CARBONDALE, ILL. – The UIC men's basketball team was on the road Wednesday night, as it was in southern Illinois to take on the Salukis of Southern Illinois. In a back-and-forth contest, the Flames' late comeback effort fell just short, and the Salukis earned the slim victory by a final score of 68-66.
 
FIRST HALF
 

• The Salukis started the game on a hot streak, making seven of their first nine shots from the field. This shooting allowed them to jump out to a nine-point lead.
• UIC used balance scoring to bring it back into the game in the first 10 minutes, with five early points from Filip Skobalj and Tre Anderson
• In a back-and forth first half, the Flames brought it to within as few as three points, forcing a Salukis timeout at the 4:20 mark.
• SIU would enter the locker room with an eight-point advantage at 35-27.

 
SECOND HALF
 

• The Flames would open the second half on a 9-0 run after a pair of Saluki buckets, partially on the strength of four points from Jace Carter.
• UIC battled all the way back to tie the game at 41-41 at the 15:04 mark of the second half.
• The Salukis would answer with a 10-0 run to re-establish a double-digit advantage.
• Defense was a strong point for the Flames most of the night, as they forced 21 Saluki turnovers.
• A tough shooting skid doomed the Flames late in the second half, as they hit a streak where they made just one of 12 attempts.
• After being down 15 points in the second half, the Flames pulled to within one point in the final minute and had the ball down by two points with three seconds to go. The Flames were unable to get a shot to the rim on the inbounds play, and time expired before they could foul the Salukis.

 
UP NEXT
 
The Flames will remain on the road this weekend, as they head to Belmont for a Saturday afternoon contest. Tip-off from the Curb Event Center in Nashville is set for 1:00 p.m. CT.