CHICAGO – The UIC men's basketball team jumped out to a 38-6 lead and never looked back, cruising to a 76-59 victory over Illinois Tech in the Flames' lone exhibition contest Thursday evening inside Credit Union 1 Arena.
 
Playing in front of fans for the first time in a year and a half, UIC newcomer Kevin Johnson led the Flames with a team-high 18 points on 7-for-11 shooting. Fellow newcomer Damaria Franklin added 13 points and nine rebounds while Zion Griffin was the third Flame in double figures with 10 points to go along with a game-high seven assists and five rebounds. Michael Diggins hadded a team-high 13 rebounds while scoring seven points.
 
Leading 19-6 with 14:22 to play, UIC went on a 19-0 run over 8:05 of game action to put the game out of reach. Franklin scored eight during the run to pace the attack while UIC's defense held the Scarlet Hawks to 0-for-15 shooting during the run.
 
Illinois Tech tried to climb back into the contest in the second half, using an 8-0 scoring spree to cut UIC's lead down to 12, but UIC responded with a 13-4 run of its own to push the lead back to 21 points.
 
Thursday's exhibition was an opportunity for second-year head coach to get a look at some of the eight newcomers on the roster, as seven fresh faces all saw game action. In addition to Franklin and Johnson in the starting lineup, freshman Jace Carter got a starting nod while Brandon Battle, Jalen Warren, Filip Skobalj, and Jaden Brownell all saw game action while Jalen Johnson, who missed all of last season due to injury, made his UIC debut after a year's absence.
 
As a team, the Flames shot 45.9% from the field while limiting Illinois Tech to 33% shooting and just 24.3% shooting from the field in the first half. The Flames, one of the top 3-point defenses in the country a year ago, made its mark once again defending the three as Illinois Tech was just 3-for-18 (16.7%) from long distance Thursday.
 
UIC excelled at protecting the rim, collecting seven blocks on the evening. Warren had a game-high three blocks while Griffin added a pair to pace the back line of defense.
 
The Flames will open the regular season on Tuesday, November 9, as UIC hits the road to take on Dayton. Tip-off is slated for 6 p.m. (CT).