Flames fizzle; NIU, Loyola fall
A tough shooting night kept UIC from keeping pace with host Cleveland State on Saturday in Horizon League play.
J'Nathan Bullock scored 16 points and Kevin Francis grabbed 13 rebounds to lead the Vikings past the Flames 68-51.
UIC shot 33.3 percent (10-for-30) in the first half. It didn't get better for the Flames in the second half, as UIC went just 6-for-26 (23.1 percent) from the floor in the game's final 20 minutes.
The Vikings (10-5, 3-0 Horizon League) closed the first half with a 14-4 run that gave them a 34-23 lead.
UIC (8-7, 2-2) didn't threaten in the second as Cleveland State built a 20-point cushion with 10:32 to play and cruised from there.
Robert Bush led the Flames with 12 points while Josh Mayo had 11 points.
Cleveland State outrebounded UIC 44-30 and outshot the Flames 45.3 percent to 28.6 percent.
The Flames led by as many as 6 early in the first half, but Cleveland State used a 13-2 run in the middle of the period to take the lead for good.
W. Michigan 86, N. Illinois 69:ŒMichael Redell scored 17 points and led five Western Michigan players in double figures as the host Broncos opened their Mid-American Conference schedule with a victory over Northern Illinois.
Freshman guard Michael Patton scored 20 points for the Huskies (3-10, 0-1 MAC), who have lost four of their last five games and nine consecutive road games.
Jarvis Nichols came off the bench to score 17 points for the Huskies and Shaun Logan had 13 points and a game-high 9 rebounds.
Derek Drews, who hit a team-high four 3-pointers, and Joe Reitz each added 14 points for Western (7-7, 1-0). Redell also had a game-high 7 assists.
Western Michigan scored the game's first 9 points and led by as many as 20, converting 20 Northern Illinois turnovers into 30 points.
Shawntes Gary and Derek Fracalossi both had 11 points for Western Michigan.
Youngstown St. 71, Loyola 61: Byron Davis scored 19 points to lead four double-digit scorers as host Youngstown State handled Loyola.
The Penguins (6-7) saw an 18-point halftime lead vanish as Loyola (5-9) scored 23 of the first 28 points in the second half to tie the game at 47-47 midway through the period. But Youngstown State again pulled away as Davis drained a 3-pointer with 2:48 left to establish a 7-point lead.
Down the stretch, the Penguins made 7 of 9 free throws to preserve the win.
Tracy Robinson led three double-digit scorers for Loyola with 19 points. J.R. Blount had 16 and Justin Cerasoli 14.
The Penguins shot 46.5 percent from the field, while Loyola shot 42.2 percent.