Remember March of 2004?
Alabama dropped Stanford in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, only to be outdone just one day later by another school with a similar name, as UAB upended the overall number one seed Kentucky.
Mike Anderson had led the UAB Blazers to the top of the college basketball world at the time. Both teams from the Heart of Dixie were in the Sweet 16, giving a new meaning to "Sweet" Home Alabama.
Three years later, Mike Anderson is making strides at his new home, Missouri, while former Crimson Tide star Mike Davis is at the helm for the Blazers. Davis, who took Indiana to the NCAA title game in 2002, has returned to the state where he helped to bring basketball to the limelight in a football-dominated landscape.
In his first season at the helm, Davis' Blazers are 11-5 and 1-0 in conference play. UAB has defeated Kentucky in Lexington and blew out Big East opponent Cinicinnati at home.
The Blazers' five losses have been by a combined 34 points, less than seven point losses on average.
As many expected, Indiana transfer Robert Vaden has become the team's leader.
Vaden averages 20.4 points a game and shoots over 42 percent from the field, and 43 percent from behind the arc.
UAB gets deep into conference play beginning tonight at Bartow Arena in downtown Birmingham, as they face the Southern Miss Golden Eagles.
Davis had his work cut out when he came to the South side, and when he's done you can expect that the Blazers will be, once again, on top of the state on the hardwood.
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