Jamaica, N.Y. -- The University of Alabama-Birmingham has penciled their name into the National Invitation Tournament quarterfinals to play host St. John's on Thursday, March 27 at Alumni Hall (SJU's on-campus facility). Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m.

Good seats are still available for tomorrow night's clash. A special $5 price for Alumni Hall's new student section as well as a discount rate for faculty and University employees has been established. For groups of 20 or more the same price is being offered. The general public can also purchase tickets for $20.

The St. John's Ticket Office hours are as follows: Wednesday, 10-7 p.m. and Thursday, 10-4:30 p.m. Windows will open again one hour before game time at 6:30 pm prior to tipoff.

UAB (21-12) defeated Siena College last night 80-71 in Albany, N.Y. to advance to tomorrow night's contest versus the Red Storm (18-13).

St. John's has won six of its last seven games and is coming off an impressive 73-63 second round NIT win over Virginia. SJU is led by All-American candidate Marcus Hatten (Baltimore, MD) who is averaging 22.4 points per game.

The Blazers (a member of Conference USA) are led by 5-11 junior Morris Finley (LaFayette, AL) who is averaging 18.1 points per game for first year head coach Mike Anderson's squad.

The winner of Thursday's UAB/SJU game will play the victor of tonight's Georgia Tech/Texas Tech matchup in the semifinals of the NIT on Tuesday, April 1 at Madison Square Garden. The Red Raiders of Texas Tech are coached by Bobby Knight while Paul Hewitt roams the sidelines for the Yellow Jackets of Georgia Tech.

The NIT Championship and Consolation Games will be played on Thursday, April 3 at MSG.