Box Score PEORIA, ILL. – The UIC men's basketball team returned to action Saturday, as they traveled to Peoria to take on the Bradley Braves. In a matinee on New Year's Eve, the Flames struggled from the field throughout, and fell to the Braves in a lopsided contest by a final score of 79-45.
 
FIRST HALF

• After starting the game with a Braves turnover, Bradley caught fire from the field early on, making seven of their first nine shots from inside the three-point arc.
• The Flames started off the game just three for their first 13 from the field, as the Bradley defense showed why they are ranked 18^th in Division I in scoring defense per game.
• The Braves controlled the tempo for the majority of the first half, going on a 21-5 run after UIC opened the game with a 2-0 lead.
• UIC had it's worst shooting half of the season, shooting just 14.3% in the first 20 minutes.
• The Braves entered the locker room with a 39-13 advantage. Jace Carter led all Flames scorers in the first half with four points.

 
SECOND HALF

• The two teams went back and forth to start the second half, with the Braves lead hovering around 25 for the first five minutes of the second frame.
• The Braves established their largest lead of the game at the 3:31 mark of the second half, leading 77-36 at the time.
• The Flames made just one three-point attempt in the game, a Tre Anderson wing three at the 3:26 mark of the second half.
• UIC had not been held under 50 points in a contest since Feb. 5 of 2021, a 72-47 loss.
• Jace Carter led all Flames scorers with 13 points, his eighth game leading UIC in scoring this season.

 
UP NEXT
The Flames will return to action in 2023 as they will return home to Credit Union 1 Arena next week. The Belmont Bruins will make the trip north to Chicago for a Jan. 4 showdown, with tip-off scheduled for 7:00 p.m. CT on Wednesday.