Dec. 27, 2014
UIC GAME NOTES
HEADLINES
The Opening Tip
The UIC men's basketball team will look for its first road win of the season on Sunday as the team travels to Peoria, Ill. to face Bradley. The non-league contest is a return ESPN BracketBuster game from the 2012-13 season when the Braves escaped Chicago with a 63-62 victory. BU's Jake Eastman converted a put-back with one second left on the clock to erase a once double-digit Flames' lead. Sunday's tilt will be the sixth all-time meeting between the two programs as Bradley holds a 4-1 series advantage. Neither team has played since Dec. 22.
Tough Non-League Schedule
UIC's 2014-15 non-league schedule is highlighted by several quality opponents with winning records. The Flames' 13 Division-I non-conference opponents are a combined 94-61 (.606) this season as 10 of those 13 programs tout records of .500 or better. The following are UIC's D-I opponents and records: Loyola (10-2), Dayton (9-2), Kent State (8-3), Yale (9-4), SMU (8-4), Northwestern (8-4), UT-Martin (7-4), UCF (7-4), SIU (7-6), Grand Canyon (7-7), DePaul (6-7), Western Illinois (4-6) and Bradley (4-8). Sunday's contest versus Bradley will be UIC's first game against a team that has a winning percentage under .636 since Dec. 2 when Grand Canyon was 2-4.
Familiar Foe For Coach Moore
UIC head coach Howard Moore will face a familiar foe on Sunday as Moore spent three years on the Bradley sidelines as an assistant coach. Moore served as an assistant from 2000-2003 and helped the Braves post a 19-12 record and an appearance in the NIT during his first season in Peoria.
Jay Harris Game-Time Decision at Bradley
Fifth-year transfer Jay Harris will be a game-time decision for Sunday's tilt at Bradley after sitting out against Northwestern on Dec. 22. Harris had injured his right foot prior to the NU game. He is the Flames' leading scorer at 15.8 points per contest.
Miller Has Career Game vs. NU
Junior D'Juan Miller had one of his best games as a member of the Flames against Northwestern last Monday, scoring a team-high 13 points, all in the second half, and recording career-highs of seven assists and five rebounds.
The Constant Scorer
Fifth-year transfer Jay Harris has been a reliable source for points during his first nine games at UIC as he is averaging a team-best 15.8 points per game, which also ranks eighth in the Horizon League. Dating back to his final four games at Wagner, Harris has scored double figures in 11 of the last 13 games with efforts of 10, 18, 15, 15, 16, 19, 16, 8, 17, 12, 32, 18 and six The Aurora, Ill., native also leads the team in made three-pointers with 17 in nine total games.
Cleaning Up the Glass
Jake Wiegand has tallied five double-digit rebounding efforts so far this season, standing as one of three Horizon League players to do so. He ranks tied-for-second in the conference in boards per game (8.2) and tied-for-31st in the nation in total rebounds (106). Wiegand now owns 300 career boards and needs just 52 more to surpass his total from last season of 158. The power forward has also paced UIC on glass in 11 of 13 games this season.
The Second Half Surge
The Flames have been recognized for their strong second half play so far this season. UIC is averaging 10.5 points more in the final period as compared to the first (25.5 to 36.0) and have outscored their opponents by a margin of 468-456 in the second half. Increases are evident in field-goal shooting (.315 to .396), three-point shooting (.261 to .313) and free-throw shooting (.738 to .753). The Flames have also committed much less turnovers in the final 20 minutes (83 to 65).
Jay Harris Explodes for Career-High 32 Points vs. UCF
Fifth-year transfer Jay Harris was named the Horizon League Player of the Week on Monday (Dec. 15) for his career-high 32-point performance against UCF on Dec.11. Harris guided the Flames to a 71-60 home win against the Knights and became the first UIC player to score 32 or more points in a home game since Dec. 8, 2007 (Josh Mayo, 32 pts.). The Aurora, Ill. native also notched career-bests with nine made field goals and 10 made free throws. His 32 points is tied for the highest single-game output in the conference this season with Cleveland State's Trey Lewis. The award marks the first for UIC this season and the first in Harris' career.
Wiegand Improves Year After Year
Junior Jake Wiegand has made tremendous strides in each season with the Flames as the power forward is averaging 12.5 points and 8.2 rebounds per game this year. Those numbers are drastic increases from his sophomore season when he averaged 7.5 points and 5.1 boards per game. During his freshman year, Wiegand averaged just 6.6 minutes per contest, recording 2.3 points and 1.3 rebounds per outing. Wiegand is the only player for UIC to start all 13 games this season and was also named a team captain prior to the 2014-15 campaign, along with senior Marc Brown.
