BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - UAB had a 14-point lead over Memphis early in the second half, but that didn't comfort Blazers coach Mike Anderson.
"I knew Memphis would make a run because they have some good shooters," Anderson said. "It took everything we had to hold them off."
Ronell Taylor grabbed a loose ball and hit a layup to give UAB the lead as the Blazers survived three 3-point attempts by Memphis in the final 14 seconds to defeat the Tigers 73-70 on Saturday.
"We had a couple of guys who wouldn't go get a loose ball at the end," Memphis coach John Calipari said. "In a game like this, the toughest team is going to win."
Taylor's follow shot came with 1:31 left to play and gave UAB at 71-70 lead. Memphis guard Darius Washington missed a spinning drive in the lane and Demario Eddins hit two freethrows to give UAB a 73-70 lead. That set up a frantic finish.
Memphis called time out with 14.6 seconds left to set up a try for a game-tying three. The Tigers got plenty of chances.
Anthony Rice missed on a 3-point try but Memphis rebounded and Rodney Carney missed on another 3-attempt.
"I was hoping we could get a three to drop at the end," Calipari said. "We got three good looks. We gave ourselves a chance."
The Tigers' Duane Erwin grabbed the loose rebound, dribbled behind the 3-point line and fired a quick shot. It went part way down and spun out as the buzzer sounded.
Guard Marvett McDonald, a Memphis native, scored 16 points to lead UAB (14-5, 4-2 Conference USA). Taylor and Eddins had 14 points apiece and Marques Lewis had 10 points and 10 rebounds for the Blazers.
Washington, a freshman, scored a game-high 26 points to lead Memphis (10-9, 3-2). Carney added 12 points for the Tigers.
UAB led 45-34 at halftime and appeared to have the game in control, building a 14-point lead early in the second half. But Memphis went on an 11-0 run to get back in the game.
Carney and Rice each hit 3s to lead the run.
The Tigers went ahead 63-62 when Washington hit two free throws with 5:39 left to play.
There were seven lead changes after that, including Taylor's basket that proved to be the game-winner.
