CHICAGO (Dec. 12, 2023) – After nearly two weeks off, the UIC women's basketball team (5-2) prepares to return to the hardwood Wednesday night, as the Flames make their way north to Green Bay for a matchup with the Phoenix, who are appearing in both major national polls this week.
GAME INFORMATION
Wednesday, Dec. 13 | 7 p.m. CT
Kress Center | Green Bay, Wis.
ESPN+
Live Stats
LAST TIME OUT
The Flames are back on the court for the first time since Dec. 1, when they earned a hard-fought 95-89 win at Omaha. Graduate student guard
Dais'Ja Trotter (Louisville, Ky./Seneca/Cincinnati) and senior center
Tara Green (West Helena, Ark./Central High School/New Orleans) each put up 16 points, leading five UIC players in double figures.
Green scored a season-high 16 points in just 14 minutes coming off the bench, making 6-of-7 shots. Senior guard
Kristian Young (Indianapolis, Ind./Lawrence North) also had a good showing with a season-high nine assists, elevating her to sixth in the nation and tops in the Missouri Valley Conference with a 4.40 assist/turnover ratio.
As a team, UIC posted season highs at Omaha by shooting 56.1 percent from the floor and making 24-of-32 free throws. The Flames' 95 points also marked the most points they have scored in a game since Dec. 16, 2017 (96-77 vs. Evansville).
UIC's bench has consistently outscored opponents' reserves in all seven games this season, including a 44-40 edge at Omaha, led by Green's 16-point performance. The Flames' reserves are currently ranked 19
th in the nation with 30.7 bench points per game.
SCOUTING GREEN BAY
Green Bay (5-3) has had a promising start to its 2023-24 campaign, with two victories over ranked opponents — No. 22 Creighton and No. 23 Washington State. The Phoenix opened the season with a 78-67 loss to MVC member Northern Iowa, but swiftly bounced back with an 88-62 win over another Valley program, Illinois State. Despite losses to Maryland and DePaul, Green Bay kept those games tight, dropping both by single digits.
Junior Maddy Schreiber leads the Phoenix in scoring, averaging 12.1 points per game, including a career-high 23 points against UNI on Nov. 30. Her classmate, Natalie McNeal, is Green Bay's top rebounder, averaging 5.8 per game, along with being the team's second-leading scorer (10.9 ppg).
SERIES HISTORY
UIC and Green Bay shared a rich history as longstanding members of three different conferences from 1988-89 through 2021-22— the North Star, Mid-Continent and Horizon League. Starting with that 1988-89 season in the North Star Conference and continuing until UIC's move to the MVC prior to the 2022-23 season, the two schools clashed at least twice per year. The last time UIC emerged victorious over Green Bay was on Jan. 23, 2010, when the Flames earned an 81-72 win at Credit Union 1 Arena.
For more information, fans are encouraged to visit UICFlames.com, or follow the Flames on social media through X (@UIC_WBB and @UICFlames) and Instagram (@uic_wbb and @uicflames).
