THE SERIES BREAKDOWN

• This will mark the 13th meeting in the series between UIC and Southern Illinois, with the Salukis holding an 8-4 edge against the Flames.

• The past nine games in the UIC-Southern Illinois series have been decided by 10 points or less, with an average margin of 6.1 ppg.

• Last year's home-and-home MVC matchups represented the first time the schools had played since the 2014-15 season.

• Both of last year's contests came down to the final possession, with Southern Illinois edging UIC by nearly identical scores on both occasions (68-66 in Carbondale on Feb. 8, 2023; 68-65 at Credit Union 1 Arena on Feb. 26, 2023).

• In the first meeting, the Flames had four players score in double figures, including 11 points (and seven rebounds) from current senior guard Toby Okani and 10 points from current sophomore guard CJ Jones.

• In the rematch, Okani grabbed a career-high 14 rebounds, while junior forward Filip Skobalj added nine points and five assists in what was the Flames' home finale for 2022-23.

MORE ON SOUTHERN ILLINOIS

• Southern Illinois is 8-4 this season and 0-1 in The Valley, having won its last two games and four of its last six.

• The Salukis last played on Dec. 22, posting an 81-50 home victory over Southern Indiana.

• SIU's lone conference game to date this season took place on Nov. 28, with Indiana State defeating the Salukis, 77-48 in Terre Haute, Ind.

• Graduate student guard Xavier Johnson ranks second in the nation in scoring (24.1 ppg.) and leads the MVC in assists (5.8 apg.), while senior forward Jarrett Hensley has averaged 11.3 ppg. in three games since the multi-time transfer (UNCG and Cincinnati) was ruled eligible. Junior forward Clarence Rupert adds a team-high 6.1 rpg. for SIU.

• First-year UIC assistant coach Tony Wills joined the Flames' staff during the offseason after spending the 2022-23 season as a graduate assistant at Southern Illinois, focusing mainly on the Salukis' defense.

• SIU assistant coach Brendan Mullins spent two seasons in the same role at UIC (2015-16 and 2016-17), helping the Flames reach the semifinals of the 2017 College Basketball Insider (CBI) Tournament.

• Mullins was also on the staff at Illinois State in 2017-18, when current UIC director of player personnel Madison Williams was in his sophomore season with the Redbirds before a medical hardship ended his playing career.

WINNING WITH DEFENSE

• For much of the season, UIC has ranked among the top 25 teams in the nation (and tops in the Missouri Valley Conference) in several major defensive categories.

• As of Friday, the Flames lead the nation in three-point percentage defense (.241), and blocks (6.9 bpg.).

• Since blocks became an official NCAA statistic in 1985-86, only one MVC team has finished an entire season averaging better than 5.0 bpg. (Wichita State had 5.1 bpg. in 2013-14), and just five have done so in conference play (WSU holds the record with 5.6 bpg. in 2013-14). 

• The UIC school record for blocks per game in one season is 6.7 bpg., set during the 2017-18 campaign.

• The Flames also rank 12th nationally in field goal percentage defense (.376) and 22nd in scoring defense (62.9 ppg.).

• In the four-year Luke Yaklich era, UIC is 14-1 when holding opponents to 60 points or fewer, the lone loss coming back on Nov. 26 in the Flames' 58-57 last-second defeat to UNCG.

SECRETARY OF DEFENSE

• As of Friday, senior guard Toby Okani ranks seventh nationally in blocks per game (2.58) and 31st in the land in defensive rebounds per game (6.75).

• Okani not only leads the MVC in blocks and defensive rebounds, but is also tops in The Valley in overall rebounding (8.2) and shares the lead in double-doubles (3), while ranking 10th in steals (1.4).

• Okani is the only player in the MVC to lead the conference in four statistical categories (no other player leads in more than two).

• Okani is also the only player in the MVC to rank in the top 10 in the conference in the three primary defensive categories (rebounding, steals and blocks).

• Okani has recorded at least three blocks in six games this season, including a season-high six rejections in the Nov. 6 opener at Cincinnati.

• Okani is also nearing a pair of personal milestones. He needs two rebounds for 500 and four blocks for 100 in his career, which included two seasons at Duquesne before he transferred to UIC last year.

WHAT CAN BROWN(ELL) DO FOR U(IC)

• Redshirt sophomore forward Jaden Brownell entered the Christmas break on a tear, averaging 16.7 points in his last three games while shooting .607 (17-28) from the field and .667 (12-18) from three-point range.

