CHICAGO -- UIC has earned the opportunity to play in the postseason for the second consecutive season and the Flames will begin the 10^th CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament on Wednesday, March 14, when they host the Saint Francis Red Flash at 7 p.m. CT.
 
The Flames (17-15, 12-6 Horizon League) are playing in the postseason in back-to-back years for the first time since the 2002-03 and 2003-04 seasons when the program went to the NIT and NCAA Tournament in consecutive campaigns. Coincidentally, the current group has helped win at least 17 games in back-to-back seasons for the first time since that era. This is the seventh time that UIC has accepted a postseason bid, and the second time playing in the CIT. The Flames went 1-1 in the 2013 CIT and the first-round win over Chicago State on March 20, 2013 was the first postseason victory in program history.
 
Saint Francis (18-12, 12-6 Northeast Conference) entered the NEC tournament on a five-game winning streak, which was the program's longest since the 2010-11 season. SFU bowed out of the NEC Championship following an 85-74 loss to Fairleigh Dickinson on Feb. 28. The Red Flash saw two players start all 30 games during the 2017-18 season in Jamaal King and Keith Braxton. King was the team's top scorer at 18.3 points per game, while Braxton poured in 17.4 ppg. Braxton nearly averaged a double-double with a team-best 9.7 rebounds per game.
 
The CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament is a single-elimination tournament consisting of five rounds. All games are played on campus sites, which will be determined by seeding. For the first time in tournament history, all 2018 CIT games will be televised on CBS Sports Network and CBS Digital. Wednesday's game will air for free on WatchCIT.com with Jordan Bernfield, Jonathan Hood and Chris Bleck on the call.

STARTING FIVE

• UIC is playing in a postseason tournament for the seventh time in program history. It will be the second time in the CIT (2013).
• The team's first-ever postseason victory came in the 2013 CIT, an 80-69 victory over Chicago State (March 20, 2013).
• The Flames won 12 conference games this year for the first time since 2003-04 (12).
• UIC has won at least 17 games in back-to-back seasons for the first time since the 2002-03 and 2003-04 campaigns.
• UIC picked up two #HLMBB specialty awards when Tai Odiase was named the Defensive Player of the Year, and Godwin Boahen, the Sixth Man of the Year.

A WIN VS. SAINT FRANCIS WOULD GIVE UIC...

• At least one postseason victory in each of the team's last three appearances (2013 CIT, 2017 CBI).
• A 3-0 record all-time against the Red Flash
• Its 11^th win of the season at home, most in the Steve McClain era and most since 2012-13 (12).

TWO FLAMES EARN #HLMBB HONORS

• For the second consecutive season, UIC's Tai Odiase was named the Horizon League Defensive Player of the Year on Feb. 28.
• The senior averaged 3.4 blocks per game in conference play and set the Horizon League's all-time record this season.
• Odiase is the third player in conference history to earn the award twice, joining both Ronald Nored (Butler) and Vashil Fernandez (Valparaiso).
• Sophomore Godwin Boahen became the first player in program history to win the #HLMBB Sixth Man of the Year Award.
• Boahen scored 9.2 points per game and  led the League in 3-point percentage in all (50.8) and League games (42.6).

MR. MARCH

• Tarkus Ferguson has played six career games in March over the last two seasons and is averaging 13.7 points, 7.3 rebounds and 6.8 assists in the month.
• On March 4 against Milwaukee, Ferguson scored a season-high 23 points and shot 70 percent from the field, 60 percent from 3-point range and 100 percent from the free throw line (6-of-6).
• Ferguson tallied a career-high 27 pointsat Coastal Carolina in the semifinals of the CBI on March 22, 2017.
• He matched the CBI's single-game assist record against George Washington with 12 helpers on March 20, 2017.

NOT IN TAI'S HOUSE

• Tai Odiase owns 351 blocks, most in UIC and Horizon League history, after swatting three against Milwaukee on March 4.
• The Glenwood, Ill., native is the NCAA's active leader in total career blocks (351) and ranks sixth in career blocks per game (2.79).
• Odiase is tied in the NCAA record book with Basketball Hall of Famer David Robinson (Navy; 1985-87) for 42nd all-time. He trails another Hall of Famer, Dikembe Mutombo (Georgetown; 1988-91), by three blocks.
• He ranks fourth in NCAA with 3.19 blocks per game this year, and averaged 3.4 blocks per game in UIC's 18 Horizon League contests.

SOPHOMORE SCORERS

• In 30 of 32 games, UIC has been led (or tied) in the scoring department by five sophomores.
• Six total sophomores on the roster account for 76.9 percent of the team's scoring this season with 1,848 out of 2,403 total points.
• Six of UIC's top seven point producers - and the top two in Dikembe Dixson (14.2) and Marcus Ottey (13.5) - are all in their second seasons of athletic eligibility.

More statistics, notes and information for Wednesday's game can be found in the Game Notes (PDF) linked in the blue box above.