Green Bay on the Horizon
The No. 5 men’s basketball team advances to the next round of the Horizon League Tournament after beating No. 8 Cleveland State, 82-59, Tuesday at the Pavilion.
UIC (17-14) will take on No. 4 Green Bay Friday at 7:30 p.m. in the tournament quarterfinals in Valparaiso, Ind. Watch the game online or on ESPN3, listen live online or follow the action on Twitter.
“We saw Green Bay not too long ago and there is familiarity there,” head coach Howard Moore said. “We both know what the other team wants to do.
“It’s going to be another test of wills and we’ll be prepared for a big challenge on Friday night.”
Senior center Josh Crittle was a force inside, scoring a game- and career-high 20 points, including a 10-for-12 effort from the free throw line.
Senior guard Daniel Barnes continued his torrid shooting from three-point range, scoring 16 points on four three-pointers.
Senior point guard Gary Talton chipped in 11 points on 4-of-5 shooting and sophomore wing Marc Brown scored 10 points off the bench.
“Our guys came out aggressive and willing to impose their will tonight,” Moore said. “The result is a pretty resounding victory.
“But we’re not satisfied. We’re ready to move onto the neutral site at Valpo, and see what this team can do.”
UIC jumped out to a commanding 23-4 lead in the opening 10 minutes and boosted the lead to 30-9 with seven minutes in the first half. Cleveland State began applying full-court trapping pressure and pulled within 10 points (36-26) after going on a 17-6 run. Talton made a deep jumper from the right wing as time expired in the half, giving the Flames a 44-30 lead heading into intermission.
The Flames scored the first four points of the second half, forcing CSU into a timeout two minutes into the frame. UIC’s lead never dropped below 13 points for the remainder of the contest, reaching a game-high 25-point margin (77-52) with five minutes remaining.
The Flames shot 49.1 percent (27-55) from the floor.
