UAB faces Kansas at Sprint Center without starting point guard

Kansas basketball coach Bill Self can only imagine the shock and sadness felt at Alabama-Birmingham when standout junior point guard Nick Norton suffered a season-ending knee injury during the first half of the first game of the 2016-17 season.

“That would be a tough deal, especially a good player like that,” Self said, referring to Norton, a 5-10 native of Bloomington, Ill., who tore the ACL in his right knee with 4:23 left before intermission in the Blazers’ 86-66 rout of Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Nov. 11 in Birmingham.

The injury to the two-year starter and second-team all-Conference USA selection came in the initial game of 34-year-old Robert Ehsan’s head coaching career.

“I think he’s out for the season,” Self said correctly. “That’s a big loss for them. They’ll be OK, though. They’ve got good players. They were picked to win the league.”

Coming off their second-straight Conference USA title, the Blazers, 2-1 — who meet KU, 2-1, in a CBE Hall of Fame Classic semifinal at 8:30 p.m. Monday at the Sprint Center — indeed were the preseason pick to win the 14-team league. Junior forwards William Lee and Chris Cokley were chosen to the preseason all-conference team.

No doubt, however, the loss of Norton has proven unsettling.

UAB dropped the first game without its floor general — 84-74 to Furman on Nov. 14 — then bounced back with a 74-51 win over Troy on Thursday.

“I don’t think I’ve ever, in my 10 years of coaching, seen that happen, let alone in the first game, first half,” Ehsan told Al.com. Ehsan was chosen UAB’s head coach a week and a half after former KU guard Jerod Haase accepted the Stanford job last spring after four seasons in Birmingham.

“What are the odds, with a freak thing like that? He’s doing as good as you can given the situation,” Ehsan added. “It’s a very hard thing. It’s a hard pill to swallow, but he’s handled it pretty well, to be honest. I think Nick affects the game in so many ways. Point guard is obviously the coach on the floor, and Nick as a junior with experience, he knows the system so well and he knows where guys are.”

Sophomore Deion Lavender, who had nine assists against Troy, has taken over at the point with senior Denzell Watts (who was removed from the redshirt list) and senior Hakeem Baxter also garnering minutes at lead guard.

“UAB is good,” Self said. “I think they went 26-7 (last year). That’s a ridiculous record and we play them in the first game (of a two-night event at the Sprint Center).

“They beat Iowa State the year before,” Self added of the Blazers, who defeated the Cyclones in a 2015 second-round NCAA Tournament contest.

Haase’s final UAB team won the 2015-16 Conference USA regular-season title but lost in the first round of the conference tourney and ended up dropping a first-round NIT game to BYU.

Ehsan, who was recommended by Haase, emerged over a field of candidates that included former St. John’s and UCLA coach Steve Lavin, Auburn associate head coach Chuck Person and 18-year NBA veteran Jason Terry, who interviewed for the UAB job despite playing for the Houston Rockets at the time. He’s with the Milwaukee Bucks this season.

“I would love (to see) Rob Ehsan,” Haase told Al.com during the coaching search. “He’s so prepared. When we talk about building a program, he’s been so instrumental in everything we’ve done.”

“This place is different,” Ehsan said of UAB after taking over for Haase. “You’ve seen the mid-majors who have had sustained and national success. We’re in a position with our roster, facilities and leadership that we can do that. That’s the unique thing about this situation.”

Self said KU will not only be challenged by UAB, but Tuesday’s foe. The Jayhawks will meet either Georgia or George Washington at 6:30 or 9 p.m. Tuesday night; those teams play at 6 p.m. Monday.

“The field is good,” Self said. “I watched George Washington play the other night. They beat Siena by two (KU downed Siena, 86-65, but led only by five with eight minutes left). Georgia is picked third in almost every SEC poll. This will be a good test for us. Hopefully fans will turn out and show up. I’ll be glad when Wednesday gets here because I think we can catch our breath (after that). I am not as concerned about Monday as Tuesday (in terms of fatigue).”

Self said the Jayhawks looked like a tired team against Siena on Friday — a game that followed their season-opening, eight-day trip to Hawaii and New York in which the Jayhawks lost to Indiana and beat Duke.

“I wouldn’t say we’re tired. We got to get some rest in for the next couple of games coming up,” KU sophomore guard Lagerald Vick said after Friday’s victory. “We need to win the first half, do what Coach asks.”

This story was originally published November 20, 2016 at 4:47 PM with the headline "UAB faces Kansas at Sprint Center without starting point guard."