GREELEY Colo. -- UIC's championship quest concluded Friday night as the Flames fell at Northern Colorado in the title game of the 10^th CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament, 76-71.

The final score does not tell the whole tale of UIC's never-say-die mentality throughout the title bout. The Flames (20-16) trailed by as many as 16 points with 7:33 to go before roaring back in a span of just over five minutes to cut slice the deficit to one with 2:03 remaining. The visitors could not get over the hump, however and Northern Colorado (23-15) took the title, 76-71.

UIC shot only 36 percent as a team in the season finale, but 47 during the furious second-half comeback. Marcus Ottey paced the Flames with 25 points on 10-of-18 from the field, while scoring 21 over 18 minutes in the second half. Tarkus Ferguson added his second double-double of the tournament behind 13 points and 10 rebounds.

Ferguson, Ottey and senior Tai Odiase were each named to the CIT All-Tournament team.

UIC finishes the 2017-18 season with 20 wins, most since 2003-04, and three postseason wins, most in program history.

First Half Headlines

• Weather the Storm: Behind a sell-out crowd, Northern Colorado got off to a fast start and had a 9-4 lead with 5:44 gone by at the start of the game. UIC reversed course and went on a 9-2 run of its own to snatch the lead right back at 13-11 following two free throws from Tarkus Ferguson at the 12:09 mark.
• Foul Trouble: UIC was saddled with foul trouble through much of the first half. Guards Marcus Ottey and Ferguson each had a pair within the first 15:07 of the half and Northern Colorado had a steady parade to the free throw line. The Bears took advantage and made of 8-of-9 free throws in the period.
• Strong on the Inside: UIC made a trio of 3-pointers in the first half with one each from Godwin Boahen, Jordan Blount and Dominique Matthews. Northern Colorado, conversely, did its damage in the paint. The home team outscored the visitors, 22-6, in the paint in the first half to help gain a nine-point lead at the break.
• One Man Show: Northern Colorado's top scorer, Andre Spight, made only 2-of-10 from the field in the first half. The bulk of the scoring was done by junior Jordan Davis. He shot 60 percent from the floor and led all players with 16 first-half points.
• Fast Finish: UIC lead 24-21 on a short jumper from Tai Odiase with 5:31 left in the first half. That was the last field goal of the half for the Flames and after that shot, Northern Colorado closed hard on a 14-2 run to take a 35-36 lead into the locker room.

 Second Half Headlines

• Bears Bound In Front: Northern Colorado pushed its lead 14 before UIC used a 10-2 run to cut the lead down to six, 42-36, following a steal and layup from Ottey with 16:08 left in the half. The Bears scored six straight after that with the help of two Flames turnovers and two missed 3-pointers to go back in front by 12.
• Largest Lead: UIC was within nine points with 9:18 to go before seven unanswered points from UNC helped the home team secure its largest lead of the evening at 16 points with 7:33 left on the clock.
• Technical Turning Point: On the next possession, Ferguson drew a loose-ball foul and the harmer, Jonah Radebaugh, was also assessed a technical foul. UIC's sophomore guard made 3-of-4 free throws in the sequence and the comeback was most certainly on. He helped get Northern Colorado's lead back down to eight with 4:36 left after grabbing a defensive rebounding,  driving the lane, scoring, drawing a foul and making the free throw.
• And They Kept Coming: UNC led by nine before Ottey canned a 3-pointer with 3:40 to go to make it a two-possession game. After the Bears turned it over, Michael Diggins find the bottom of the net from beyond the arc with 2:52 left to make it a three-point game. Boahen then stole the ball and Ottey knifed inside to score with 2:06 remaining to trim what had been a 16-point deficit to one in a matter of 5:27 of game time.
• Comeback Incomplete: UNC's Jordan Davis scored on the next possession for his team and UIC would come no closer before falling, 76-71. The Bears missed a couple of free throws down the stretch to give the Flames a fighting chance, but UIC couldn't connect from downtown on a few occasions.

 Notables

• The Flames finished the season with at least 20 wins for the first time under head coach Steve McClain, and the first time overall since the 2003-04 season. It was the seventh campaign of 20-or-more victories in program history.
• UIC moved to 5-2 in postseason tournament games over the last two seasons. Prior to the 2017 College Basketball Invitational, the program had won just a single postseason game in its history. The Flames are now 4-2 in two CIT appearances.
• The squad lost its first true road game since Dec. 30 at Northern Kentucky. Prior to Friday, UIC had ripped off a program-record nine consecutive victories away from Chicago, surpassing the old mark, set in 2004, by two wins. The CIT championship was the first time the Flames fell on the road with Tarkus Ferguson in the lineup since Nov. 29,  2017, at Troy.
• All nine UIC players to enter the game scored at least one point Friday. It was the 14^th time in 36 games overall, and the third time in four CIT contests that every Flame entered the scoring column.
• The Flames made 20-of-24 from the charity stripe Friday, connecting at a clip of 83.3 percent.
• After not recording a block for just the second time this season in the semifinal at Liberty, Tai Odiase bounced back to swat three in the championship game. He rejected at least three shots in two of UIC's four CIT games. Odiase finished his collegiate career with 361 blocks, most in program and Horizon League history. He finishes the season ranked tied for 37^th all-time with another Chicago-area product Melvin Ely (Fresno State, 1999-2002).
• Odiase finished his career with 1,153 points, good for 16^th on the program's all-time list. He finished with 745 rebounds, ranking sixth in program history in that category.
• Marcus Ottey scored 21 of his team-high 25 points in the second half Friday. It was the 12^th time he led the Flames in scoring and the fifth time he recorded at least 20 points this year.
• Tarkus Ferguson scored 13 points against Northern Colorado, including a career-high 11 from the free throw line. The sophomore added a game-high 10 rebounds to notch his second double-double of the CIT and fourth of the season.
• Jordan Blount, who tied Ferguson with four double-doubles this season, just missed one in the CIT finale with nine points and eight rebounds. The Cork, Ireland, native also added three steals.
• UIC made only five 3-pointers, its lowest output of the tournament. After making 10 against both Saint Francis and Austin Peay in the first two games, the Flames made just 11 combined in the semifinal and final.  
• Friday's crowd of 3,198 fans marked the largest in the history of Bank of Colorado Arena.