Illinois-Chicago beats Youngstown St. 73-68

Posted March 03, 2009 10:00 pm

Associated Press

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio -- Rob Eppinger led four scorers in double-digits with 20 points and had 14 rebounds as Illinois-Chicago held off Youngstown State for a 73-68 win Tuesday night in the first round of the Horizon League tournament.

Tori Boyd and Robo Kreps scored 15 points each, and Josh Mayo added 14 as the Flames (16-14) dominated the first quarter.

Youngstown State (11-19) fought back from a 10-point halftime deficit and took a 1-point lead as Vytas Sulskis grabbed his own rebound from a missed jumper and put it in with 5:36 to go. The Penguins went up by 4 before Illinois-Chicago took over again.

The Flames held off the comeback with sharp free-throw shooting in the last four minutes, making all 11 foul shots. They ended the night 16-of-18 from the line, bolstered by 6-of-6 shooting by Eppinger.

Sulskis came off the bench to finish with 20 points for the Penguins, and Tom Parks added 15.

Article Comments

Article Comments

Guidelines: Keep it civil and on topic; no profanity, vulgarity, slurs or personal attacks. People who harass others or joke about tragedies will be blocked. If a comment violates these standards or our terms of service, click the "flag" link in the lower-right corner of the comment box. To find our more, read our FAQ.