THE SERIES BREAKDOWN

• UIC and Bradley will be playing for the 14th time on Saturday, with the Braves holding a 11-2 series lead. The margin is much tighter (3-2 BU) when the scene shifts to Chicago.

• More than half (8) of the previous 13 games in the series between the Flames and Braves have been decided by 10 points or fewer.

• Bradley has won the past six series meetings, including all three last year.

• UIC is seeking its first win over Bradley since Nov. 17, 2018 (a 71-70 victory at Credit Union 1 Arena).

MORE ON BRADLEY

• With its No. 2 ranking, Bradley (13-3, 4-1) is the third UIC opponent in the past four games (and fourth this year) to appear in the College Insider Mid-Major Top 25 Poll at tipoff. The Flames previously faced No. 13 Yale (W, 91-79 on Nov. 8), No. 1 Drake (W, 74-70 on Jan. 1) and No. 20 Belmont (L, 92-87 on Jan. 4).

• The Braves had their five-game winning streak snapped Wednesday with a 64-57 home loss to Drake. Bradley's only other losses this season were at Washington State (91-74 on Nov. 8) and vs. Santa Clara (84-74 on Dec. 14 at the Jack Jones Classic in Henderson, Nev.).

• Fifth-year guard and Preseason MVC Player of the Year Duke Deen leads Bradley in scoring (14.4 ppg.), just ahead of senior guard Zek Montgomery (14.1 ppg.) — both players are among the top 10 in the Valley in that category. The pair also rank in the MVC Top 10 in three-point percentage (Montgomery - .444; Deen - .417).

• Head coach Brian Wardle is in his 10th season at Bradley with a 171-141 (.548) record. He's in his 15th season overall (five years at Green Bay) with a 266-206 (.574) career record.

GAME #15 RECAP - MISSOURI STATE

• Graduate student guard and Springfield, Mo., native Tyem Freeman enjoyed a very happy homecoming with a game-high 18 points, five rebounds and four assists as UIC raced past Missouri State, 80-63 Tuesday night at Great Southern Bank Arena. It was the sixth win in seven games for the Flames, who also improve to 4-2 on the road this season.

• Senior forward Filip Škobalj had a perfect shooting night, going 6-for-6 from the field, including 5-for-5 from three-point range (the last being the 200th of his UIC career), to finish with 17 points. Sophomore guard Ahmad Henderson II and redshirt senior forward Modestas Kancleris added punch off the bench with 12 and 10 points, respectively — Kancleris also had a spotless shooting performance, going 5-for-5.

• Collectively, the Flames shot 59.3 percent from the field, including 11-for-20 (.550) from three-point range, and finished with a +16 rebounding edge.

NOTING THE MISSOURI STATE GAME

• UIC earned its first win in 12 career visits to Missouri State, and captured its fifth win in 22 series meetings with the Bears (first since an 86-80 victory on Dec. 21, 2001, at the Las Vegas Classic.

• Tuesday's 17-point win was the largest margin of victory for UIC in a Missouri Valley Conference game during the Flames' three seasons in the Valley (2022-23 to present). It was the largest margin of victory for UIC in any conference game since Jan. 15, 2022, when the Flames prevailed at Horizon League foe Green Bay by the exact same score as Tuesday night at Missouri State (80-63).

• UIC's .593 field-goal percentage was a season-high against a Division I opponent, surpassing its .574 mark on Jan. 1 in a home win over Drake. The only time the Flames shot better from the floor in any game this season was Nov. 16 against Saint Mary's (Minn.), when they shot an even 60 percent.

• The Flames posted a season-best .550 three-point percentage, their highest in a game since Dec. 12, 2023 (.632 vs. Green Bay at Credit Union 1 Arena.

• UIC's +16 rebounding margin was a season-high against a Division I opponent, topping the +15 mark (58-44) in a Dec. 8 home win over Dartmouth. The Flames had a larger rebounding margin this season on Nov. 16 against Saint Mary's-Minn. (+22) and a similar +16 spread in the Nov. 4 season opener against St. Francis (Ill.) — both games were also played at Credit Union 1 Arena. 

• Skobalj tied his career high by going 5-for-5 from three-point range, matching his performance on Feb. 11, 2024, in a home victory over UNI.

• Skobalj's perfect shooting from beyond the arc tied a Great Southern Bank Arena record, making him the fifth player in venue history, and the second visiting player, to go 5-for-5 from deep (the other visitor was Joe Wolfinger of The Citadel in a neutral-site game vs. Maryland-Eastern Shore on Nov. 22, 2009).

CHAIRMEN OF THE BOARDS

• Sophomore forward Saša Ciani leads the MVC in rebounding (8.7 rpg.; 37th in NCAA), as well as offensive rebounding (3.21 orpg.; 35th in NCAA) and double-doubles (4).

