The #10 UIC Flames saw their season come to an end in the quarterfinals of the Horizon League Tournament, with a 79-52 loss to #2 Wright State at Joe Louis Arena Saturday afternoon.  The Flames finish the 2016-17 season with a record of 6-25, while the 24-7 Raiders will advance to a semifinal on Monday.

The Flames started well, taking a 4-0 lead after Brittany Byrd grabbed a steal and fed Gabryelle Johnson for a layup, and Taylor Toney made a jumper late in the shot clock.  But Wright State scored the next nine points and never trailed again.

Turnovers plagued UIC early and often, much as they did in the two regular season games against the Raiders.  Wright State scored 20 points off of 16 first half Flames turnovers en route to a 38-15 advantage at the break.  Even when the Raiders' shots weren't falling, as when they went through a 3-for-18 drought spanning the first two quarters, UIC couldn't maintain possession long enough to put together a run of their own.

"Wright State likes to defend the middle of the floor and force you to pass the ball around the outside," head coach Regina Miller noted.  "But we had too many bad passes and unforced turnovers which you can't have happen and beat a team of their caliber."

Taylor Toney tied her career highs with 25 points and 10 rebounds, marking her third double-double of the season.  Seniors Terri Bender and Melita Emanuel-Carr, each playing their final game in a Flames uniform, scored nine points and had three rebounds apiece.  Bender added to her school record with six assists, putting her at 504 in her illustrious career.

Wright State made some timely threes to build their lead.  They were 5-of-10 from behind the arc in the first half, while UIC struggled to an 0-for-6 half.  Four Raiders made a triple, the last of whom was Emily Vogelpohl, who immediately followed her long distance shot with a steal and a layup to make the score 24-8 early in the second quarter.

The Flames, fighting for their tournament lives, outplayed the Raiders in the third quarter.  UIC hit eight of 11 field goals and got five straight points, and seven of their last nine in the period, from Emanuel-Carr.  They would connect on 52% of their shots in the second half, giving them one half of 50% or better in each tournament game this year.

The Flames finished with 27 turnovers, leading to 34 Raider points.  Wright State averaged 28.7 points off turnovers in the three games between the teams this year.  They have eliminated the Flames in consecutive Horizon League tournaments.

Though UIC will lose Bender, Emanuel-Carr, and Laura Litchfield to graduation, the team's nucleus has two more years together.  "If you look at our lineup, most of our scoring production came from sophomores," Miller said.  Toney and Brittany Byrd were UIC's top two leaders in most scoring categories.  "I looked for Terri to be an extension of me on the floor.  Melita was capable of scoring 20 on any given night.  Laura provided leadership and set an example for our underclassmen.  We will miss them but the future for UIC looks bright."