One of the Nation's Best
The Flames have been one of the nation's best free-throw shooting teams so far this season as UIC is averaging 75.2 percent (209-of-278). That figure currently ranks 17th in the country and tops in the Horizon League, while UIC's 209 made free throws ranks 18th in the NCAA. UIC touts seven players that are shooting above 75 percent from the charity stripe. Marc Brown (.895) and Jay Harris (.891) rank 39th and 43rd in the nation, respectively, in free-throw shooting percentage and No. 1 and 2 in the conference. UIC's single-season record is currently held by Josh Mayo who shot .886 during the 2006-07 season.
Your Rebounding is Offensive
UIC ranks first in the Horizon League in offensive rebounds with an average of 12.8 boards per game. The Flames have out-rebounded its opponent on the offensive glass in 11 of 13 games this year. Junior Jake Wiegand ranks first in the HL in offensive rebounding (3.3), while freshman Tai Odiase ranks ninth (1.8).
Tai in the Sky
Tai Odiase continues to be one of the nation's best new rim protectors as his 26 blocked shots ranks tied-for-sixth among all freshmen in the NCAA this season. That total also ranks tied-for-40th overall in the country and second in the Horizon League to Valparaiso's Vashil Fernandez (45). Odiase is already UIC's career-active leader with 26 swats and needs just 18 more to crack the Flames' top-10 single-season leaderboard.
D'Juan with the Dish
Junior D'Juan Miller notched a career-high seven assists against Northwestern last Monday. The 5-foot-8 point guard paces the team in assists with an average of 3.8 per contest, which ranks fourth in the Horizon League.
Marc Brown Eyes 1,000 Career Points
Senior guard Marc Brown needs 153 more points to reach 1,000 for his career as he currently owns 847 points. He would become the 21st player in program history to do so and the first since current graduate manager Robo Kreps (2007-11). The Dallas native tallied a season-high 23 points against UT-Martin on Dec. 15, his sixth career 20-point effort. Brown scored 349 points last season which nearly doubled his 188 total from his sophomore campaign.
Double-Double Machine
Jake Wiegand collected his fourth double-double of the season on Dec. 2 versus Grand Canyon with a 12-point and 10-rebound performance. Wiegand is one of three players in the Horizon League to have four or more double-doubles so far this season. The junior began the season with back-to-back double-doubles, becoming the first UIC player to start the year in such a manner since 1998 (Bryant Notree). Last season, then-senior Jordan Harks paced the Flames with three double-doubles for the entire year.
Pair of 20-Point Efforts
UIC recorded a pair of 20-point efforts against UT-Martin (Dec. 15) for the first time since Jan. 25, 2014. Junior Paris Burns led the Flames with 24 points, including 14 in the second half, while senior Marc Brown netted a season-high 23.
Former Flames Excel in NBA D-League
Former UIC men's basketball players Gary Talton (2011-13) and Kelsey Barlow (2013-14) are off to great starts in the NBA D-League this season. Talton is in his second season with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers and is averaging 14.4 points, 13.5 assists and 5.8 rebounds per game. Barlow is in his first professional season as a member of the Grand Rapids Drive. He is averaging 6.0 points per game and shooting 47.4 percent from three-point range.
2015 Signing Class
Head coach Howard Moore recently announced the addition of three signees to the 2015-16 UIC roster. Those players include junior college transfer Burak Eslik (G, 6-4, 185, Istanbul, Turkey/Lewis and Clark CC) and soon-to-be freshmen Drew Hackett (G, 6-2, 170, Munster, Ind./Munster HS) and Garrett Bye (F/C, 6-10, 210, Steamboat Springs, Colo./Steamboat Springs).
Wiegand Named to All-Tournament Team
Junior Jake Wiegand was named to the Men Against Breast Cancer Classic All-Tournament Team earlier this season. The junior forward averaged 13.7 points and 5.7 rebounds per game, while shooting 53.3 percent from the field during the weekend's three games. He scored a game-high 26 points against tournament-host Kent State this past Saturday, his second career 20-point effort, while hitting a career-best 11 field goals. Eleven buckets ranks tied-for-14th in the country so far this season in single-game performances.
