CHICAGO (May 21, 2024) – Graduate student guard
Tyem Freeman (Springfield, Mo./Hillcrest/UCF/Kent State), a former junior college first-team All-American, is the newest member of the UIC men's basketball program, committing to join the Flames for the 2024-25 season, head coach
Rob Ehsan announced Tuesday.
Freeman is among a group of eight newcomers who have already signed with UIC next year, including five other NCAA Division I transfers — sophomore forward
Saša Ciani (Nova Gorica, Slovenia/Koder School/Xavier), sophomore guard
Ahmad Henderson II (Chicago, Ill./Brother Rice/Niagara), junior guard
Javon Jackson (Houston, Texas/C.E. King/Utah State), redshirt senior forward
Modestas Kancleris (Kaunas, Lithuania/Varpas Gimnazija/Creighton/Cal State Bakersfield) and graduate student guard
Joshua Reaves (Hamden, Conn./South Kent School/Mount St. Mary's). They will be joined by a pair of high school standouts in guard
Carlos Harris (Chicago, Ill./Curie) and forward
Jayce Nathaniel (Buford, Ga./AZ Compass Prep).
"Tyem will bring a great deal of experience to our roster through his time at both UCF and Kent State, as well as being a first-team All-American at Indian Hills," Ehsan said. "He's an incredibly versatile athlete and skilled at a number of levels, most notably on the perimeter with his three-point shooting ability. We're excited to welcome him to Chicago's College Team and look forward to seeing him grow and develop even further this season."
Freeman is a 6-foot-5, 205-pound guard who spent last season at Kent State University, where he appeared in 30 games (four starts) and averaged 5.6 points and 2.0 rebounds per game while helping KSU reach the Mid-American Conference Tournament championship game. He was also the Golden Flashes' top three-point threat, connecting at a .464 clip (26-of-56) from beyond the arc. Freeman scored in double figures six times at KSU, including a season-high 16 points and a 4-of-5 three-pointers at Oregon (Dec. 21) and 16 points and a career-best nine rebounds against Ohio University (Jan. 26).
Prior to arriving at Kent State, Freeman attended UCF for two years, playing in 54 games (two starts) for the Knights and averaging 4.2 points and 2.1 rebounds per game. His best season in Orlando came in 2021-22 when he averaged 5.0 ppg. and ranked second on the UCF roster with a .570 field-goal percentage and .848 free-throw percentage. Freeman also scored a career-high 22 points on Jan. 14, 2023, at Tulane, one of the highlights of his second season with the Knights that culminated with a win over Florida and a trip to the second round of the National Invitation Tournament (NIT).
Freeman began his career in 2020-21 at Indian Hills Community College in Ottumwa, Iowa, where he registered 18.1 points and 7.3 rebounds per game with a .522 field-goal percentage, scoring in double figures 21 times with 10 20-point games. He earned National Junior College Association of America (NJCAA) first-team All-America honors (the only freshman in the nation to receive that accolade during the 2020-21 season) and was named the 2021 NJCAA Region XI Player of the Year after leading Indian Hills to a 21-3 record, a Region XI Championship and a No. 6 national ranking.
Fans are strongly encouraged to support NIL opportunities for UIC scholar-athletes through contributions to
The Chicago Collective. In addition, season ticket deposits for the 2024-25 Flames' men's basketball campaign are currently being accepted
online through Ticketmaster or by contacting the UIC Athletics Ticket Office (312.413.8421;
athleticsticketing@uic.edu).
For more information on UIC men's basketball, fans are encouraged to visit
UICFlames.com, or follow the Flames on social media through X (
@UIC_MBB and
@UICFlames) and Instagram (
@uic_mbb and
@uicflames).
