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Bulldogs smother Flames with barrage of threes UIC FALLS WITHOUT COACH COLLINS February 14, 2009
Sophomore Matt Howard scored 19 points and grabbed eight rebounds and freshman Gordon Hayward added 18 points as the host Bulldogs took care of business in smother the Flames 80-61 at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. Butler (22-2, 13-1 Horizon League) carved up the Flames’ zone defense to the tune of 13 three-pointers. The Bulldogs shot 54 percent from the field for the game and committed just eight turnovers. With UIC head coach Jimmy Collins attending funeral services for his mother, Lorraine Collins Trapps (who died on Tuesday) in Syracuse, N.Y., associate head coach Mark Coomes was in charge of the team. “Butler shot it great,” Coomes said. “Our zone didn’t hold up real good. I thought their ball movement was excellent.” The Bulldogs were also mourning a loss close to their family. The girlfriend of Butler director of basketball operations Kevin Kuwik was one of the victims of the plane crash in suburban Buffalo on Thursday night. Kuwik and his girlfriend were supposed meet up at a wedding. Butler was inspired from the get-go, running out to a 25-8 lead, thanks to seven points apiece from Howard and Hayward and three three-pointers by Zach Hahn off the bench. “We certainly spent more time today not talking about basketball than usual,” Butler coach Brad Stevens said. “But I thought our guys came out and played good basketball tonight. We handled ourselves well.” The Flames (11-14, 4-11) trailed by as many as 19 in the first half, but closed the period strong with a 9-2 run to cut their deficit to 38-26 at the break. UIC outscored Butler 10-5 to open the second half. Josh Mayo, who led the Flames with 19 points, ended the run with a three-pointer that got the Flames within 43-36. Moments later, the Bulldogs ripped off 11 straight points on two threes by Shelvin Mack and another by Hahn. Hayward capped the burst with a putback for a 56-41 lead. The Flames had one run in them as they trimmed a 68-52 hole to eight points with 4:02 remaining on a three-pointer by Robo Kreps. UIC was within 68-60, but the Bulldogs countered with a layup by Mack off a steal. Butler outscored UIC 12-1 to end the game. The Bulldogs simply had answers for every run the Flames had. “They started hitting some shots, then we had a few turnovers,” Coomes said. “It was closer than the final score indicated.” Butler put four players in double figures as Hahn (15 points) and Mack (12 points) added to the efforts of Howard and Hayward. Howard was 6-for-6 from the field and 7-for-7 from the foul line. Mayo was the only Flame in double digits, but Spencer Stewart chipped in with nine points on three three-pointers and five assists. Jeremy Buttell had a game-high 10 rebounds for UIC. UP NEXT: UIC concludes its two-game swing through Indiana when it takes on Valparaiso on Sunday afternoon. The Crusaders are 7-18 overall and 4-10 in the Horizon after whipping Loyola 71-47 on Friday night. UIC blew out Valpo 77-52 at the Pavilion on Jan. 15. The game tips off at 3 p.m. with coverage on Lakeshore Public TV. Audio coverage with the Flames’ voices, Adam Levinson and Kenny Williams, can be heard on uicflames.com. |
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