UIC will open play in the Horizon League tournament in a semifinal match against Milwaukee Thursday afternoon at Flames Field.
"We're looking forward to getting the tournament started tomorrow. It's always exciting to be playing this time of year,"
Sean Phillips said. "We always approach the year as consisting of three different seasons. The games leading into Horizon League play, and Horizon League play itself are the first two parts. The third part is postseason play. And in each one of those, every team starts 0-0. So while everything we've done up to this point is great, the most important thing is for us to find a way to be 1-0 at the end of the day tomorrow."
The Flames will host the semifinal and championship rounds by virtue of first their regular season championship since 2015, and seventh overall. Milwaukee enters as the #6 seed and needed a win at Detroit Mercy on Monday to advance to the semis.
"It's never easy, no matter who you're playing in the semifinal," Phillips continued. "Last year we played IUPUI, who competed and fought and it went all the way to penalties. Milwaukee, by virtue of their result Friday against us, proved that they were deserving and they found the result against Detroit in very adverse conditions on Monday.
"Milwaukee has always been a great opponent for us. You're looking at two of the most successful programs in terms of winning regular season and tournament championships. I would expect a very competitive game like every Horizon League tournament game is."
With tournament titles in each of the last three years, UIC has a league-high six postseason championships. Milwaukee is second in regular season and tournament crowns, with five each.
First kick will be at 4:00 pm. The match will be televised on ESPN+. All Horizon League tournament matches are free to UIC students with proper ID. Admission for adults is $10, and for children is $5.
Last Time Out
- The semifinal will offer a rare back-to-back rematch, as UIC played Milwaukee in the regular season finale on Friday.
- The Panthers won 3-2, on the strength of an eight-minute span in which they scored all three of their goals.
- Nkusuwila Zulu scored for the fourth straight match. Christian Crespo added the first goal of his career.
- Milwaukee became only the second opponent to outshoot the Flames (16-12). UIC has lost both of those matches.
- The Flames have played a team in consecutive matches once before. In 2008, they defeated Loyola in the regular season finale, and then lost to the Ramblers in the Horizon League semifinals.
Flames to Watch
- Jesus Perez is the second back-to-back Horizon League Player of the Year in conference history. He leads the league and is 12th in the nation in assists.
- Bar Hazut is the Offensive Player of the Year. His 10 goals are second in the conference.
- Bukola Abdulwahab is a Second Team All-Horizon League selection. He had a streak of five straight games with a goal late in the season.
Scouting the Panthers
- Milwaukee defeated #3 Detroit Mercy 2-0 in their quarterfinal match, played on a very snowy pitch.
- Evan Conway scored the game-winner Monday. He has a team high 16 points and six goals. Joshua Kidder has seven assists.
- Freddy Lorenzen has a 1.14 goals-against average and a .710 save percentage.
A Top-5 Offense
- UIC's relentless attack has placed the team in the top five in several categories in the latest NCAA rankings.
- The Flames lead the nation in shots on goal per game (8.8) and are second in shots per game (19.3).
- UIC has scored 46 total goals, good for fourth in the country, with 2.7 per game ranking also fourth.
- The team is fifth in total assists, with 43, which works out to 2.5 per game and a fifth place showing.
- With 135 points, UIC has yet another fourth place ranking. The Flames are third with 7.9 points per game.
Panther Tracks
- Milwaukee's win on Friday evened the all-time series between the long standing rivals, and snapped a four-game UIC winning streak between the foes.
- UIC has an 11-7-1 advantage at Flames Field.
- The teams have met four times in postseason action. The Flames are 3-1 in those matchups.
