UAB Sunk By USM’s “Magnificent Seven”
UAB dominated Southern Miss for the first three quarters of Wednesday’s WNIT opener. The Blazers led for over 35 minutes, drained 16 three-pointers, and made 100% of their free throws. Their shorthanded opponents, fielding just seven players, shot a paltry 23% from three-point range.
It wasn’t enough. A lopsided fourth quarter secured USM a 79-74 victory in front of their home crowd.
Five members of Southern Miss’s team entered the transfer portal after the Golden Eagles’ March 8th Sun Belt tournament loss. One more, center Atria Dumas, was sidelined by injury. The available players, dubbed the “Magnificent Seven” by Southern Miss head coach Joye Lee-McNelis, limped into the WNIT.
At first, it seemed as though UAB would blow their opponents away. Propelled by a barrage of three-pointers, the Blazers jumped out to a 17-4 six minutes into the game, one of five different double-digit leads the Green and Gold would hold throughout the night. In the first quarter alone, forward Jade Weathersby and guard Maddie Walsh scored eight and nine points, respectively.
USM star Domonique Davis almost single-handedly kept her team breathing, hitting two three-pointers to cut the UAB lead to just four at the start of the second quarter. As typical throughout the night, the Blazers beat their opponents back but couldn’t keep them down. Threes from Walsh and Kylee Schneringer brought the UAB advantage back to double-digits, but a subsequent cold stretch allowed Southern Miss to claw within four entering halftime.
The third quarter was more of the same. Denim DeShields, Mia Moore, Weathersby, and Schneringer all hit three-pointers, giving the Green and Gold yet another double-digit cushion. The Blazers got to the charity stripe with ease, making all six of their free throw attempts. UAB held a comfortable 58-48 advantage entering the final ten minutes.
As they had all afternoon, USM battled back; this time, the Blazers had no answers. Southern Miss center Melyia Grayson was nearly unstoppable on the boards, recording three putback layups in eight minutes. Grayson scored 22 points on the night, 14 of them coming in the fourth quarter.
UAB went stone cold in the final period, scoring 16 points to the Golden Eagles’ 31. Late threes from DeShields and Ashton Elley made the score more aesthetically pleasing, but Southern Miss led by 11 with 15 seconds left.
Weathersby finished with a career-high 19 points, shooting 60% from beyond the arc and ripping down nine rebounds. Denim DeShields was just as efficient, scoring 18 and making four of her six three-point attempts. Maddie Walsh played all 40 minutes, recording 12 points on 14 shots.
Southern Miss effectively limited UAB’s star guard Mia Moore. The all-conference third team selection scored nine points and dished out six assists, but turned the ball over five times and attempted just eight field goals, her lowest mark since February.
The Blazers conclude Randy Norton’s 11th season in Birmingham with an 18-14 record, their best mark since 2019-2020. As of this writing, guard Maddie Walsh is the only UAB player who has explicitly announced their return.