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Flames bust out of slump OFFENSE COMES TOGETHER IN BIG WIN (2/18/07)
The Flames trailed by 11 points midway through the first half and appeared to struggling once again, but a 19-2 burst, including 16 straight points, set them straight and led to them to an 84-62 non-conference victory over Central Michigan at the Pavilion. Flames associate head coach Mark Coomes said the team stayed upbeat despite the early deficit. “It’s not ‘here we go again, it’s let’s go again,’ and that’s what we did,” Coomes said. “The guys have had great attitudes. This is a real good victory for them.” UIC (11-17) fell behind 19-8 as it missed some easy layups and open shots, while the Chippewas (10-15) took advantage with some easy conversions of their own. Robert Bush’s three-point play with 9:58 left before halftime began the Flames’ comeback, and after Marko Spica’s layup for CMU, it was all Flames. The Flames hit four three-pointers in the process of running of 16 straight points. T.J. Gray hit a three-pointer to start the barrage. Then Gray found Josh Mayo in transition for a three and then Mayo did the same for Gray on the next Flames’ possession to cut the deficit to 21-20 with 8:00 left. After two free throws by Scott VanderMeer gave the Flames the lead, Gray hit a driving layup and another three-pointer to put the Flames up 27-21. UIC took a 29-24 lead into intermission and put the pedal down in the second half, led by junior Othyus Jeffers’ monster performance. After not scoring and being limited to 10 minutes due of foul trouble, Jeffers scored 24 points in the second half, while grabbing seven of his nine rebounds and dishing out all three of his assists after halftime. “I had to step up,” said Jeffers, who had the first 20-plus point half since Justin Bowen put up 20 second-half points at Northwestern on Dec. 14, 2005. “(Assistant) Bryant Lowe and my teammates just said, ‘Leave it on the court.’ These are our last couple of games, so we’ve got to have fun. We would never let [bad] things go, we just kept them in our heads. Today was just playing ball.” The Flames began to build their lead steadily, using good offensive flow and delivering extra passes when needed to free up shooters. UIC shot 59 percent in the second half and outscored Central Michigan 55-38 after halftime. “The first five, six, seven minutes of the game, we missed some easy shots,” Coomes said. “The last 30 minutes of the game, we played with a lot of poise. We moved the ball – we had 23 assists to 11 turnovers, which I thought was excellent. Our goal was to get 20-plus assists. We were very unselfish.”
Later Jeffers scored 12 straight Flames points in an 18-6 run that slammed the door. There was plenty of offense to spread around after Jeffers as three additional Flames scored in double figures, led by Mayo’s 16 points (four three-pointers), career-high eight assists and four steals. Gray added 16 points with four three-pointers and four assists. Bush added 12 points and five rebounds. “It was a great flow,” Mayo said. “Everything was clicking today. In the end, it got us a blowout.” Spica led CMU with 18 points and eight rebounds. The 22-point win was UIC’s largest margin of victory since a 71-48 victory at Northern Illinois in DeKalb on Dec. 5. “It takes a little burden off our shoulders,” Mayo said. “But a little burden will stay there just to keep us on our toes.” FLAMES FLICKERS: Freshman guard Spencer Stewart played for the first time since Jan. 20 (high-ankle sprain) entered the game with 13:57 left in the first half and played 13 minutes in the game. He did not score as he missed all three of his shots, but did have two assists and two rebounds. He had a nice length-of-the-court assist on a pass to Eb Noonoo in the final minutes. … Jeffers had a dunk that looked it like belonged in the NBA Slam Dunk Contest. With 11:28 left and the Flames on a 2-on-nothing break, Mayo lofted a pass that Jeffers grabbed out of the air and dunked it in one motion. … Scott VanderMeer, the Flames’ 6-foot-11-inch center, struggled a bit on defense as CMU’s 6-10 freshman Spica got some easy baskets against him. VanderMeer did record five more blocked shots and scored six points. … Somewhat lost in UIC’s big win was the effort of the defense, which held the Chippewas to just under 40 percent of the field. UIC forced 22 turnovers and contained CMU star guard Giordan Watson. Watson, who averaged 18.4 points per game entering Saturday, had just eight points on 4-for-14 shooting with six turnovers. … Before the game, CMU coach Ernie Zeigler suspended starting swingman Eddie Spencer for conduct detrimental to the team. … UIC redshirt freshman forward Jovan Ignjatovic did not dress because of a groin injury. UP NEXT: UIC hosts Wisconsin-Milwaukee on Senior Night this Wednesday night at 7 p.m. UWM enters the game at 8-20 overall and 5-9 in Horizon League games. The Panthers have lost six of their last seven games, including an 84-76 loss at Drake on Saturday. UWM defeated the Flames 76-65 in Milwaukee on Jan. 17 as the Panthers rained in 12 first-half three-pointers. Junior guard Avery Smith has been the Panthers’ top player, averaging 15.8 points per game. Smith scored 33 points against Drake. The Flames will honor senior forward Jovan Stefanov before the game. The game will be video streamed live on the Horizon League Network (free registration is required) and it will also be aired live on WMVP-AM 1000 and streamed at www.espnradio1000.com with Mike Kamin and Chris Boden on the call. As usual, there will be free postgame pizza for Fury members wearing their red Fury T-shirts. All students are admitted for free with valid I-card. |
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