• Brownell also averaged 3.0 blocks per game in that span, moving into a tie for sixth in the MVC in that category as of Friday (1.25 bpg.).

• The highlight of Brownell's recent surge came in a Dec. 16 home win over Western Michigan, when the Sandy, Utah, native set or tied career highs in five categories — 22 points, six rebounds, five blocks, four assists and four three-pointers.

KEEPING UP WITH JONES

• Another of UIC's second-year players who has shown remarkable development this season is sophomore guard CJ Jones, who ranks third in the MVC with 5.5 assists per game and ninth in The Valley with a 2.13 assist/turnover ratio.

• Jones has recorded 5+ assists in eight games this season, including five contests in which he registered at least eight assists. Leading the way was his career-high 11-assist day against Western Michigan on Dec. 16.

• Jones has more than doubled his assist average from last year (2.1 apg.) and improved his assist/turnover ratio by over 57 percent from a season ago (1.35). 

• Jones is also averaging 9.3 points per game this season (up 50 percent from last year's 6.2 ppg.) and is logging 3.4 rebounds per game (improving almost 80 percent from last year's 1.9 rpg.).

MAKING THE GRADE

• The UIC men's basketball team posted a program-record 3.18 Fall 2023 GPA, the third time in four semesters the Flames have finished with a record-setting GPA.

• In addition, three Flames players — senior guard Isaiah Rivera, junior forward Filip Skobalj and sophomore guard Drew King — earned a perfect 4.0 GPA during the Fall 2023 semester.

• The men's basketball team's performance was part of a larger success story in the classroom for UIC athletics, as the 300 Flames' student-athletes combined to register a 3.34 department-wide GPA this past semester.

THIS & THAT

• UIC has found quite a bit of success away from home this season. The Flames are a combined 4-2 in road/neutral games, including two wins over Atlantic 10 Conference opponents (Loyola and George Washington), as well as a 30-point victory over Conference USA preseason co-favorite Middle Tennessee.

• The Flames' dual wins over A-10 schools, both away from home (at Loyola on Nov. 14; vs. George Washington in the Bahamas on Nov. 25), marked the first time in program history UIC defeated two A-10 teams in the same season.

• Seven of UIC's 12 games this year have been decided by 10 points or fewer. Four of the seven close games have taken place away from home, with UIC winning three of those four.

LAST TIME OUT: INCARNATE WORD

• Redshirt sophomore forward Jaden Brownell scored a team-high 16 points and junior guard Ethan Pickett posted his first career double-double with 11 points and a career-best 11 rebounds, but it wasn't quite enough as UIC fell in the final seconds to Incarnate Word, 67-66, on Dec. 21 at Credit Union 1 Arena.

• The game was a nip-and-tuck affair, featuring 10 ties and 21 lead changes. In addition, neither team led by more than seven points the entire way.

• Senior guard Isaiah Rivera tallied 14 points, senior guard Toby Okani added 13 points and seven rebounds and sophomore guard CJ Jones contributed a balanced line with eight points, a career-best six rebounds and game-high nine assists for the Flames.

CARLOS HARRIS SIGNS WITH UIC

• On Nov. 9, UIC announced point guard Carlos Harris (6-2, 180) has signed a national letter of intent to play for the Flames beginning in 2024-25.

• One of the top players in the Chicago Public League for Curie Metropolitan High School, Harris averaged 16 points, six rebounds, four assists and two steals per game last season in helping the Condors to a 20-11 record.

• Harris is a three-star athlete who is the No. 35 point guard in the country and the No. 13 player in the state of Illinois in the Class of 2024.

UP NEXT: MURRAY STATE

• UIC continues its two-game MVC road trip next Tuesday, Jan. 2, with a 7 p.m. (CT) matchup against Murray State at the CFSB Center in Murray, Ky. At press time, the game was not scheduled to be televised, while the free live Flames Network radio feed can be heard at UICFlames.com.

• The Racers (3-9, 1-1 MVC) will also be returning to action Saturday after the Christmas break with a non-conference game at home against Middle Tennessee.

THE HOTTEST TICKET IN TOWN

• Season and single-game tickets, as well as mini-plans and flex ticket plans for all UIC basketball home games may be purchased online through Ticketmaster or UICFlames.com/Tickets, by contacting the UIC Athletics Ticket Office (312-413-UIC1; athleticsticketing@uic.edu) or visiting the Credit Union 1 Arena box office on game night.

• Fans can also learn more about the benefits associated with purchasing season or single-game passes for the Courtside Club at Credit Union 1 Arena through the UIC Athletics Ticket Office or the arena box office.