CHICAGO -- UIC will resume Horizon League play in search of its first win of the season against a conference foe when it hosts the Detroit Mercy Titans and the Oakland Golden Grizzlies at the UIC Pavilion in a pair of games this weekend.

The Flames (7-7, 0-1 Horizon League) begin the weekend with a visit from the Titans (2-12, 0-2 Horizon League) on Friday night at 7 p.m. CT. That game will be carried exclusively on ESPN3 with Will Haskett providing the play-by-play of the action and David Kaplan contributing his analysis. Oakland (12-3, 2-0 Horizon League) will invade the Windy City on Sunday, Jan. 8 at 4 p.m. The matinee will air on the American Sports Network, which is carried over-the-air locally on Comcast SportsNet Chicago. It will also be available on ESPN3. An audio stream of both games will be carried on UICFlames.com. The Golden Grizzlies will visit another conference foe, Valparaiso, on Friday night before squaring off against UIC.

Tickets are still available for both contests and can be purchased by clicking the link or calling 312-413-UIC1 (8421).

The Flames have not necessarily gotten off to bad starts this season, but they have been a much improved squad, while showing the ability to close out victories during the second half of games this season. UIC has outscored the opposition by a combined 74 points over the final 20 minutes of all 14 games this season, and by 48 points in the last five games alone. The Flames are shooting 53.3 percent from the field and 41.4 percent from 3-point range in the second half, up from 41 percent (FG) and 31 percent (3-point) in the first. Head coach Steve McClain and the Flames are 6-0 when leading at the half.

This weekend offers UIC the chance to bounce back from a defeat in the Horizon League opener at the hands of the Valparaiso Crusaders on Dec. 30. The Crusaders owned a distinct advantage on the glass, while netting 20 second-chance points to only six for the Flames en route to a 70-59 victory. Freshman Tarkus Ferguson scored 15 of his team-high 16 points in the second half, while Tai Odiase and Godwin Boahen added strong efforts as well. Odiase led the team with seven rebounds and four blocks to go along with his 11 points. Boahen chipped in 13 points, six rebounds, three assists and a steal. The Flames have a strong record following a loss this season, as they are 5-1 in games of that scenario.

Detroit Mercy is in its first season under the direction of head coach Bacari Alexander, a 1999 graduate of the University. On the court, the Titans' rotation features a solid mix of veterans and young players. Junior Jaleel Hogan iis the team's leading scorer with 14.1 points per game, while senior Chris Jenkins leads the way on the glass with 6.9 rebounds per game. Sophomore Josh McFolley is averaging nearly 14 points per contest with a team-high 2.9 assists per game. Freshman Corey Allen is the highest-scoring freshman in the Horizon League with 12.6 points per game.

While Detroit Mercy has one of the Horizon League's four first-year head coaches, Oakland boasts the most tenured. Head coach Greg Kampe has been on the bench for the Golden Grizzlies for more than 32 seasons. Among Division I head coaches, only Syracuse's Jim Boeheim and Duke's Mike Krzyzewski have more wins as the leader of their current programs. Offensively Oakland has been led primarily by Martez Walker, who is averaging 17.7 points per game while playing a team-high 30.7 minutes per game. Jalen Hayes (13.5 ppg) and Sherron Dorsey-Walker (12.4) are also averaging in double figures, while Hayes is the team's top rebounder with 6.4 caroms per contest.

More notes, statistics and information about Friday's Horizon League game against Detroit Mercy can be found in the UIC Game Notes PDF linked above.