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Listless Flames flattened by Butler
BOWEN BENCHED AFTER CONFLICT
(1/2/06)
INDIANAPOLIS—Less than five minutes into UIC’s contest against Butler on Monday afternoon, one could see trouble coming.
If the most energy anyone on the team exhibited came in the form of an animated fit on the sideline, then it would be a long day for the weary Flames.
Senior forward Justin Bowen, who came into the contest averaging 17.1 points on the season, was benched after an altercation with coach Jimmy Collins.
It was just the tip of the iceberg for the Flames, who dropped their Horizon League road opener, 75-56 to the Bulldogs at Hinkle Fieldhouse.
Later in the first half, Collins went over and addressed Bowen during another timeout. Bowen’s friend, walk-on, Ebenezer Noonoo tried to calm him down and keep his head in the game.
Bowen returned briefly in the second half, but finished with just six points in 13 minutes – the first time he failed to reach double figures all season. By the time he returned, the Flames were dead in the water.
“It’s an in-house matter,” Collins said at first, before elaborating a little bit. “We’re into teaching and coaching basketball, but we’re also into coaching and teaching them respect. They’re not going to be always bouncing a basketball. There are some things in life that are learned better on the basketball court than in jail or in the ground.”
Bowen was smiling and talking with friends after the game in the hallway of Hinkle Fieldhouse, so it appears on the surface that he had patched things up with Collins after the game.
With or without Bowen, the Flames (8-6, 1-1) looked listless and were schooled by the Bulldogs, who shot 58 percent from the field and turned over the ball only six times. Although UIC outrebounded Butler 27-22, the Bulldogs held their own and proved their superiority with team play and hustle.
“They outscrapped us,” Collins said. “They got all the long rebounds and all the loose balls.”
UIC looked every bit like a team that played its third game in five days, while Butler had the fresh legs and a friendly crowd of 2,833 behind it.
Polk led four Butler players in double figures with 21 points on 9-of-12 shooting. A.J. Graves gave the Flames fits with added 17 points, including three three-pointers, and consistently nailed open perimeter shots off screens. Brandon Crone added 13 points and Bruce Horan 12 on four threes.
However, senior point guard Avery Sheets was the quiet leader for the Bulldogs, handing out six of the Bulldogs’ 12 assists.
“I knew he was a player,” said Collins of Sheets. “He wouldn’t be here if he wasn’t. From Day 1, he’s hurt us. He got the ball to the guys that were hot.”
Othyus Jeffers’ 14 points led UIC, while Jovan Stefanov contributed a solid game off the bench with 10 points and seven rebounds. No other Flame scored more than six points.
“We ran into a true team out there,” Collins said. “Their individuals played for the betterment of the team. We, on the other hand, did not play like the team that we really are and I think Butler had something to do with that.”
Bowen’s short jumper gave UIC a 4-2 lead early in the game, but the Bulldogs went on a 16-2 run to forge ahead by double digits. The Flames, then, went on an 11-3 spurt, capped a three-pointer from Karl White and a rebound basket by Danijel Zoric to make the score, 21-17 with 7:54 before halftime.
Butler extended the lead back to 33-21 on a free throw by Crone, but Stefanov nailed back-to-back three-point baskets to pull UIC within six with 1:18 left in the first half. The Bulldogs closed the half with a Graves’ trey from 25 feet out for a 36-27 halftime advantage.
In the second half, UIC just couldn’t muster enough fight to pull off a comeback. Elliott Poole’s three-point play with 17:33 to play pulled the Flames to within 41-32, but Polk answered with a personal six-point run to effectively put the game out of reach.
After piling up 44 assists in the last two games, ball movement and player movement was lacking for the Flames as evidenced by just seven assists.
“It was really hot in here,” Collins said. “I think this the hottest arena we’ve played in since San Juan (in December, 1999). Josh [Mayo] didn’t feel well today, he wasn’t able to conjure up the energy we needed. And, in the post, when we got physical, the officials called it. We really couldn’t get into our game.”
EMPTY THE BENCH: Three walk-ons saw their first action of the season in the game’s final minutes on Monday. Senior Etienne Nelson and sophomores Noonoo and Alok Aiyar played in the game.
Nelson and Noonoo each played three minutes with Noonoo going 0-for-1 from the field and grabbing two rebounds and Nelson picked up a personal foul. Aiyar played two minutes.
Sophomore guard Greg Zimny, who appeared in both games on the Georgia road swing in November, saw action for the third time this season. He scored on a nifty layup and also had an assist on a Kevin Bond layup.
FLAMES FLICKERS: Poole was called for a technical foul with 3:02 left in the first half after some physical play. Butler’s Brandon Ligon fouled Jeffers on a shot attempt and after the play, Poole gave Ligon a shove in the back, which the officials caught. …
With Bowen out of the game in the first half, the Flames tried to pound the ball into Poole on four straight possessions with little success. On the fourth try, Poole was finally able to score. …
Senior point guard Rocky Collum was recently hospitalized with stomach problems. He did not make the 180-mile trip to Indianapolis with the team. …
UIC athletic director Jim Schmidt said that the Flames are trying to schedule another game with Duke in the near future. With Glenbrook North star Jon Scheyer committed to the Blue Devils, Schmidt hopes to get them to come to the United Center. Illinois and UIC are already slated for a game at the United Center next season. …
The Flames will play Wisconsin-Milwaukee back at the UIC Pavilion this Thursday. The game will wrap a brutal stretch of four games in eight days.
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Bowen (pictured) fouled Butler’s Brandon Polk on a layup, leading to a three-point play that gave Butler (8-5, 1-0) a 16-6 lead at the 15:18 mark of the first half. During the ensuing media timeout, Collins questioned Bowen about his defense and Bowen took exception. Bowen then sat at the end of the bench, occasionally flailing his arms and muttering in frustration while sitting out the rest of the first half.
“Avery was terrific handling the ball for us,” said Butler coach Todd Lickliter (pictured). “He was really a true point-guard today in every sense of the word. I was really pleased with the way he handled the team, ran the show, and then guys played off of him. We did a nice job with ball movement and finishing plays.”
UIC assistant coach and former Butler star Lynn Mitchem was honored by the Butler athletic department at halftime. Mitchem (pictured), who was at Butler from 1979 to 1983, is third in Bulldog history with 1,798 points and ranks fourth in rebounding with 742. He was three-time team MVP with the Bulldogs. …