CARBONDALE, Ill. (Feb. 8, 2025) — Graduate student guard
Tyem Freeman (Springfield, Mo./Hillcrest/UCF/Kent State) and sophomore guard
Ahmad Henderson II (Chicago, Ill./Brother Rice/Niagara) each scored a team-high 12 points, but UIC struggled through an uncharacteristically poor shooting day in falling at Missouri Valley Conference foe Southern Illinois, 79-67, on Saturday afternoon at the Banterra Center in Carbondale, Ill. It was only the third road loss in 10 outings this season for the Flames (14-10, 7-7 MVC), who have lost three in a row for the first time all season.
Freeman added a team-high five rebounds for UIC, which was 6-of-24 from three-point range after coming into the game among the Valley leaders in three-point percentage and three-pointers made per game. The Flames did battle for the full 40 minutes and got as close as the final 12-point margin, thanks in part to some gritty play from their bench, which wound up accounting for 39 points on the day.
The full box score and play-by-play recap from Saturday's game at Southern Illinois can be found
here.
COACH'S COMMENTS
SOCIAL MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS
Â
Â
Â
Â
Â
Â
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- This marked just the second time in the last 14 matchups between UIC and Southern Illinois that the game wasn't decided by 10 points or fewer. Coincidentally, the other time was on the Flames' last visit to Carbondale, which likewise resulted in a 12-point win for the Salukis (62-50 on Dec. 30, 2023).
- It was just the second time in UIC's last 14 games it shot lower than 30 percent from the three-point line (.087 in a 61-60 last-second loss to Bradley on Jan. 11 at Credit Union 1 Arena).
- That Bradley game was also the only other time the Flames haven't reached the 70-point mark in MVC play this year.
- UIC finished with 12 steals, their highest total against a Division I opponent and the sixth time overall this year that the Flames have had double-digit steals (they had 14 against St. Francis-Ill. on Nov. 4 and Saint Mary's-Minn. on Nov. 16, both at Credit Union 1 Arena).
- UIC's 39 bench points were its fourth-highest output by the reserves this season and most since Nov. 22 against La Salle, when the Flames' second unit scored 42 points in a 96-83 win over the Explorers at the Boardwalk Battle in Daytona Beach, Fla.
- Henderson has scored in double figures a team-high 17 times this season, including 11 of the past 14 UIC games.
- Freeman also scored in double figures for the 11th time in the past 14 games and 14th time overall this season. In addition, Freeman tied his career high with three steals, having previously reached that mark on Dec. 29, 2023, at Saint Mary's (Calif.) while playing for Kent State.
- Redshirt senior forward Modestas Kancleris (Kaunas, Lithuania/Varpas Gimnazija/Creighton/Cal State Bakersfield) tied his career high with four blocked shots, the fourth time in his career, third time this season and second in three games (Feb. 1 at home vs. Indiana State) he has posted that total.Â
- Graduate student guard Joshua Reaves (Hamden, Conn./South Kent School/Mount St. Mary's) scored eight points off the bench, his second-highest output of the season behind only a 21-point effort on Nov. 16 against Saint Mary's (Minn.) at Credit Union 1 Arena.
- Redshirt senior guard Koby Jeffries (Olive Branch, Miss./The Skill Factory/UAB/UT Martin) scored four points, the most for him since that Nov. 16 Saint Mary's game (season-high eight points).
UP NEXT
UIC plays the back half of its two-game MVC road trip Tuesday when it travels to Murray State for a 7 p.m. (CT) matchup at the CFSB Center in Murray, Ky. ESPN+ will televise the game live, while due to scheduling conflicts, there will not be a free live radio call on the Flames Network at
UICFlames.com.
FOLLOW THE FLAMES
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).
Â
