CHICAGO (March 5, 2024) – After three consecutive road games, the UIC women's basketball team (16-13, 9-9 MVC) will return to Credit Union 1 Arena to host Missouri State on Thursday and Southern Illinois on Saturday. These two home games mark the final contests for the Flames before the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament (Hoops in the Heartland) on March 14-17 in Moline, Ill. Both of this week's matchups against the Bears and Salukis will be available on ESPN+.
GAME INFORMATION vs. Missouri State (20-7, 14-4 MVC)
Thursday, March 7 | 7 p.m. CT
Credit Union 1 Arena | Chicago, Ill.
Digital Yearbook
ESPN+
Live Stats
Tickets
GAME INFORMATION at Southern Illinois (9-19, 4-14 MVC)
Saturday, March 9 | 1 p.m. CT
Credit Union 1 Arena | Chicago, Ill.
Digital Yearbook
ESPN+
Live Stats
Tickets
LAST TIME OUT
After holding a 16-point lead in the third quarter, UIC suffered a tough road defeat against Northern Iowa, 61-52, on March 2. Junior forward
Makiyah Williams (Chicago, Ill./Trinity/Marquette) led all scorers with 22 points off the bench, including 20 in the first half alone. The Flames limited the Panthers to just one three-pointer, marking a season low for UNI.
Prior to their matchup in Cedar Falls, UIC stopped in Des Moines, Iowa, on Feb. 29 for a game against Drake. Despite their efforts, the Flames couldn't fend off the Bulldogs, succumbing by an 83-64 score. Junior forward
Ky Dempsey-Toney (Franklin, N.J./Franklin) led UIC with a season-high 15 points and five rebounds in 19 minutes of play. Senior forward
Jaida McCloud (Peoria, Ill./Richwoods) also contributed 15 points while grabbing a team-high six rebounds.
SCOUTING MISSOURI STATE
Missouri State (20-7) is currently third in the MVC standings with a 14-4 record. The Lady Bears' four losses were against Illinois State (Jan. 14 – 85-78), Belmont (Jan. 26 – 66-55), Murray State (Feb. 11 – 95-89), and Drake (Feb. 22 – 76-65). In a recent rematch against Illinois State, Missouri State emerged victorious with a 67-62 win, propelled by junior Lacy Stokes who scored 26 points. Stokes, the team's leading scorer, averages 11.6 points per game, while fellow junior Kennedy Taylor leads in rebounds with seven per game.
UIC will have an opportunity to secure its first-ever victory against Missouri State on Thursday, as the two teams have only met three times previously. Their most recent encounter on Jan. 6 was a close contest that ended with UIC falling short, 51-50 in Springfield, Mo. After Missouri State took a late lead, the Flames had a look at a potential game-winning layup but it rimmed in and out. Williams led UIC offensively with 13 points, supported by double-double performances from McCloud with 12 points and 10 rebounds and graduate student guard
Keimari Rimmer (Chicago, Ill./Proviso East/DePaul) with 11 points and 10 rebounds.
SCOUTING SOUTHERN ILLINOIS
Despite its record, Southern Illinois (9-19, 4-14 MVC) has proven to be a competitive force in the Valley this season. SIU has secured victories against Valparaiso, Evansville, Indiana State, and Bradley in conference play, with most of its MVC losses occurring by 10 points or less
Leading the charge for the Salukis is forward Laniah Randle, who tops the team in both scoring and rebounding, averaging 18.7 points and 8.8 rebounds per game. In her latest performance, the junior recorded 32 points and 14 rebounds, marking her conference-leading fourth 30-point game of the season.
The all-time series record between UIC and SIU currently favors Southern Illinois at 11-6. In the schools' first matchup this season, UIC senior center
Tara Green (West Helena, Ark./Central/New Orleans) delivered a dominant second-half performance, scoring 21 of her season-high 23 points, leading the Flames to a 66-59 victory. Williams contributed 13 points, while senior guard
Danyel Middleton (Chicago, Ill./Bolingbrook/Marquette) added 11 points.
GAME PROMOTIONS
Following the game against Southern Illinois on Saturday, UIC will hold a ceremony to recognize its eight seniors —
Keona Schenck, Kristian Young, Tara Green, Sara Zabrecky, Jaida McCloud, Dais'Ja Trotter, Keimari Rimmer and
Danyel Middleton. Saturday's game will also be a celebration of Women's History Month.
TICKETS AND MORE
Tickets for both remaining UIC home basketball games can be purchased online through Ticketmaster and
UICFlames.com/Tickets, as well as through the UIC Athletics Ticket Office (312-413-UIC1) or by visiting the Credit Union 1 Arena box office on game day.
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).
