Feb. 20, 2016
CHICAGO -- UIC will honor seniors Gabe Snider and Jake Wiegand as they play in the final home game at the UIC Pavilion Sunday, Feb. 21, when the Flames play host to the Oakland Golden Grizzlies at 4 p.m. Snider and Wiegand, along with members of their families, will participate in Senior Day festivities prior to the start of the season's final Horizon League home game.
The game will be televised by the American Sports Network. It can be seen in the Chicagoland area on Comcast SportsNet Chicago with Dave Armstrong and Kevin Lehman on the call. The feed will also stream worldwide via ESPN3. The radio home of the Flames, ESPN1000 Chicago, will carry the contest with Jonathan Hood and Kenny Williams describing the action. Chris Bleck's pregame show begins at 3:45 p.m.
THANK YOU, SENIORS
A pair of UIC seniors will don the home white uniform for the final time at the UIC Pavilion Sunday against the Golden Grizzlies. Gabe Snider (Chicago, Ill./Whitney Young) and Jake Wiegand (Herndon, Va./Chantily/Fishburne Military Academy) joined the Flames for the 2012-13 season and the pair has played valuable roles in a combined 191 games over the course of the last four seasons. Wiegand entered the weekend as the team's active leader in both points (681) and rebounds (451), while Snider is the active leader in 3-point field goals made (69). Both players have missed time with injuries during their final campaign, but have worked their way back into the rotation and made significant contributions to the program over the past several weeks.
ALL IT TAKES IS ONE
UIC freshman Dikembe Dixson enters Sunday's game with 501 points this season, needing only one more to set the Horizon League scoring record for a freshman. After scoring 26 points on Friday vs. Detroit, the Freeport, Ill., native pulled into a first-place tie with former Flame Mark Miller (1995-96), the current record holder. The program record for scoring among first-year players belongs to Sherrell Ford (1992-93), who netted 601 points in his inaugural season. UIC played in the Mid-Continent Conference that year, which has since evolved into The Summit League. Here is a look at the Horizon League's top-five scoring freshmen:
1. Mark Miller, UIC - 501 points (1992-93)
2. Dikembe Dixson, UIC - 501 points (2015-16)
3. Byron Larkin, Xavier - 492 (1984-85)
4. Alfrederick Hughes, Loyola - 482 points (1982-83)
5. Tony Warren, Butler - 476 points (1979-80)
PAINT PROTECTOR
UIC sophomore Tai Odiase blocked a career-high nine shots on Feb. 13 against Northern Kentucky as he continues his meteoric rise through the program's all-time record book. That particular effort matched the best single-game output in program history, and he was named Horizon League Co-Player of the Week on Feb. 15, thanks in part to that effort. Odiase, who now owns 132 career rejections in 54 games, moved past Nate Chambers ('84-'88) on Feb. 11 and into sixth place on the program's career leaderboard for blocks. He is currently one block shy of fifth place, which belongs to Joe Scott ('99-'04). The Glenwood, Ill., native has rejected 84 shots this season, which places him third all-time among the school's single-season leaders. After adding seven blocks Friday vs. Detroit, Odiase is tied for the national lead with 3.23 blocks per game. He is averaging 4.0 bpg in conference play and 7.3 bpg in the team's last four outings.
WINDEX MEN
UIC exhibited its top effort of the season on the glass at Youngstown State on Feb. 16. The Flames corralled a season-high 63 rebounds, eight more than any other Horizon League team has notched in a game this season. That number ties UIC for seventh nationally on the season, it's the most since Jan. 18, and tied for the most in any conference game across the NCAA this season (Purdue at Rutgers, 1/18/16). Dikembe Dixson (17) and Gabe Snider (8) posted career highs on the boards at YSU, while Tai Odiase (12) and Najeal Young (10) were also in double figures against the Penguins. UIC ranks second in the Horizon League and 13th in the NCAA with 41.5 rebounds per game.
UP NEXT
The final two-game road trip of the regular season will begin on Friday, Feb. 26 with a stop in Green Bay to take on the Phoenix at 7 p.m. The regular season concludes two days later with the finale against the Milwaukee Panthers on Sunday, Feb. 28 at 2 p.m.