• As a team, UIC is tops in the Valley in rebounding (37.9 rpg.) and offensive rebounds (11.67 orpg.), as well as second in the MVC in rebound margin (+6.3 rpg.; 43rd in NCAA).

• UIC grabbed 21 offensive rebounds in the Dec. 15 win at Little Rock, its highest total on the offensive glass since Jan. 8, 2017, when the Flames had 24 offensive boards in a 58-57 home loss to Oakland.

FILLING IT UP

• Senior forward Filip Škobalj ranks second in the MVC with a .474 three-point percentage and is eighth in school history with 200 career three-pointers.

• Sophomore guard Ahmad Henderson II continues to lead the MVC and ranks 10th in the nation with a .929 free throw percentage this season.

POTENT NOTABLES

• Entering Saturday's game, UIC has an average opponent NET ranking of 81, which is the second-highest in the Valley.

• UIC is 2-1 this season against teams ranked in the College Insider Mid-Major Top 25 poll (wins over No. 13 Yale on Nov. 18 and No. 1 Drake on Jan. 1; five-point loss at No. 20 Belmont on Jan. 4).

• The Flames have three wins over NET Top 100 teams under their belt (Nov. 13 vs. Yale, Dec. 29 at Illinois State, Jan. 1 vs. Drake), with the Illinois State and Drake wins also Quad 2 victories. UIC nearly claimed a Quad 1 win at Northwestern on Nov. 12, falling 83-74 after leading for much of the first half and closing to 74-70 with under 1:20 left before NU salted the game away at the foul line.

• With its Nov. 22 win over La Salle at the Boardwalk Battle, UIC collected its third victory over an Atlantic 10 Conference opponent in the past two seasons, following up last year's victories over Loyola and George Washington.

• UIC has had at least four double-digit scorers in nine games this season. The Flames had a season-high six in their Dec. 20 road win at Seattle U., the  most for UIC in a single game since March 2018.

• UIC has knocked down at least 10 three-pointers in eight games this year.

• The Flames have scored at least 80 points seven times this season and topped the 90-point mark on four occasions.

• This season marked the first time in the 78-year history of the UIC men's basketball program that it had four 90-point outings in its first six games.

• UIC has shot 45 percent or better in 11 games this year, and over 50 percent seven times (season-high 60.0 percent on Nov. 16 against Saint Mary's-Minn.).

NEW FACES, NEW PLACES

• There are a lot of new faces in Sparky's camp this season, as UIC welcomes 11 newcomers to its roster, including eight transfers (all from Division I programs).

• Three of those arrivals bring with them playing experience in the NCAA Tournament from their prior stops — Javon Jackson (Utah State), Modestas Kancleris (Creighton) and Joshua Reaves (Mount St. Mary's).

• Among the new arrivals to Chicago's College Team are junior guard Jordan Mason (9.4 ppg. in two years at Texas State), graduate guard Joshua Reaves (7.5 ppg. and a .368 3FG% in four years at Mount St. Mary's), junior guard Javon Jackson (10.5 ppg. in two years at Southern Nazarene and Utah State) and sophomore guard Ahmad Henderson II (11.2 ppg. in one year at Niagara).

• UIC's roster has a distinct international flair with four European student-athletes — senior forward Filip Škobalj (Belgrade, Serbia), Kancleris (Kaunas, Lithuania), sophomore forward Saša Ciani (Nova Gorica, Slovenia) and freshman Iker Garmendia (Barcelona, Spain).

• The last time UIC had four international players on its roster was the 2020-21 season — Škobalj (Serbia), Jamie Ahale (Australia), Marcus Larsson (Norway) and Jalen Warren (Canada).

UP NEXT: MURRAY STATE

• UIC completes its brief two-game MVC homestand next Wednesday when it plays host to Murray State at 7 p.m. (CT) inside Credit Union 1 Arena.

• Wednesday's game will air live as part of The Valley on ESPN package (accessible on ESPN+), while fans are encouraged to tune into the free Flames Network broadcast at UICFlames.com with Jonathan Hood and Kenny Williams describing the action.

• Murray State (9-7, 3-2 MVC) is coming off an impressive road sweep of the Valley's Iowa schools last weekend, winning at Drake (66-59) and UNI (71-68). The Racers make a quick pit stop at home Saturday to entertain Valparaiso before heading to the Windy City to face the Flames next week.

• UIC is 1-4 all-time against Murray State and is seeking its first win against the Racers since Nov. 28, 2006 (a 74-68 verdict in Chicago).

THE HOTTEST TICKET IN TOWN

• Tickets for all UIC basketball home games may be purchased online through Ticketmaster or UICFlames.com/Tickets, by contacting the UIC Athletics Ticket Office (312-413-UIC1; athleticsticketing@uic.edu) or visiting the Credit Union 1 Arena box office on game night.

• Fans can also purchase passes for the US Solar Courtside Club at Credit Union 1 Arena through the UIC Athletics Ticket Office or the arena box office.