CHICAGO – The UIC women's basketball team (7-8, 0-4 HL) put up 28 points in the third quarter after facing a 16-point hole, but were ultimately unable to hold off visiting Oakland (10-6, 3-2 HL) at the UIC Pavilion Thursday night, falling to the Golden Grizzlies by a final score of 67-63.  

First Half Highlights

• Brittney Byrd sank a three to put the Flames on the board first, but Oakland got its first basket shortly after, and then quickly went on a 16-0 run. The strain featured six three-point attempts, four of which were successful.
• Meanwhile, UIC experienced a fair amount of shooting woes, shooting a mere 9 percent through the first 7:37 of the first quarter.
• Kienya Jones drew a foul and went to the line for a pair of good free throws to end the Flames scoring drought, but another three from the Golden Grizzlies created further separation.
• Tia Tedford recorded the first Flames field goal good for two with just under a minute remaining in the first, ending the quarter with a 21-8 lead for Oakland.
• Both teams were an identical 2-for-5 through the first 3:30 of the second, until the Flames were able to create some offense, going on a 7-0 run over a 4:41 period.
• Oakland soon after found its rhythm, sinking a three and netting a breakaway layup for a 33-17 lead.
• Tedford sank another late in the quarter field goal for the Flames' final points in the half, but the Flames headed to the locker room facing a 34-22 hole.

Second Half Highlights

• Jumpers by Tylah Lampley and Taylor Toney got UIC started in the second half, and a good layup from Gabryelle Johnson put the Flames' deficit into the single digits, 37-28.
• Brittney Byrd sank her fourth three of the evening and Lampley put one in off the backboard, while sturdy defense kept Oakland quiet through the middle minutes of the third quarter, allowing the Flames to come within six, 39-33.
• Taylor Toney ran in a layup to put the Flames within four at the 43-39 mark, and Gabryelle Johnson drew a charge on UIC's defensive end to give the Flames the ball back.
• Back on UIC's side, Johnson drew another foul and put in two at the line, which was quickly followed by an offensive rebound and layup by Byrd to tie it, who was awarded a trip to the charity stripe. Byrd's free throw put the Flames ahead, and Toney continued with the layups, putting UIC ahead by four, 49-45. The 28-point quarter for the Flames ended with a 50-47 lead for UIC.
• Lampley netted five points to start the fourth, sinking a layup and a trio of free throws, but a messy pass led to a UIC turnover, allowing the visitors to run it back and come within three, 57-54.
• A pair of Golden Grizzlies jumpers changed the tide, putting them up by one, but it was Lampley to the rescue again with her ninth point of the quarter to reconcile the Flames, 61-60.
• Oakland put in a three to regain the lead, but Toney thieved the ball on the Golden Grizzlies next possession and fed it to Byrd beyond the arc, which was off target, but Johnson was there to put it in and tie it at 63.
• With just 18 seconds remaining, Oakland took back the lead off a layup. The Flames had the opportunity to tie it with Byrd sent to the line, but both freebees were missed. UIC was unable to find another chance from that point, ending the game with a 67-63 loss.

Facts and Figures

• UIC's 28 points tied its second-highest point total in a single quarter this season, matching their 28 points against Evansville on Dec. 16, but just missing its season-high 31 mark, which came against Eastern Michigan on Dec. 8.
• Brittney Byrd recorded double-digits for her third-straight game, leading all scorers with 18 points. Byrd also matched her season-high eight rebounds. Byrd was the sole three-point shooter for UIC with three.
• Making her first start in what was the first change in the starting lineup all season, Tylah Lampley was in double figures for the second game in-a-row with 14 points, just one point shy of her career-high mark at Cleveland State this past Saturday.
• Taylor Toney also finished the night in double digits with 11 points, and was efficient on the boards, collecting seven rebounds.
• Gabryelle Johnson grabbed 10 rebounds for the second-straight game, while also adding eight points.
• The Flames out-offensive rebounded their opponent for the 13th game this season, with 23 compared to Oakland's 20. UIC finished the night with 58 total boards to Oakland's 47.
• The shooting battle was as close as they come, as the Golden Grizzlies made 32.5 percent of all shots to UIC's 32.4 percent. Oakland made a staggering 22 three-point attempts, netting eight, while the Flames attempted just ten.
• The two teams matched up well in the paint, with Oakland scoring 34 and UIC putting in 32. The Golden Grizzlies got 15 points from UIC miscues, while the Flames grabbed 13 from Oakland turnovers.

Up Next

• The Flames will be back in action with their second of three games within a six-day period, as they battle Detroit on Saturday at 3 p.m. CT in the UIC Pavilion.

Highlights