CHICAGO – Braelen Bridges recorded his first career double-double while Marcus Ottey made his season debut Sunday (Dec. 14), as the UIC men's basketball team dropped a 86-65 decision to city rival DePaul inside Wintrust Arena.
 
Bridges led the Flames in scoring and rebounding Sunday, matching his career-high of 14 points while setting a new career best with his 14 rebounds. Ottey, who missed the first 10 games of the year due to injury, finished his season debut with 12 points. Godwin Boahen matched Ottey's scoring output with 12 points as well.
 
For the Flames, Saturday was the first game this year where the team won the rebounding margin (41-31) but lost the game. Eight of the nine players who saw game action against the Blue Demons brought in at least one rebound.
 
UIC is back in action on Wednesday, Dec. 18, going on the road to take on in-state foe Illinois State. Tipoff from Normal is set for 6 p.m.
 
First Half Storylines

• The Return of Juice: After missing the first 10 games of the season due to injury, senior guard Marcus Ottey made his season debut in a starting role against the Blue Demons. Ottey played 13 minutes in the opening half, finishing with four points.
• Bridges' Boards: Braelen Bridges was all over the glass in the first half, bringing in a game-high nine rebounds in the opening half. Bridges entered the game with a season-high of four rebounds in a game. To go along with the nine boards, Bridges also led the Flames with six points. As a team, UIC held a 21-16 advantage in rebounding.
• First Half Run: After a back and forth start to the game, DePaul was able to build its lead thanks to an 8-0 run to give the hosts a 32-21 with 4:05 remaining in the opening half.

Second Half Storylines

• Double Trouble: Bridges completed his first-career double-double with eight points and five rebounds in the final half to finish the game with 14 points and 14 rebounds. It is the second straight game in which a UIC player has recorded a double-double.
• Clean the Glass: UIC finished the game with a 41-31 rebounding margin over the Blue Demons. The +10 rebounding margin is the best for the Flames this year while today's defeat marks the first loss the season when UIC wins the rebounding battle.
• Close the Gap: UIC looked to make a second-half run, trimming DePaul's lead to 12 with 6:23 remaining and again with 5:55 remaining. The Flames were unable to continue the run, as the Blue Demons answered with 11-0 run to put the game out of reach.