Former Flame star on reality show

EX-GUARD SEEN ON ABC SHOW

(5/12/06)

Ed Hall may not be all over the UIC record books, but the former guard, who played two seasons with the Flames, may become famous for something entirely different than basketball.

Hall is one of four finalists on the ABC reality show, “American Inventor,” which airs on Thursday nights.

Hall, 40, is the creator of Word Ace – an electronic table top word game for up to six players. It helps children learn to spell and improve their vocabulary. According to the show’s Web site, the object of the game is to beat the other players in creating a word given a certain set of rules (example: create a seven-letter word where “s” is the second letter).

Hall will be featured prominently in the final two episodes, which will air next Thursday, May 18 at 7 p.m. Chicago time on WLS-Ch. 7. If wins, he will get $1 million and a licensing deal to market his invention.

Hall was a 6-foot-1 guard at UIC, who played in coach Willie Little’s final season and Bob Hallberg’s first season. As a sophomore in the 1986-87 season, he was a member of the Mid-Continent Conference All-Newcomer Team.

He was a two-year letterwinner with the Flames, known for his outside shot. Hall was teammates with players like Dick Knar and Bobby Locke, who both are now local high school coaches.

Hall isn’t the first former UIC basketball player on a reality show. Armond Williams and Martell Bailey were participants in last summer’s MTV2 hit Battlegrounds: King of the Court.

BANKS UPDATE: Former Flame Cedrick Banks has led Besancon of the French Pro-B League to first place with a 22-10 record. With that accomplishment, Besancon qualifies to move up to the Pro-A League next season.

Banks leads the league at 21.0 points per game. He also averages 4.2 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 2.1 steals, while shooting 49 percent from the field and 75 percent from the free-throw line.

In an 92-73 victory over Boulazac on May 3, Banks scored 27 points on 12-of-22 shooting with a season-high 11 rebounds and five assists. There are two games left in the regular season before Besancon opens postseason play later this month as the No. 1 seed.

POST CLUTTER: With the arrival of junior college forward Jermaine Dailey, the Flames should have a fortified post for the 2006-07 season. Dailey, an athletic 6-foot-7, is a good rebounder and defender and runs the floor well.

Dailey should compete immediately with Danijel Zoric, Othyus Jeffers, Jovan Stefanov, Scott VanderMeer and Jovan Ignjatovic for playing time. However, Lance Young, the 6-foot-9 recruit from Rock Island Alleman, sat out last season due to NCAA initial eligibility requirements and his future is uncertain.

Also, small forward Jonathan Blake, who signed a Letter of Intent last fall, is not coming. He signed along with guard Spencer Stewart in November. Blake could end up at prep school or a junior college.

STILL TO COME: WhooshNet! is working on several stories for the upcoming weeks. We’ll take a look at former Flame Kenny Williams in his new job as the head coach of the Chicago Rockstars of the ABA. … Also, we’ll update you on a former Flame who has professional aspirations … Finally, we’ll have parts 2 and 3 of the season in-review.