Box Score Dec. 19, 2015
CHICAGO -- UIC was stunted by too many turnovers Saturday afternoon as it fell in a crosstown contest to the Loyola Ramblers, 64-47, at Gentile Arena on the city's far north side.
The Flames committed 21 turnovers in the game, matching a high mark for the season, and the Ramblers converted those opportunities by scoring 24 points off the miscues. On the flip side, Loyola turned the ball over only 11 times in victory, leading to just four points for UIC.
Loyola took advantage of four early UIC mistakes to build a 9-0 lead over the first 4:27 of the contest. The home team's lead reached 10 points at the 12:28 mark, but a 3-point basket from the left corner from birthday-boy Gabe Snider, ahead of an offensive rebound and a put-back by Najeal Young, steadied the ship for UIC and quickly cut the deficit in half.
The Flames grinded away methodically and eventually grabbed their first lead of the game, 20-19, after Dikembe Dixson corralled an offensive carom and put it back up and in with 5:22 to go in the opening stanza. The basket capped a 15-7 run over 5:28.
Despite missing its last nine field-goal attempts of the half, and shooting only 28 percent (7-of-25), Loyola led at the break, 25-22. The Ramblers held the slim lead, thanks in part, to the 10 free throws they shot in the first half. LUC went to the line 13 times in the first 20 minutes, but UIC did not visit the charity stripe once. The home team was called for only five fouls, while the visitors were charged with 15.
The Flames scored the first five points of the second half with a pair of freebies from Dixson and a 3-pointer from Dominique Matthews to turn the three-point deficit into a two-point advantage with only 1:08 gone by. Loyola soon pushed the lead to five before Matthews converted inside once again with 13:27 to go to pull UIC to within three.
Loyola caught a bit of fire after Matthews' conversion, and it unleashed a 10-0 run that pushed the lead up to 13 points with 11:18 to go. Lance Whitaker ended the scoring drought for the Flames with a jumper from near the free-throw line that bounced high off the rim and fell in with 10 and a half minutes left on the clock.
Following that Whitaker make, however, the Flames could not close the gap any nearer than 10 points with 5:42 remaining at Gentile Arena.
Snider paced UIC with 11 points Saturday, matching his career best effort for a third time. The Chicagoan added four rebounds, an assist and a steal in 24 minutes of action. A trio of Flames -- Dixson, Matthews and Whitaker -- each poured in seven points, while Dixson was the top rebounder with six.
Four Ramblers scored in double figures, led by Montel James' 14 points off the bench. LUC's Donte Ingram led all players with eight rebounds.
UIC will turn its attention to the Purdue-Calumet Peregrines for a matchup on Tues., Dec. 22 at the UIC Pavilion. It will be the 12th meeting all-time between the two schools. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. and tickets are available by calling 312-413-UIC1 (8421) or visiting Ticketmaster today.
UIC Notes: UIC used the same starting lineup as it did vs. Illinois State on Dec. 16, marking the first time all season that it's opened with identical groups in back-to-back games ... The Flames did not attempt a free throw in the first half, marking the first period all season that they were kept off the line ... Freshman Dikembe Dixson led UIC in rebounding for the sixth time in nine career games ... In addition to his season-high 11 points, Gabe Snider connected a season-best three times from beyond the arc ... Snider is the fourth different UIC player to lead the team in scoring this season, joining Dixson (4), Tai Odiase (2) and Dominique Matthews (2) ... Loyola marked the sixth in-state opponent of the Flames' non-conference slate ... The two teams combined for only 16 assists Saturday ... UIC leads the all-time series against Loyola, 30-23.
