament appearances, reaching the

Elite Eight In the NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship or the NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Championship, the "Elite Eight" comprises the final eight teams, representing the regional finals, or national quarterfinals. In Division I and Divis ...

once, and the Sweet Sixteen 3 times.2010–11 UAB Basketball Information Guide, pp. 118–123 After 40 years of basketball, UAB has had 36 winning seasons, including 24 seasons with at least 20 wins. UAB's win percentage ranks 30th among NCAA Division I basketball programs with at least 40 seasons. UAB's basketball program has featured wins over many of basketball's most historic programs, including

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

Louisville Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border. ...

Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the ...

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

Michigan State Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the United States. It i ...

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

, Villanova,

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...

and many others.

Conference affiliations

* 1978–79 – NCAA Division I Independent * 1979–80 to 1990–91 –

Sun Belt Conference The Sun Belt Conference (SBC) is a collegiate athletic conference that has been affiliated with the NCAA's Division I since 1976. Originally a non-football conference, the Sun Belt began sponsoring football in 2001. Its football teams participa ...

* 1991–92 to 1994–95 –

Great Midwest Conference The Great Midwest Conference was an NCAA Division I athletics conference that existed from 1991 to 1995. History It was formed in 1990 with six members: Cincinnati and Memphis State (now Memphis) from the Metro Conference, UAB from the Sun Bel ...

* 1995–96 to present –

UAB Head Coaches

UAB Season-By-Season Records

Postseason Results

NCAA tournament results

UAB has appeared in 16 NCAA Tournaments, with a combined record of 10–16.

NIT results

UAB has appeared in 12

National Invitation Tournament The National Invitational Tournament (NIT) is a men's college basketball tournament operated by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Played at regional sites and traditionally at Madison Square Garden (Final Four) in New York City ...

's, with a combined record of 14–12.

CBI Results

The Blazers have appeared in the

College Basketball Invitational The College Basketball Invitational (CBI) is a men's college basketball tournament created in 2007 by The Gazelle Group. The inaugural tournament occurred after the conclusion of the 2007–08 men's college basketball regular season. The CBI s ...

(CBI) one time. Their record is 0–1

Highest Seeds Beaten in NCAA tournament

UAB Rivalry Games

Awards

Conference Coach of the Year

Conference Player of the Year

All--Conference Players Since 2012

Blazers of Note

Retired numbers

UAB has retired four jersey numbers since its inception and they now hang from the rafters of Bartow Arena. This honor is bestowed only on players who earn AP All-America honors and who complete their degree at UAB.2010–11 UAB Basketball Information Guide, p. 103

In the NBA

UAB has seen numerous players move on to professional careers in the NBA.2010–11 UAB Basketball Information Guide, p. 115 Some of UAB's highest NBA draft picks include: *

Oliver Robinson Oliver Leon Robinson Jr (born March 13, 1960) is a retired American basketball player who played shooting guard for the NBA's San Antonio Spurs. He served as a Democratic member of the Alabama House of Representatives from 1998 to 2016, repre ...

(2nd Round/1st Pick/24th Overall) to the

San Antonio Spurs The San Antonio Spurs are an American professional basketball team based in San Antonio. The Spurs compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference (NBA), Western Conference Southwest Division ( ...

Walter Sharpe Walter L. Sharpe III (born July 18, 1986) is an American professional basketball player who plays for Yulon Luxgen Dinos of the Super Basketball League (SBL). Early career Sharpe attended Parker High School in Birmingham, Alabama. Considered ...

(2nd Round/2nd Pick/32nd Overall) to the

Seattle SuperSonics The Seattle SuperSonics (commonly known as the Seattle Sonics) were an American professional basketball team based in Seattle. The SuperSonics competed in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member club of the league's Western Confe ...

* Steve Mitchell (2nd Round/12th Pick/36th Overall) to the

Washington Bullets The Washington Wizards are an American professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C. The Wizards compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division. The team plays ...

* Robert Vaden (2nd Round/54th Overall) to the

Charlotte Bobcats Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populous ...

Other former Blazers to play in the NBA are: * McKinley Singleton (

New York Knicks The New York Knickerbockers, shortened and more commonly referred to as the New York Knicks, are an American professional basketball team based in the New York City borough of Manhattan. The Knicks compete in the National Basketball Associat ...

– 1986–87) *

Alan Ogg Raymond Alan Ogg (July 5, 1967 – November 1, 2009) was an American professional basketball player who spent three seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He is the University of Alabama at Birmingham Blazers' career shot-blockin ...

(

Miami Heat The Miami Heat are an American professional basketball team based in Miami. The Heat compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern Conference Southeast Division (NBA), Southe ...

– 1990–92;

Milwaukee Bucks The Milwaukee Bucks are an American professional basketball team based in Milwaukee. The Bucks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The team was founded in 1968 ...

– 1992–93;

– 1992–93) *

Stanley Jackson Sir Francis Stanley Jackson Jackson's obituary in the 1948 ''Wisden Cricketers' Almanack''. This gives his full name as ''Francis'' Stanley Jackson, whereas Cricinfo and CricketArchive both give his full name as ''Frank'' Stanley Jackson. This ...

(

Minnesota Timberwolves The Minnesota Timberwolves are an American professional basketball team based in Minneapolis. The Timberwolves compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Northwest Division. Founded in 19 ...

– 1993–94) *

Donell Taylor Quence Donell Taylor II (born July 26, 1982) is an American former professional basketball player. He is 6 ft 6 in (198 cm) tall. He can play as a point guard or as a swingman, but his primary position is shooting guard. Early life a ...

(

Washington Wizards The Washington Wizards are an American professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C. The Wizards compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern Conference Southeast D ...

– 2005–07) * Carldell "Squeaky" Johnson (

New Orleans Hornets New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...

– 2011–12) *

Elijah Millsap Elijah Millsap (born August 12, 1987) is an American professional basketball player who last played for the College Park Skyhawks of the NBA G League. He played college basketball for the University of Louisiana at Lafayette and the University of ...

(

Utah Jazz The Utah Jazz are an American professional basketball team based in Salt Lake City. The Jazz compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference (NBA), Western Conference, Northwest Division (NBA), ...

– 2015)

In international leagues

* Paul Delaney (class of 2004), basketball player in the Israeli National League

UAB Basketball Facilities

UAB initially played their home games at the

BJCC Coliseum Legacy Arena (formerly known as the BJCC Coliseum and the BJCC Arena) is an arena located at the Birmingham–Jefferson Convention Complex in Birmingham, Alabama. The arena seats 17,654 for sporting events, 19,000 for concerts and 8,000 in a thea ...

, but moved their home games to an on-campus facility starting with the 1988–89 season.2010–11 UAB Basketball Information Guide, p. 60 Originally known as UAB Arena, the name was officially changed to

Bartow Arena Bartow Arena is an 8,508-seat multi-purpose arena in Birmingham, in the U.S. state of Alabama. It is home to the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Blazers men's and women's basketball teams as well as the women's volleyball team. The a ...

on January 25, 1997. The 8,508-seat arena is named after Coach Gene Bartow, the man who built UAB's men's basketball program from scratch starting in 1978.