MOLINE, Ill. (March 15, 2024) – The No. 7 seed UIC women's basketball team (18-15) nearly held off No. 2 seed Belmont (25-7) in the quarterfinal round of the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament (Hoops in the Heartland) before falling in the closing seconds, 70-65 on Friday night inside Vibrant Arena at The MARK in Moline, Ill.
The Flames will now await the announcement of the various fields for postseason tournament play. The NCAA Tournament and newly-formed Women's Basketball Invitation Tournament (WBIT) brackets will be released Sunday night, along with the participating teams for the Women's National Invitation Tournament (WNIT), which will roll out its full bracket Monday evening. UIC is in a strong position to earn its second consecutive postseason tournament berth after finishing seventh at the Women's Basketball Invitational (WBI) last year.
Senior guard
Danyel Middleton (Chicago, Ill./Bolingbrook/Marquette) led the team in scoring during Friday's quarterfinal against Belmont with 19 points and five rebounds. Junior guard
Krystyna Ellew (Chicago, Ill./Taft/Wisconsin) tied her career high with 13 points, while fellow classmate
Makiyah Williams (Chicago, Ill./Trinity/Marquette) added 10 points, four boards and three assists.
COACH'S COMMENT
"I'm obviously disappointed with the results, but I'm happy with my team's fight," said head coach
Ashleen Bracey. "At some point in Moline, we developed this resiliency where we have this 'don't quit' mentality, and as a coach, that makes you proud. I want to win, of course, but we gave it everything we've got on that court tonight. I believe the future is really bright for this program."
FIRST QUARTER (22-19, BEL)
- Belmont opened up the game with a basket on the block, but once it was UIC's turn on offense, graduate student forward Keimari Rimmer (Chicago, Ill./Proviso East/DePaul) cleaned up a teammate's miss to even the score to 2-2.
- Williams checked into the game and broke up an 8-0 run from the Bruins by laying the ball in at 5:43. The forward did the same thing 30 seconds later after graduate student Dais'Ja Trotter (Louisville, Ky./Seneca/Cincinnati) came up with a steal.
- The Flames took the lead at 4:20 when Ellew set her feet beyond the arc (13-12). The junior came down on the next possession and took the ball strong to the hole, extending UIC's lead to 15-12 and capping a 13-2 run by the Flames.
- A pull up from Middleton at 1:16 put an end to a 10-0 run from Belmont. At the 40-second mark, Rimmer made the last basket of the quarter to bring UIC within three (22-19).
SECOND QUARTER (39-35, BEL)
- Senior Jaida McCloud (Peoria, Ill./Richwoods) tied the game at 22-22 when she connected on a three-pointer 45 seconds into the second quarter.
- After back-to-back threes from the Bruins, they gained a five-point advantage (28-23). The Flames eventually scored after a two-minute drought as junior guard Sandra Frau-Garcia (Pego, Spain/Casper College) made a strong move to the basket (28-25).
- Down six points with a minute remaining, Williams whipped a pass to McCloud on the block to bring the scoreline to 37-33.
- Middleton hit a tough shot with 13 seconds on the clock to bring her team within four (39-35) just before halftime.
THIRD QUARTER (55-45, BEL)
- Belmont opened the quarter with a 6-0 run, extending their lead to 10 (45-35). Middleton interrupted that with a 'stop and pop' in the lane at 8:31 (45-37).
- Ellew hit her second three-pointer of the game at 4:44 (47-40), breaking up a nearly four-minute scoring drought for UIC.
- McCloud showed toughness in the post for the Flames, scoring back-to-back baskets for her team to come within six at 2:27 (50-44).
- Belmont stole the ball from UIC as the time wound down, not allowing the Flames for the last-second attempt, ending the quarter with a 10-point lead.
FOURTH QUARTER (70-65, BEL)
- After a steal and fast-break layup from Belmont, UIC went to work with a 14-2 run, as Middleton hit a jumper with 8:31 remaining (57-49). She followed that up with an 'and-one' at 7:15 (57-52).
- Consecutive buckets from Frau-Garcia, Williams, and Middleton brought the Flames within one with a little over five minutes remaining in the game.
- Ellew's third three-pointer put UIC ahead 61-59 with 4:57 to play, leading to a media timeout. The triple was part of a 9-0 run in a 90-second span by the Flames.
- Belmont rallied to retake a 64-61 lead and the Bruins' Tuti Jones came up with a last-second three just as the shot clock wound down to double her team's lead (1:20).
- UIC looked to extend the game by fouling and sending Belmont to the line and the strategy mostly worked, as the Bruins went 3-9 down the stretch from the charity stripe. However, the Flames could make enough shots in the closing seconds and fell by a five-point margin.
BEYOND THE BOXSCORE
- This marked the second time this season UIC and Belmont had their game decided by single digits (the Bruins won the only regular-season game between the teams, 69-61 back in January in Nashville).
- Ellew tied her career-high of 13 points, which she tallied against Northwestern on Nov. 9.
- Young's two assists against the Bruins marks 427 career assists, which puts her in a tie for the fourth spot in Flames' history, alongside Penny Armstrong (427 from 1991-95).
- UIC's reserves dominated their opponents, outscoring Belmont 46-9, while being even on points in the paint (34).
For more information on UIC women's basketball, 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).
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