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Dildy to be new assistant FORMER UIC PLAYER, COACH RETURNS (6/25/07)
Dildy, who played for two years at UIC and was an assistant for three seasons with the Flames, will be named men’s basketball assistant coach pending approval of the University Board of Trustees, a UIC source said on Monday. Dildy will join Jimmy Collins’ staff of Mark Coomes (associate head coach) and Bryant Lowe (director of basketball operations). Assistant coach Lynn Mitchem’s status is still unknown at this time. Dildy replaces Dave Donnelly, who left for Eastern Michigan a few weeks ago. Dildy spent last season at UAB under former Indiana coach Mike Davis and helped put together the No. 9 recruiting class in the nation according to CollegeHoopsUpdate.com. He has also worked at Ball State, DePaul, Auburn and Mississippi. Working under Pat Kennedy at DePaul, Dildy was influential in recruiting Quentin Richardson, Bobby Simmons, Lance Williams and Steven Hunter. Dildy even had a commitment from Eddy Curry before he declared for the NBA draft. As a coach at UIC on Bob Hallberg’s staff (1991-94), he helped recruit Sherell Ford and Mark Miller. In his two years of playing with the Flames (1988-90), the point guard had 260 assists – eighth on the school’s all-time list. He played his first two college seasons at San Diego State. Prior to that, Dildy played at King High School under legendary coach Landon “Sonny” Cox. Dildy is a member of the UIC Athletics Hall of Fame (1995), the Illinois Basketball Hall of Fame (1997) and the Chicago Public League Hall of Fame (1998). DePAUL RETURNS TO SCHEDULE: A tentative UIC schedule was sent out to season ticket holders last week and it included a Dec. 15 game against DePaul at the Allstate Arena. It will mark the first meeting for the Flames and Blue Demons since Dec. 2004 when DePaul took an 80-62 victory. A source said that it looks like a 2-for-1 deal with DePaul coming to the UIC Pavilion in the future. The Flames will open regular-season play with a home game against Bradley on Saturday, Nov. 10, followed by a home game with Lewis on Nov. 13 before traveling to the competitive Paradise Jam. Other non-conference home games include Toledo and Howard. There is also a possibility of adding one more home game. Other non-conference road games include Central Michigan, Illinois State, Akron and the Bracket Buster game. The game scheduled for Georgia Tech has been put off for another year, because the Flames could meet the Yellow Jackets in the second game of the Paradise Jam. The conference opener is slated for Dec. 6 at the Pavilion against a retooled Wisconsin-Milwaukee outfit. The season finale is March 1 at Wisconsin-Green Bay. UIC will play Valparaiso for the first time as fellow Horizon League members on Jan. 24 at Valpo. KREPS UPDATE: Incoming freshman Robert Kreps had 13 points and five assists in the IBCA Class A All-Star Game and win the Class A South leadership award in a 104-90 victory. |
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