CHICAGO – The UIC women's basketball team (3-14, 1-5 HL) begins its longest road stretch of the season on Saturday, Jan. 19, as they take on IUPUI (10-7, 4-2 HL). The two teams will tipoff at 1 p.m. CT inside The Jungle.

Starting Five

• Sophomore Jada Nneji set both a Horizon League and UIC record on Sunday with 13 blocks against Detroit Mercy. Nneji added 12 rebounds to her 13 blocks for her third-straight double-double, while also contributing five points and two steals.
• The Uxbridge, Ontario, Canada native has made an appearance in 15 of the last 16 starting lineups, and has put up five or more blocks in her last three showings. The standout forward's 13-block show on Sunday jumped her up to fourth in the nation in total blocks, totaling 50 stops on the season so far. Her 2.9 blocks per game average leads the Horizon League and comes in at 10th in the nation.
• UIC ranks 38th in the nation and third in the Horizon League in blocked shots, totaling 75 stops as a squad, helped in large part by Nneji's 50 stops this season.  
• Brittany Byrd has been the leading scorer for the Flames on nine occasions and the leading rebounder on seven occasions so far this year. The Horizon League Preseason Second Team selection has scored in double figures in 11 of her last 12 appearances to rank third in the League with an average of 15.5 points per game.
• The Flames rank second in the League in three-point field goal defense, containing opponents to just 28.4 shooting from downtown. UIC has kept the opposition under 35 percent from three-point range in 12 of its 17 contests this year. Only two teams have shot above 40 percent from three against the Flames, Miami (45 percent) and Northern Kentucky (45 percent).

What's at Stake:
With a win, UIC would:

• Win its fourth game of the season
• Win its first game against IUPUI
• Capture its second Horizon League Win
• Surpass last year's Horizon League win total
• Improve to 2-6 in true road games

Last Time Out

• The Flames were defeated 42-36 by Detroit Mercy on Sunday, Jan. 13 at home inside the Credit Union 1 Arena.
• Catera Etheridge was able to tie the game at 32 with just under seven minutes remaining, but back-to-back scores by the Titans put the game out of reach for good.
• The Flames held the edge on the glass, 19-13.
• The Titans had the slightest edge over UIC in shooting, making 24.6 percent of their shots compared to 24.4 percent for the Flames.
• UIC made 25 percent of its shots from downtown, compared to 21.1 percent for Detroit Mercy.

Introducing IUPUI

• IUPUI is sitting in a tie for third in the Horizon League standings with a 4-2 record in conference play so far.
• The Jags are second in the League in scoring offense, averaging 68.4 points per game as a team.
• IUPUI leads the conference in rebounding defense, containing opponents to just 32.4 rebounds per game.
• The Jags also come in second in the League in assists (14.2 per game) and offensive rebounds (14.6 per game).
• Horizon League Preseason Player of the Year and three-time Player of the Week Macee Williams leads the Jags and the Horizon League with an average of 18.9 points per game. Williams also paces IUPUI in rebounds, pulling down an average of 8.0 shots per game to rank third in the League.
• The Jags own victories in all three meetings between the two teams, most recently taking a 68-43 win over the Flames back on Feb. 3.

Up Next

• The road stretch continues next weekend as the Flames make their way north to battle Green Bay (Jan. 24) and Milwaukee (Jan. 26).