Feb. 4, 2012

Pre-Game Notes

► UIC will look to tally its second-straight Horizon League win Sunday, when the Flames challenge first-place Cleveland State at the UIC Pavilion beginning at 1 p.m. CST. The Flames are coming off a 72-68 win over Youngstown State Thursday night, while CSU convincingly defeated Loyola, 65-47, Friday night at Gentile Arena.

► The Flames are 7-4 at the UIC Pavilion this season, and allowing their opponents to score just 60.2 points and achieve 40.1 percent shooting through 11 home games.

► Against Cleveland State, UIC will be looking to win back-to-back Horizon League games for the first time since the 2008-09 season.

► In Thursday night's win over Youngstown State, the Flames scored 72 points, their highest mark during Horizon League play, and committed a season-low nine turnovers. UIC had four players score in double-figures for the second-straight game.

► NEXT UP: UIC will kick-off a four-game road trip next Saturday (Feb. 11), when the Flames travel north to Rogers Park to take on rival Loyola at Gentile Arena (1 p.m. CST). The contest will be featured as the Horizon League "Game of the Week," and be televised locally on Comcast SportsNet Chicago.

THE COACHES
UIC: Howard Moore (Wisconsin, `95) is in his second season as the head coach at UIC. He spent the previous five seasons as an assistant coach at his alma mater, helping the Badgers to five-straight NCAA tournament berths. The Chicago native also served assistant coaching stints at Loyola (2004-05), Ball State (2003-04) and Bradley (1999-2003). Moore picked up his 14th head coaching win Thursday night against Youngstown State.

Cleveland State: Gary Waters is in his sixth season as the head coach at Cleveland State. The Vikings have achieved three 20-win seasons under Waters' tutelage, including 27 wins last year, tied for the second most in school history. Waters, who is in his 16th season as a head coach, also served stints at Rutgers (2001-06) and Kent State (1996-2001).

ABOUT CLEVELAND STATE
» Cleveland State, which sits alone atop the current Horizon League standings (9-2), was picked to finish third in the League's preseason poll.
» The Vikings have three players averaging double figures in scoring, led by Trevon Harmon's 11.9 points per game. D'Aundray Brown has added 11.3 points per contest, while Chicago native Jeremy Montgomery is scoring 10.9 points per game. Freshman Anton Grady is the Vikings' leading rebounder and shot blocker, averaging 5.5 boards and 1.3 blocks per game.
» The Vikings lead the Horizon League in scoring margin (+8.4), free throw percentage (.733), assists per game (14.9), steals (8.9 spg) and turnover margin (+3.3). In conference play, CSU is shooting a League-best 49.1 percent from the field, and also leads the Horizon League in both three-point field goal percentage (.432) and rebounding margin (+4.1).
» The Vikings are 10-2 on the road this season, including a 5-1 Horizon League road slate. CSU's only road loss during conference play came on Jan. 15, when the Vikings were defeated by host Valparaiso, 72-66.

SCOUTING THE FLAMES
UIC boasts two-of the Horizon League's top-15 scorers, in junior point guard Gary Talton (11.6 ppg; 12th) and junior guard Daniel Barnes (11.3; 13th) ... Senior center Darrin Williams ranks sixth in the League in rebounding (6.8 rpg), and fourth overall in both field goal percentage (.554) and blocks (1.4 bpg) ... Talton leads the Horizon League in free throw percentage (.863), and is sixth in assists (3.4 apg) ... Barnes is averaging 2.4 three-point field goals per game, the second-best mark in the League, and ranks sixth in the Horizon League in steals (1.4 spg) ... Sophomore forward Hayden Humes ranks third in the League in three-point field goal percentage (.426) ... Talton is scoring a Horizon League fifth-best 14.6 points per League game, and is shooting a conference-best 88.2 percent from the charity stripe in League games.

THE SERIES
Cleveland State leads the all-time series between the Flames and Vikings, 38-32. Overall, CSU has captured nine-straight victories over UIC, dating back to the 2008-09 campaign. The series began in the 1981-82 season, with Cleveland State winning both regular season meetings by a combined seven points. The Flames then rolled off five-straight wins, and also defeated the Vikings seven-consecutive times from 1996-99.

WHAT'S AT STAKE
With a win over Cleveland State, UIC would...
» Eclipse its entire victory output from the 2010-11 campaign (7), and double its Horizon League win total (2) from last season.
» Win back-to-back Horizon League games for the first time since the 2008-09 campaign.
» Win consecutive games for the first time since Nov. 15 and Nov. 19, 2010, when the Flames defeated Roosevelt and Toledo, respectively.
» Secure the regular-season split versus the Vikings -- Cleveland State posted a 73-56 win over the Flames at the Wolstein Center on Jan. 5.
» Improve to 8-4 at the UIC Pavilion this season, and record its fourth Horizon League home win.
» Snap its nine-game losing streak versus the Vikings.

DOWN TO THE WIRE...
UIC's men's basketball team has seen no shortage of nail biters this season, playing a total of 11 games decided by five points or less, including seven times during Horizon League play. UIC is 4-7 in those contests, and had a chance to either tie or win the game with a last-second shot in road games at Green Bay (12/1/11), Milwaukee (12/3/11) and Central Michigan (12/16/11). Additionally, the Flames have held second-half leads in eight-of their 15 losses this season, and have come up short in two overtime decisions.

ONE OF THE LEAGUE'S FINEST
Junior point guard Gary Talton, in his first season in a Flames' uniform, has posted double-digit scoring outputs in 10-of UIC's 12 Horizon League games. In the previous meeting against Cleveland State, Talton was held to just six points on 2-of-9 shooting.

SHARING THE WEALTH
UIC's men's basketball team has seen seven players lead the team in scoring this season, and six players pace the team in rebounding. Junior point guard Gary Talton has been the Flames' scoring leader on 14 occasions, while senior center Darrin Williams has paced the team in rebounding 13 times.

ALL TOGETHER NOW
UIC's junior backcourt tandem of Gary Talton and Daniel Barnes continues to represent the Flames' most consistent scoring tandem. Talton (11.6 ppg) and Barnes (11.3) have combined for 28 of UIC's 57 double-digit scoring performances this season, and are the respective 12th and 13th leading scorers in the Horizon League. The duo also ranks seventh (34.0 mpg) and eighth (33.8), respectively, in minutes played during League games.

LEADER OF THE PACK
Senior center Darrin Williams, who played his 50th career game at UIC Thursday night against Youngstown State, is the Flames' career active leader in points (355), total rebounds (247), offensive rebounds (92), defensive boards (155) and blocks (39). Williams has posted double-doubles in each of the past two games, including 11 points and a game-high 11 rebounds vs. YSU.

SEEKING THE WINNING FORMULA
When comparing the Flames' stats in wins and losses, the differences on the boards and in their team defense are noteworthy. In victory, UIC is holding its opponents to only 39.1 percent shooting, while losses have seen the Flames' opponents shoot 46.5 percent from the field. In wins, UIC owns a +5.9 rebounding margin, but just a +0.7 margin in defeat. All seven of UIC's wins this season have taken place at the UIC Pavilion.

SHOOTING FROM DISTANCE
UIC is averaging 6.8 made three-point field goals per game during Horizon League play this season, the third-best mark in the conference. The Flames have converted at least five threes in 16 games, and their top-two three-point shooting performances (10, both games versus Detroit) have taken place during Horizon League play. In the Howard Moore era, the Flames have drilled 289 threes, an average of 5.5 triples per game.