Dec. 28, 2015
CHICAGO -- UIC winds down the nonconference portion of its 2015-16 slate on Tuesday, Dec. 29, when it hosts the Northern Illinois Huskies at the UIC Pavilion at 7 p.m. It also marks the last opportunity to see the Flames play in the Windy City before they head out on a three-game road trip to open Horizon League play.
Before taking time to enjoy a holiday break, UIC knocked off Purdue Calumet, 91-74, in its last contest on Dec. 22. The Huskies have also been idle since that night, when they downed another Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference foe, the Roosevelt Lakers, in DeKalb. NIU is 9-2 on the season, however they have only one victory away from the friendly confines of the Convocation Center.
Below are a few headlines as UIC preps to host the Huskies in an in-state showdown Tuesday night:
DIXSON DOES IT AGAIN
For the third time in seven weeks, UIC's Dikembe Dixson was named the Horizon League Freshman of the Week on Monday, Dec. 28. The Freeport, Ill., native poured in 17 points to go along with a game-high nine rebounds and a career-best three steals in a victory over Purdue Calumet on Dec. 22. Dixson becomes the first-ever Flame to win the HL Freshman of the Week award three times, and he is the first player in program history to win at least three weekly recognitions of any kind since Mark Miller won the conference's Player of the Week award four times during the 1997-98 campaign.
SNIDER SHINES OF LATE
After averaging only 2.3 points per game through UIC's first eight contests, senior guard Gabe Snider has paced the Flames in scoring with 14.5 ppg over the last two ballgames. After matching a career high with 11 points at Loyola on Dec. 19, the Chicagoan went off for a career-best 18 points against Purdue Calumet on Dec. 22. Snider scored those 18 points by nailing a personal-best six 3-pointers against the Peregrines, all in the final 5:49 of the contest.
WINDEX MEN
UIC ranks second in the Horizon League and 16th in the NCAA with 42.8 rebounds per game. Freshman Dikembe Dixson paces the squad and ranks sixth in the conference (tops among freshmen) with 7.4 boards per game. On the offensive end, the Flames average 15.0 rebounds per game, ranking 13th in the country in that category. Those boards have helped UIC average 14.4 second-chance points per game. Tai Odiase ranks second in the conference with 2.8 offensive caroms per contest.
BLOCK PARTY
Tai Odiase has established himself as one of the Horizon League's leading shot blockers. Odiase, who ranks second in the conference with 2.1 blocks per game, sent back a career-high five shots against San Francisco in the season opener on Nov. 13, including three in the first 1:39 of the contest. The team blocked a total of nine shots in that game, the most for a UIC squad since Feb. 5, 2009, vs. Cleveland State. The Flames, after rejecting eight more shots vs. Purdue Calumet on Dec. 22, currently lead the Horizon League with 4.8 blocks per game.
MILESTONE WATCH
UIC, which began NCAA Division I play in 1981, needs one win to reach No. 500 at the level. The school's first team was fielded in 1947-48 and the program owns 808 all-time victories.
MINUTE MEN
Freshman Dikembe Dixson leads UIC, and ranks eighth in the Horizon League, in playing time this season with 310 minutes, or 31.0 minutes per game. He was on the floor for a career-high 39 minutes against Illinois State on Dec. 16, and for 36 minutes the outing before that against Illinois (Dec. 12). Eleven Flames are averaging at least 10.3 minutes per game this season, while five, including two true freshmen, are playing an average of 23.3 minutes or more per ballgame.
For more information about Tuesday's game, please click the Game Notes PDFs above.
The Flames will ring in 2016 with a three-game road trip that begins on Saturday, Jan. 2 at Valparaiso. The Crusaders are the defending Horizon League champions and the squad was tabbed by the conference's coaches and media members as the favorite to do so again at Media Day in October. The journey continues with games at Detroit and Oakland on Jan. 8 and Jan. 10, respectively.
