Flames bowl over Falcons in Bracket Buster

(2/23/03)

It wasn’t quite the game UIC needed to improve its NCAA tournament resume, but a national TV win is still a pretty nice consolation prize.

Behind a balanced attack, the Flames defeated Bowling Green 83-72 at the Pavilion Saturday as part of the ESPN Bracket Buster in front of a season-high 6,856 fans and ESPN2 cameras.

“I like it,” UIC coach Jimmy Collins said of the Bracket Buster concept. “We have a hard time scheduling. I like the idea where [Bowling Green] comes to our place and we go to their place [next year]. I think it’s good for us, because the power conferences won’t come here and play.”

Aaron Carr and Jonathan Schneiderman each scored 19 points to lead the Flames (18-7), who fell behind by as many as seven early in the game.

The Flames went on a 17-6 run midway through the first half as Carr and Schneiderman each hit two three-pointers as UIC took a 25-19 lead with 7:18 left in the half.

“Fortunately, I got a couple of wide-open looks,” said Schneiderman, who had five three-pointers for the game. “There were a couple of breakdown plays and the ball came right to me early in the game.”

After Bowling Green tied the game with a quick 6-0 spurt, UIC finished the first half on a 17-5 streak to take a 42-30 halftime lead.

“I don’t know how we lost Schneiderman [so many] times,” Bowling Green coach Dan Dakich lamented. “My hat’s off to UIC, they were the better basketball team.”

The Falcons (10-13), missing three starters due to injury, could never get closer than seven points the rest of the way.

UIC center Joe Scott, who had been benched by coach Jimmy Collins, stepped up in the second half with dunks on consecutive possessions to put the Flames ahead by 20 at 64-44 with 6:22 left. Scott finished with 11 points.

“I have no problem with coming off the bench,” Scott said. “Whatever I can do to help the team win.”

Martell Bailey contributed 12 points and seven assists, while Cedrick Banks added 10 points for UIC, which had 19 assists as a team and forced 20 turnovers.

John Reimold led Bowling Green with 22 points, including six three-pointers, while Kevin Netter put in 18 points.

Dakich regretted the fact that his team’s struggles of late could diminish the victory for UIC.

“UIC’s going to get hurt in that our RPI isn’t great,” Dakich said. “Had we been healthy, it would have been a better win for them.”

MILESTONE: Coach Jimmy Collins now stands at 104 career victories. He passed the late Leo Gedvilas for second all-time after UIC’s 87-74 victory at Cleveland State last Thursday.

STREAK ENDS: Forward Armond Williams scored just seven points and grabbed nine rebounds before fouling out with 5:57 left in the game. The performance ended an impressive 16-game run of scoring in double figures for the junior from Austin High.

ATTENDANCE: Saturday’s crowd of 6,856 was the third biggest for a UIC game at the Pavilion, ranking behind just the two home games with Illinois (Nov. 1996 and Dec. 1991).