CHICAGO – The Horizon League announced on Wednesday that the UIC-Northern Kentucky women's basketball games scheduled for Jan. 22-23 at Credit Union 1 Arena have been canceled due to COVID-related matters within Northern Kentucky's Tier I personnel, which includes student-athletes, coaches and essential support staff.

Instead, the UIC women's basketball team (2-7, 1-5 HL) will be facing off with Horizon League foe Youngstown State (3-3, 3-3 HL) for a pair of rematches inside YSU's Beeghly Center. The Flames and Penguins will collide Friday, Jan. 22 and Saturday, Jan. 23 at 1 p.m. CT. Both games will be broadcasted on ESPN+.
 
WITH A WIN, UIC WOULD:

• Improve to 3-7 on the season
• Win their second Horizon League game of the season
• Improve to 24-21 all-time against Youngstown State
• Win their second road game of the season

LAST TIME OUT

• Back in action at home for the first time in nearly a month, the Flames welcomed Horizon League foe Youngstown State to Chicago last weekend (Jan. 15-16) for a pair of games.
• The two teams battled to a close finish in both games, but the Penguins prevailed twice, taking a 77-66 win over the Flames on Friday and a 66-59 victory on Saturday. 
• Freshman Lindsey Rogers led for the Flames on Friday, turning a personal-best 17 points in her first game on the court since Dec. 5.
• First-year Flame Kristian Young was just shy of a double-double on Friday, tallying nine points and a personal-best nine assists, making her the first player since Dec. 18, 2019 to record eight or more assists.
• Young served as UIC's top offensive producer on Saturday, tallying a game-high and personal best 25 points to go with seven rebounds, seven assists and four steals.

YOUNG TALENT

• Freshman Kristian Young has already proved herself a valuable member of UIC's offense, averaging 12.0 points per game and 5.6 rebounds per game.
• Young picked up UIC's second Horizon League weekly award in a three-week span on Dec. 21, taking home the Freshman of the Week title after averaging 10.5 points and 5.0 rebounds with five steals and 11 assists in UIC's series with Detroit Mercy (Dec. 19-20).
• Young currently ranks 14th in scoring in the Horizon League, while her 5.6 rebounds per game come in at 13th in the League.
• The Freshman set a pair of personal bests this past weekend against Youngstown State (Jan. 15-16), recording a career-high nine assists on Friday before turning in a personal best 25-point performance on Saturday against the Penguins.
• Young has also been creating opportunities for her teammates, averaging 5.0 assists per game to lead the Horizon League and rank 37th nationally.
• The Indianapolis, Ind. native was the first Flame to record a double-double this season, tallying 11 points and 12 rebounds at Eastern Michigan (Nov. 29).

KEONA'S COURT

• Freshman Keona Schenck is the lone freshman to start in all nine games so far, averaging 11.2 points per game.
• Schenck is one of the Flames' most consistent producers, tallying double digit showings in all but two games so far.
• Schenck is one of UIC's most efficient shooters, shooting .410 (34-for-83) on the season.
• Beyond the arc, Schenck leads the squad with 54 three-point attempts and 17 three-pointers made. Her 1.9 threes per game ranks fifth in the Horizon League.
• Defensively, Schenck averages 1.9 steals per game, putting her at seventh in the conference.
• Schenck also sees the most playing time for the Flames, averaging 36.9 points per game, a mark which leads the Horizon League and comes in at 37th in the nation.

SCOUTING THE PENGUINS

• The Flames and Penguins will be meeting for the second time in as many weeks after the two teams faced off last weekend inside Credit Union 1 Arena. Youngstown State came out on top in both games, taking Friday's contest by a 77-66 tally before outlasting the Flames 66-59 on Saturday.
• Senior veterans Mary Dunn and Chelsea Olson share the offensive load, averaging 12.7 points per game to lead the team.
• Freshman Nneka Obiazor also provides a strong offensive presence for the Penguins, averaging 12.5 points per game and leading the team with an average of 8.3 rebounds per game.
• Olson also paces the team in assists, averaging 3.7 assists per game to rank fourth in the Horizon League.