Flames solve Calihan mystique on national TV

(1/18/03)

Using strong free-throw shooting and clutch defense, UIC won for the first time in Calihan Hall since 1997 as the Flames stopped Detroit 77-74 Saturday afternoon in front of a partisan 4,540 fans and ESPN2 cameras.

Martell Bailey’s free throw put the Flames ahead 75-74 with 22.7 seconds left, and after Detroit’s Willie Green missed a short jumper with 10 seconds to play, Bailey (pictured) poked the rebound away from Willie Wallace. The ball bounced into the hands of Cedrick Banks, who dribbled downcourt and passed to Aaron Carr, who was fouled and made two free throws with 1.1 seconds remaining. The Titans could not get a three-point shot off in time.

Banks, who hit a three-pointer and a lean-in floater in the final four minutes, led UIC (10-4, 4-1) with 24 points. Banks was just 8-of-22 from the field, but 4-of-9 from three-point range.

Banks’ floater with 1:15 left put the Flames up 74-70, but Willie Green hit back-to-back layups to tie the game with under a minute to go. The second Green layup came after Jonathan Schneiderman threw away an inbound pass.

With under 30 seconds to play, Bailey drove the lane and drew a foul. He missed the first attempt before converting the second.

Bailey added 16 points and nine assists for UIC, while Armond Williams contributed 11 points and Schneiderman put in nine points on three treys.

Kyle Kickert was a force off the Flames’ bench, grabbing 10 rebounds and scoring two clutch baskets.

The Titans’ Green was as impressive as Banks, putting in 23 points on 10-of-20 from the field. Willie Wallace added a career-best 16 points for Detroit (7-8, 2-4), often beating the Flames’ defense down low and converting off entry passes.

Detroit’s poor free-throw shooting down the stretch also contributed to the Flames’ victory. Green missed 3-of-4 and Rulon Harris split a pair in the final four minutes of the contest.

The game was back-and-forth until Schneiderman buried back-to-back threes to cap off a 10-3 run that gave UIC a 44-33 lead with 1:30 left in the opening half.

The Flames led by as many as nine points in the second half before the Titans slowly clawed back into the game.

The loss was only Detroit’s fourth in its last 74 games at Calihan.