CHICAGO (March 7, 2024) – The UIC women's basketball team (17-13, 10-9 MVC) claimed the first victory over Missouri State in program history on Thursday evening, in a physical 65-61 win over the Bears (20-8, 14-5) at Credit Union 1 Arena.
Junior forward
Makiyah Williams (Chicago, Ill./Trinity/Marquette) led UIC in scoring with 19 points, while senior guard
Danyel Middleton (Chicago, Ill./Bolingbrook/Marquette) netted 14 points and senior forward
Jaida McCloud (Peoria, Ill./Richwoods) contributed 10 points and nine rebounds.
COMMENT FROM HEAD COACH ASHLEEN BRACEY
"I'm proud of this team. We just keep fighting by trying to find solutions because we know what we're capable of. I thought tonight we finally put together 40 minutes. It felt like the team we've been looking for all season. We look to come with the exact same intensity on Saturday against SIU."
COMMENT FROM SENIOR GUARD DANYEL MIDDLETON
"We knew we had to come out with a lot of energy. Being resilient for 40 minutes was the key for us tonight."
COMMENT FROM SENIOR FORWARD JAIDA MCCLOUD
"It was a good night for me, but I had some mishaps going into the third quarter. Like Coach said, it's about bouncing back and letting go of the mistakes."
FIRST QUARTER (13-11, MOST)
- Missouri State got on the scoreboard first after an offensive rebound. However, Middleton sank back-to-back three-pointers to put the Flames up, 6-2, 90 seconds in.
- Tied up at eight, senior guard Sara Zabrecky (Munster, Ind./Munster/St. John's) made her way to the paint for a stop and pop to give the Flames an advantage at 5:14.
- At 35 seconds, junior guard Sandra Frau-Garcia (Pego, Spain/Casper College) came up with a steal, which led to a three-pointer on the other end of the floor from Williams.
- The Flames experienced a nearly five-minute scoring drought at the end of the quarter, finishing within two points of the Lady Bears (13-11).
SECOND QUARTER (31-31, TIED)
- UIC came out aggressively, tying the score at 13 after Frau-Garcia found graduate student forward Keimari Rimmer (Chicago, Ill./Proviso East/DePaul) on the block 45 seconds into the quarter.
- Williams then scored nine straight points for the Flames. The versatile post player hit consecutive threes, recording 12 points halfway through the second quarter.
- The Flames saw opportunities to score, but missed easy shots near the basket. It was a three from graduate student guard Dais'Ja Trotter (Louisville, Ky./Seneca/Cincinnati) with 45 seconds remaining that leveled the score at 31-31 and gave Flames a boost going into halftime.
THIRD QUARTER (46-42, UIC)
- Senior guard Kristian Young (Indianapolis, Ind./Lawrence North) broke an early 4-0 run from MSU by hitting a midrange jumper, bringing UIC back within one point (34-33).
- UIC stayed within one at 5:50 following Zabrecky's assist to junior forward Ky Dempsey-Toney (Franklin, N.J./Franklin) on the block (36-35). A minute later, Dempsey-Toney planted her feet on defense to draw her second charge.
- At 2:26, the Flames claimed the lead as Frau-Garcia used her court vision to find Rimmer running the floor and launched a pass from halfcourt that Rimmer converted to put her team up, 41-40.
- Williams went 2-for-2 from the charity stripe after getting fouled with 30 seconds left in the quarter. Missouri State went for the last shot, but UIC's defense would not budge, maintaining its lead heading into the fourth (46-42).
FOURTH QUARTER (65-61, UIC)
- Williams scored the first points for either team in the fourth quarter at 8:39, as she maneuvered around her defender on the block (49-42).
- Up four points three minutes into the quarter, Young found Middleton on a fast break. She made the layup through the foul to give the Flames a 50-44 lead.
- The Lady Bears scored back-to-back baskets to come within 58-55, but Young found McCloud for a lay-up and a five-point lead at 1:48.
- Missouri State tied it up at 58 with 23 seconds left, but one possession later, McCloud grabbed an offensive rebound and put it back to reclaim the lead (63-61).
- MSU tried to even the score, but UIC's defense came up big. Late free throws from Middleton with :06 left sealed the deal, marking the first win over Missouri State in program history.
BEYOND THE BOXSCORE
- Thursday's win marks 10 conference wins for UIC, the first time in nearly a decade the Flames have had double-digit victories in a conference season (10-6 in the Horizon League in 2013-14).
- It's also the first time in program history the Flames beat the Bears.
- The contest proved to be a nail-biter, with nine lead changes, five ties and the biggest margin no larger than six points.
UP NEXT
The Flames will host Southern Illinois at Credit Union 1 Arena for their final regular season game on Saturday. The contest against the Salukis will tip off at 1 p.m. (CT) and will feature UIC's Senior Day ceremony after the game. If fans can't make it out to see the action, the game will be streamed on ESPN+ with live stats at
UICFlames.com.
TICKETS AND MORE
Tickets for Saturday's game 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).
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