CHICAGO - The UIC men's basketball begins its Horizon League campaign on Saturday and Sunday, Dec. 19 and 20, at home against Oakland. Tipoff Saturday is set for 6 p.m. while Sunday's finale is slated for a 4 p.m. tipoff. Both games will be broadcast on ESPN+.

PLAYER OF THE WEEK
•    RayQuawndis Mitchell picked up the first weekly honor for the Flames this season as he was named the Horizon League Player of the Week on Nov. 30.
•    For the week, Mitchell averaged 17.5 points per game while shooting 43.5% from the field and 53.3% from 3-point range.
•    Mitchell began the week with a game-winning 3-pointer against Northern Illinois (Nov. 25), finishing with 12 points, before scoring a game-high 23 points in a win over Central Michigan (Nov. 28).
•    He is the first Flame to earn Player of the Week honors since Tarkus Ferguson did so on Feb. 4, 2019.

DISH IT OUT
•    Teyvion Kirk had a stellar performance against Valparaiso on Dec. 1, finishing the game with 14 points and 14 assists.
•    The 14 helpers are the most for UIC this season and most since Martell Bailey had 15 on Nov. 23, 2003.
•    Kirk is just 1-of-16 players since the start of the 2010-11 season to finish a game with at least 14 points and 14 assists while committing 1 or fewer turnovers.
•    On the year, Kirk averages a team-leading 8.0 assists per game, tops in the Horizon League and fifth nationally. His 40 total assists rank 20th in the NCAA.
•    Kirk has more assists (40) than the rest of the team combined (36).
•    As a team, the Flames are dishing out 15.2 assists per game to rank second in the Horizon League.

BRING EM BACK
•    After missing the entire 2019-20 season and the first four games of this season due to injuries, Rob Howard made his return to the Flames lineup in their game against Loyola on Dec. 13.
•    The 6-foot-8 forward played 11 minutes off the bench and was one of four players in double figures, finishing the game with 11 points.
•    Howard was 3-for-4 from three-point range and a perfect 2-for-2 from the free throw line.
•    Maurice Commander made his UIC debut against Ball State on Dec. 5 after missing the first three games of the season.