Furious Rally By Men's Basketball Falls Short Against DePaul
Nov. 22, 2008
Chicago, Ill.- The UIC men's basketball team rallied from a 13-point second-half deficit to draw even with DePaul with just over two minutes remaining, but the Flames' fierce comeback came up just short in a 67-63 loss to the Blue Demons at the UIC Pavilion on Saturday night. Josh Mayo scored a game-high 23 points and added a career-high six steals for the Flames (1-2), who welcomed the crosstown rival Blue Demons (2-0) to their home court for the very first time. Scott VanderMeer chipped in 12 points. Mac Koshwal led the Blue Demons with a double-double of 14 points and 15 rebounds. The game was a physical battle, with both teams struggling from the field. UIC shot 32.8 percent (21-for-64), a rare off-night from the floor at home, and DePaul made just 38.3 percent (23-for-60) of its shots. DePaul went on a 12-0 run midway through the second period to take its biggest lead of 13 at the 8:50 mark, but the Flames staged a 15-2 run that was capped by a game-tying floater by Mayo with 2:26 on the clock. After a Blue Demon timeout, Jeremiah Kelly put the visitors ahead with a three-pointer. That was countered by a Robo Kreps jumper to bring UIC within one, but Dar Tucker nailed a deep trey to make it a two-possession game with 1:25 left. A pair of Tori Boyd free throws cut the Flames' deficit to two, and Will Walker's missed free throw with 26 seconds remaining gave UIC a chance to tie or take the lead. Mayo unleashed a three-point attempt that was on line but bounced in and out. Koshwal then made a pair of free throws to ice the game for DePaul. "I thought it was a good game," said UIC head coach Jimmy Collins. "Despite the outcome I still think it was a good game for our students and for the city, and hopefully we can continue the series. "Both teams got after each other," said Collins. "I thought the intensity was good by both teams." UIC overcame an early deficit to lead by as many as five with 56 seconds left in the first half, but Devin Hall hit back-to-back shots from downtown to put DePaul ahead a point at intermission. The Flames head to the nation's capital to face Howard on Tuesday, Nov. 25 at 6 p.m. Central.
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