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The kids can play too

UIC’S NEWCOMERS, RESERVES CARRY THE DAY

November 12, 2008

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Sophomore Tori Boyd had 15 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Flames.

On Veterans Day, it was UIC’s newcomers and reserves that seized the night.

After some early sluggishness by the Flames’ starting five, the bench sparked a 12-0 run help to UIC pull away from Division III Aurora 85-56 in an exhibition game at the UIC Pavilion on Tuesday night.

Sophomore Tori Boyd, the most productive of the starters, tallied 15 points and 10 rebounds and junior reserve forward Jovan Ignjatovic added 15 points and six rebounds to lead the way for the Flames.

Aurora put the Flames in early hole with Boyd, Josh Mayo, Spencer Stewart, Robo Kreps and Scott VanderMeer on the floor for the first eight minutes.

The Flames found themselves down by as much as eight points in the first half, but coach Jimmy Collins unleashed a fresh five-man unit with 11:57 before intermission. Newcomers Chris Buchanan, Zavion Neely, Kris Harris and Rob Eppinger along with veteran Jeremy Buttell put a charge into UIC.

“We just wanted to give a good spark off the bench,” said Buchanan, a junior college transfer from Joliet, who had seven points. “Give a lot of defensive intensity and pick up everything and get after it.”

With the Flames down 24-16, Buchanan kick-started the 12-point spree with a layup. Harris scored six points and Rob Eppinger hit a 17-foot jumper and a stickback, giving UIC a 28-24 advantage.

“The new guys came in and gave us a big spark, said Mayo, who didn’t score in the first half and finished with two points. “It gives us a lot of confidence [as a team]. To have guys that can come off the bench and do that, it’s looking real promising for the season.”

It was a little ugly early as Aurora hung tough behind 5-foot-10 guard Dusty Magee (game-high 22 points), who nailed five first-half three-pointers. The Flames were a little lax on three-point defense and the Spartans buried seven treys in the period. Despite that, UIC held a 39-29 lead at the break.

“The first half was certainly a learning experience for us,” Collins said. “We talked about teams being able to shoot [against us] and how you have to play defense and close out [on shooters].”

The starters fared a little better in the second half as the Flames started to extend the lead. The reserves came back in for another fruitful run, this time an 18-2 surge to break the game wide open.

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Newcomer Chris Buchanan scored seven points off the bench to help the Flames surge ahead.

Buchanan had five points in the run, including a layup off a steal and a three-pointer and Ignjatovic added two layups and a pair of free throws as the lead grew to 73-46 with 5:10 remaining.

Ignjatovic didn’t enter the game until just over four minutes to play in the opening half, but he was impressive, shooting 6-for-10 from the field and nailing all three of his free throws.

Collins was pleased with Boyd, a 6-foot-5 sophomore from who the Flames are expecting big things.

“As long as Tori can stay focused on the task at hand, he could be a pro in the future,” Collins said. “He has to stay aggressive, and doing that rubs off [on teammates]. He was running down [loose] balls all night.”

VanderMeer played an efficient 15 minutes, scoring 10 points, grabbing five rebounds and blocking two shots. However, two of the Flames’ reliable scorers, Mayo and Kreps, combined for just eight points on 4-for-14 shooting.

“We know they're going to shoot it better,” Collins said. “We’re not worried about that. I thought the ball movement was good when they were patient.”

In the end, the Flames’ bench racked up 52 points, led by Ignjatovic’s 15. Harris, a junior college import from South Suburban, contributed eight points, Eppinger, from Highland Communuty College, added six points and nine rebounds and Neely, a freshman from Hope, had five points and five assists.

“I thought guys responded well, especially the new guys,” Collins said. “The new guys played with a lot of energy and picked the rest of the guys up.”

POSTON QUESTIONS: Freshman forward Jelani Poston did not play. His status is up in the air and is being reviewed by the NCAA clearinghouse. UIC officials are hoping to hear a resolution about Poston’s eligibility later this week.

FLAMES FLICKERS: The Flames are expecting to receive a letter of intent from St. Joseph High School center Louis Green when the fall signing period opens Wednesday. …

The play of the game came late in the first half when Magee made a steal and though he had a wide-open layup, but Flames’ sophomore guard Austin Hood came out of nowhere to snuff the shot and knock it off Magee out of bounds. Hood, who played just eight minutes, had two points, three assists and two blocks. …

All 14 Flames in uniform scored at least one basket except for starting point guard Spencer Stewart. Stewart did have a team-high seven assists to go with five rebounds. …

Sophomore walk-on Jimmy Harding, the last member of the Flames to see action, hit a nice 12-foot jumper in the lane in the final minutes. …

The Flames missed their first 11 three-point attempts and didn’t hit a trey until Buchanan connected with 10:09 left in the game. Jeremy Buttell later hit a three of his own as UIC finished 2-for-14 from downtown. …

UIC crushed undersized Aurora on the boards, 60-34, including 22-14 on the offensive end. The Flames outscored Aurora 24-2 in second-chance points.

The new video scoreboard and ribbon scoreboard in the Pavilion wowed VanderMeer: “I love it. It’s going to help bring fans in.”

UP NEXT: The Flames open the regular season in Peoria on Friday night when they take on Bradley. The Braves and Flames will meet for the third straight year after the teams split the games over the last two seasons—with each team winning at home.

Bradley is stinging after an 84-79 loss to Division III Wisconsin-Platteville on Sunday in the Braves’ final exhibition.

The Braves, who were 21-17 last season and finished as the runner-up in the inaugural College Basketball Invitational, are led by senior center David Collins (21 points vs. Platteville), senior forward Theron Wilson (11.7 ppg in 2007-08) and sophomore guard Sam Maniscalco (7.7 ppg, 3.0 apg). Junior guard Andrew Warren (13.2 ppg) is recovering from a foot injury and was limited against Platteville.

Bradley lost its top two scorers from last season in Daniel Ruffin and three-point marksman Jeremy Crouch. Despite that, the Flames know they’ll have to be ready for the raucous Bradley faithful.

“When you sit down on that bench, you can hear what their students have got to say,” VanderMeer said. “They get after you mentally. It gets us more motivated. We just have to play our game.”

Mayo added: “The fans are right there on the court with you while you’re warming up and stuff, giving you everything. It should be fun.”

The game tips off at 7:05 p.m. and can be seen on Lakeshore Public TV. The game also been streamed on uicflames.com with Adam Levinson and Kenny Williams on the call.

In other recent news:
Flames set for exhibition play (plus Mayo, Coomes, TV, alums) (11/11/08)
Mayo Horizon Preseason Player of the Year (plus predictions) (10/9/08)
Powerful foes await Flames (schedule notes) (9/18/08)
Flames snag 2 new players (9/17/08)
Anderson joins Flames as walk-on (8/28/08)
Collins hitches trailer to VanderMeer (8/26/08)
Collins granted 3-year extension (7/2/08)