Nov. 5, 2001
Chicago, Ill. -The University of Illinois at Chicago men's basketball team couldn't be happier to see BC Albacomp of Budapest, Hungary make its way to the Windy City.
After almost four weeks of battling one another on the basketball floor, the 2001-02 Flames are eager to test their mettle against an outside foe as they open the preseason tonight at the UIC Pavilion at 7:30 p.m.
"We're very excited," Head Coach Jimmy Collins, who is entering his sixth season at UIC, said. "We've got a lot of things accomplished as far as what we want to do offensively (in practice) and a lot of things that we want to do defensively.
"But, of course, we've been going against each other and guy's tempers have been flaring," Collins continued. "We've also been getting nagging injuries and if we're going to get those kind of injuries I would rather that it happen on the battlefield than on the practice court."
This is the second straight season the Flames have taken on a Hungarian team in the preseason as UIC toppled MAFC-KE of Budapest 71-58 last year. Aaron Carr led the Flames in the contest, finishing with 15 points and four rebounds.
Tonight's contest with BC Albacomp marks the debut of heralded newcomers Cedrick Banks and Martell Bailey of Chicago's Westinghouse High School. Banks, a 6-foot-2 guard, was the 2000 Chicago Sun-Times Player of the Year, averaging 21.1 points and 8.4 rebounds per game as a senior. Bailey, a 5-foot-10 point guard, was a First-Team All-State honoree in 2000 after totaling 14.5 points, 8.3 assists and 4.6 rebounds per contest. During their four years at Westinghouse, the dynamic duo led their team to an amazing 132-3 record and four consecutive Chicago Public League Championships.
"I think they are going to play well," Collins said on what he hopes to see from his new dynamic duo. "They are very talented players, but they are still going to make some mistakes.
"I'm anxious to see how Martell runs the ballclub," Collins continued. "I'm anxious to see how much control Cedrick is going to have going from end-to-end."
"There are a lot of things I'm anxious to see."
Along with Banks and Bailey and the five other newcomers to the UIC lineup, the Flames feature nine familiar faces, including top returning scorers Jon-Pierre Mitchom (10.3 ppg) and Joe Scott (10.4 ppg), as well as senior center Thor Solverson, who missed most of last season with a knee injury.
With the large influx of young talent on the floor, Coach Collins is counting on these veterans to be as much mentors as key cogs on the floor for the Flames this season.
"The guys that have been here for a while have taken these guys under their wing and told them what to expect from Division I basketball," Collins said. "Their role is leadership as well as helping us win some ball games.
"That's just another reason why were anxious to start playing the games," Collins continued. "To see how these guys gel together."
BC Albacomp features players ranging in age from 19 to 31 with head coach Laszlo Sternbenz's crew featuring a tall front line with a pair of 7-footers to go along with a duo of 6-foot-11 forwards. Tonight's contest marks the start of a five-game tour of the United States for BC Albacomp. Following their battle with the Flames, Albacomp will travel to Eastern Illinois before finishing off the trip with visits to Tulsa, Marquette and South Carolina.
"They are big guys and as most teams from Europe go they shoot the basketball very well," Collins said. "We have to be ready for it all."
The Flames have one more exhibition contest on the slate as they take on Marathon Oil on Tuesday, Nov. 13, at 7:30 p.m. UIC then kicks off the regular season at home on Sunday, Nov. 18, as they welcome Indiana State to the Pavilion for a 5:00 p.m. tip-off.
