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OPENING TIP: Time for a real winner in Chicago
(as published in Whoosh! magazine Nov. 4, 2003)
Actually, I thought about doing a story on how UIC men’s basketball has been the best major sports team in Chicago over the past couple of years or so. But the Cubs’ National League Central championship and subsequent playoff run put a bit of a damper into that.
Considering the “Sporting News criteria,” consisting of teams from Major League Baseball, the National Football League, the National Basketball Association, the National Hockey League, NCAA Division I football and NCAA Division I men’s basketball, the record of UIC men’s basketball stacks up pretty well.
Excluding the Bears’ 13-3 season and playoff appearance in 2001, the Flames were the most successful of all the major teams, percentage-wise.
The teams I would have considered for the story were all within or nearby the city limits of Chicago: Cubs, White Sox, Bears, Bulls, Blackhawks, Northwestern football, UIC basketball, DePaul basketball, Loyola basketball, Chicago State basketball and Northwestern basketball.
Since the beginning of 2000, UIC and DePaul have had two postseason appearances (1 NCAA and 1 NIT each). UIC reached the NCAA tournament most recently in 2002. DePaul last went in 2000.
The Cubs, White Sox, Bears, Blackhawks and Northwestern football made one postseason appearance each. Loyola, Chicago State, and Northwestern basketball have not made the postseason, although Loyola was one step away in 2002 when it lost to UIC in the finals of the Horizon League tournament.
I’m not mentioning Illinois or Notre Dame, because quite frankly, anything that requires more than an hour of driving really isn’t local, no matter what our local media believes. As for Northern Illinois and Valparaiso, my argument is sticking with Chicago and its immediate suburbs.
With the current situation at UIC, I only see things getting better for the Flames. Among the returning players are: Horizon League Player of the Year candidate Cedrick Banks, the national assists champion Martell Bailey, and one of the best field-goal percentage shooters in Armond Williams.
Also, the Flames have two players that can contend for Newcomer of the Year in forwards Elliott Poole and Justin Bowen. Steady veterans Aaron Carr and Joe Scott may have a pretty calm demeanor on the court, but those two will be counted on as leaders.
More fans have been attending games at the Pavilion in recent years as the average attendance has risen from just below 3,000 per game to a bit over 4,000. With the talent and the burgeoning winning tradition, expect the crowds and the excitement to swell to 1998 proportions – when the Flames first reached the “Big Dance.”
What do I expect this year?
Just about everything. This could be the mid-major team that breaks through to the Final Four.
Don’t laugh too much. The Flames have five senior starters returning, and a senior-dominated formula worked well for recent runs in the NCAA tournament by Butler (2003 Sweet 16) and Kent State (2002 Elite 8).
In addition, high-impact players like Poole and Marcetteaus McGee don’t usually come off the bench at “high-major” schools, much less at this level of basketball.
Poole was recruited hard by Connecticut (a popular pick for the coming season’s national champion), while McGee originally signed with Wisconsin.
So, dream big, for those dreams may just come true.
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