BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Louisiana Tech travels to Bartow Arena to face C-USA leader UAB Thursday night at 6 p.m. in a game that will be on ESPN+.

Fans can also hear the game on the LA Tech Sports Network on KNBB 97.7 FM and KJVC 92.7 FM with the pregame show set for 5:30 p.m. and access the audio through the Louisiana Tech X mobile app.

UAB (14-1, 2-0 C-USA) leads the all-times series 4-3, although the home team has only won two of the previous seven meetings between the two programs. The Blazers defeated LA Tech 66-61 in Ruston last season while the Lady Techsters returned the favor with a 70-60 win in Birmingham.

Head coach Randy Norton's team is off to the best start in program history, including their current 10-game winning streak – the longest since a 14-game stretch in 1993-94. UAB's lone loss came in overtime to Top 10 ranked Tennessee 73-69 back on Nov. 24 in a game that saw the Blazers lead the Lady Vols by double digits in the fourth quarter.

UAB boasts the league's top ranked offense, averaging 79.8 points per game. Four players are averaging double figures for the Blazers as Rachael Childress (14.5 ppg, 54-131 3-pointers), Deanna Kuzmanic (14.1 ppg, 25-51 3-pointers), Katelynn Thomas (12.8 ppg, 6.0 rpg) and Miyah Barnes (10.2 ppg, 84 assists) lead the potent UAB attack.

"They are balanced," said Tech head coach Brooke Stoehr. "They are so smart. They move the ball so well. I think Randy has done a great job there in his six years. They have built on what they did last year. They have all of those players back this year. There is just great balance. Any time you have four in double figures you have some series balance. They are shooting almost 50 percent from the field and almost 40 from the three-point line."

And it's not just on the offensive end of the floor that the Blazers have excelled this year as UAB ranks No. 1 in C-USA in scoring defense (57.0 ppga) and field goal percentage defense (.353).

"The one thing I think is very underrated about them is their defense," said Stoehr. "They are not going to get out and pressure you and overplay passing lanes, but they don't give up easy shots. They make you work for everything. They are going to force you to score over them. They are in rebounding position every single possession and they very rarely make mistakes from a scouting standpoint. They are very solid."

LA Tech (8-7, 0-2) counters with the league's leading scorer in senior Kierra Anthony (24.4 ppg), who ranks 4^th nationally in points and 6^th nationally in free throw percentage (.926). Anthony has 11 20-plus point performances this season, including three of 30 or more. She just moved past Cheryl Ford and into 25^th place on the LA Tech career scoring list with her 28-point effort in the loss to Rice.

However, the key for the Lady Techsters is getting more production from the rest of the roster.

"It's a matter of us getting back to doing the things we were doing in non-conference games," said Stoehr. "Screening people; actually putting a body on people when we screen. Last week we would run around and get under 10 seconds on the shot clock and just give the ball to Kierra and run an on-ball screen and see what she could do. She hit some really tough shots for us but that's not the offense. We have to have everyone step up and handle their role on the floor."