It was senior night for the UAB basketball team and its all-senior starting five did not disappoint in absolutely demolishing the opponent in their final regular-season home game.

The Blazers powered ahead on two back-breaking runs in the first half and cruised to an 85-57 victory over Rice, Thursday, Feb. 23, at Bartow Arena in Birmingham.

“For a guy that’s hard to please, that one is even harder to criticize,” UAB head coach Andy Kennedy said. “Man, we came out with great energy. We were defending, we were moving the ball. In the first half, we had 14 assists off 20 made field goals and we had multiple guys step up and make plays. There were very few things we did poorly in the first half.”

UAB entered the game at 64 in the NCAA NET and improves to 21-8 overall and 12-6 in C-USA — winning 8 of its last 9 games and clinching a bye in the league tournament — after earning the regular-season sweep of the Owls.

“Important win for us moving forward,” Kennedy said. “Gives us momentum and now we got to finish this thing right on the road.”

The Blazers finished shooting at a 46.9 percent clip overall, 40.7 percent from beyond the arc (11-of-27) and were 14-for-20 at the charity stripe. Defensively, UAB held the Owls to 32.3 percent from the field, forced 12 turnovers that resulted in 20 points and owned the interior with a plus-10 advantage on inside scoring and a plus-17 edge on the glass.

“We were dominant off the glass and didn’t turn it over much until the bitter end,” Kennedy said.

UAB started an all-senior lineup and all five senior starters combined for 69 points – 81.1 percent of their scoring total.

“We were obviously going to them early and they were delivering,” Kennedy said.

Jordan “Jelly” Walker finished with a game-high 32 points, adding four rebounds and eight assists, and breaks the UAB record for most 30-point outings with eight such games, passing Kennedy’s previous record of seven games.

“If he had missed the shot (to 30 points), I don’t know if I would have given him two or three more,” Kennedy said. “We tried to run something for him because he deserves it. He’s a dynamic playmaker. Those records don’t do me any good but his confidence does.”

Walker was 10-of-19 overall, 6-for-14 on 3-pointers, and a perfect 6-for-6 at the foul line. He also scored 10 points during a soul-deflating 23-0 run in the first half, 11 points during a 21-2 first-half run and hit consecutive 3-pointers before ending his night with his sixth trey at the 6:13 mark of the second half.

The former Tulane transfer and the nation’s fourth-leading scorer (22.6 ppg) exited the game to a standing ovation with a little more than five minutes remaining.

“It feels amazing but still a bit surreal,” Walker said. “I’ll probably come to grips with it in a couple of days, knowing I’ll never play in Bartow again, but it’s been a hell of a ride. I appreciate everybody who has been a part of it.”

Trey “The Mayor” Jemison was an absolute beast in the paint, controlling the inside and finishing with eight points, 13 rebounds and two blocks. He scored the final five points of UAB’s epic 23-0 run in the first half and got the Blazers on the board to open the second half.

“I was trying hard to get him that double-double,” Kennedy said. “We went to him about three straight times down the stretch. He’s a tremendous defensive rebounder and really anchors us defensively.”

KJ Buffen had 14 points and four boards, and hit both of his made 3-point attempts during the game-clinching first-half run. Tavin Lovan was as forceful on the downhill drive as he has been all season, returning to his “full-backing” ways and finishing with six points, six rebounds and two steals.

Ty Brewer had nine points and five boards, and was also a vocal leader on defense in the second half. During a late lull, Brewer was clearly audible on the court urging his teammates to “pick it up” on the defensive end.

“Ty had been a guy that’s really come on for us,” Kennedy said. “I read somewhere he’s averaging 14 points per game over our last four of five. He’s really given us some pop at that 3-spot. Really rebounding the ball and making defensive plays. He’s got better defensively and is another shot-maker for us.”

Javian Davis had six points and three rebounds, followed by Efrem “Butta” Johnson with three points and three boards, and Eric Gaines finished with three points, three assists and three steals. Tony Toney contributed four points and six rebounds and put the exclamation point on the win off a dunk with 4:37 remaining.

The Blazers hit the road to face Western Kentucky, Saturday, Feb. 25, at E.A. Diddle Arena in Bowling Green. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. CT on CBS Sports Network.