CORALVILLE, IOWA – The No. 7 seed UIC women's basketball team (14-17, 9-11 MVC)  faces of against No. 10 seed Evansville (7-24, 5-15 MVC) in the opening round of the 2026 Credit Union 1 Missouri Valley Conference Women's Basketball Tournament Thursday from the Xtream Arena. Tip-off is scheduled for 6 p.m. (CT). The game will be streamed on ESPN+ with live stats available at UICFlames.com.

Fans wanting more information on the tournament can go to the UIC's Tournament Central or The Valley's Championship Central page.  All-session and single-session tickets in the UIC cheering section are on sale through the UIC Athletics Ticket Office by calling 312-413-UIC1 (8421) or e-mailing athleticsticketing@uic.edu.
 
SCOUTING EVANSVILLE

• This will be the 24^th match-up between the programs with UIC maintaining a 13-10 overall lead on the series. Since joining the MVC four years ago, the Flames have gone 8-1 against the Purple Aces.
• In their last meeting, the Flames fended off the Purple Aces in a 68-65 victory in front of the home crowd at Credit Union 1 Arena on Feb. 7. Senior Jessica Carrothers led the Flames in scoring with 18 points, a pair of rebounds and dished out a pair of assists.
• After securing an overtime thrilling victory against UNI (17-13, 13-7 MVC) on Feb. 21, the Purple Aces dropped their final four conference games, aiming to return to the win column.
• Sophomore Camyrn Runner continues her impressive collegiate career, finishing up conference play averaging 18.1 points, 5.5 rebounds and 5.7 assists per game. The guard was recognized earlier today with a spot on the All-MVC Second Team for her efforts.

 
FLAMES DUO EARNED POSTSEASON HONORS

• Earlier today, Carrothers was named to the All-MVC First Team earlier today, becoming the first member from UIC to earn this recognition since UIC Hall of Famer Ruvanna Campbell was named to the All-Horizon League First Team in 2016.
• She was joined by teammate redshirt sophomore Julia Coleman, who landed on the All-MVC Third Team. The forward also earned a spot on the All-MVC Defensive Team, the first in any loop since Jade Nneji earned Horizon League All-Defensive Team honors in 2020.
• Carrothers and Coleman are the second pair of Flames to earn spots on the MVC All-Newcomer Team, following Keimari Rimmer and Makiyah Williams in 2023-24.

 
LAST GAME RECAP – VS. BELMONT

• In front of roaring Senior Day crowd, the Flames found themselves in overtime for the first time this season, falling short to Belmont (20-11, 16-4 MVC), 78-70 at Credit Union 1 Arena Saturday.
• Coleman led all scorers with 28 points and grabbed a collegiate-high 15 rebounds enroute to her team-leading eighth double-double of the season.
• Carrothers scored 14 points and dished out a team-high six assists. The guard has led UIC in assists across 21 games this season.
• Graduate student Crystal Ortiz scored 11 points, sinking three triples behind 25 minutes off the bench, securing her sixth game in double figures.

 
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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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