The first shall be the last
UIC Men's Basketball eliminated in Horizon League's first round
Sean Murray
Issue date: 3/8/10 Section: Sports
The UIC Men's Basketball season ended on a disappointing note last Tuesday with a 73-67 loss against Milwaukee. UIC drew The Panthers for the first round of the Horizon League Championships, but unfortunately for the Flames, the first stop was also the end of the line.
The Flames were not extinguished, however, without putting up a fight. They kept the game at a dead heat for much of the time, meeting the Panthers point for point for the majority of the first half. By half-time, the teams were locked in a 35-35 point stare-down.
But it started warming up when the second-half opened with a series of damaging plays by the Panthers. The culprit was Milwaukee's Ricky Franklin, who jumped the match to a 40-35 game with a quick three-pointer topped off with a lay-up in the next possession. From this point on, the Flames would never quite recover. The Panthers held the lead for the rest of the game.
Though never falling far behind, the Flames seemed to have an opportunity to close the gap when Franklin, the Panthers' starting point-guard, was benched due to foul trouble with less than 13 minutes left to play. This just goes to show that in life as well as basket ball, problems are better avoided than needing to be solved at all.
But the problems didn't completely end there, when Milwaukee's Lonnie Boga soon nailed a 3-pointer, putting the Panthers in a 59-50 lead over the Flames. Then the Flames retaliated when junior Robo Kreps sank his second three-pointer of the game, cutting Milwaukee's lead to six (65-59) with less than 5 minutes left to play.
Next, senior Chris Buchanan brought in two more points from the free-throw line, setting the game at 66-63. The closest the Flames came to a lead soon followed, when Zavion Neely stole the ball from the Panther jaws, only to be viciously fouled.
Just as a beast must be put down completely or it is sure to come back with a vengeance, Neely responded to his foul when he made both free-throws, putting UIC within one point of Milwaukee. The big cat began to feel the heat of the fire close behind.
But just then the temperature cooled as the cat began to pick up speed. Momentum faltered just when it was most needed. After a series of plays and well-executed free throws, the Panthers regained some breathing room with a four point lead. It was the unfortunate opportunities to Milwaukee allowed by UIC's fouls. When it was all said and done, the nails in UIC's coffin were hammered in from the free throw line.
Fouls plagued UIC for most of the game, delivering point opportunities to the Panthers like it was feeding time at the zoo. Skill was by no means lacking on behalf of the Flames, with Keps scoring a game total of 20 points, and Neely with 13. But unchecked aggression, or picky refs, caused the Flames' first-round elimination from the Horizon League, itself a first for UIC. The final season record was 8-22.
|
The Flames were not extinguished, however, without putting up a fight. They kept the game at a dead heat for much of the time, meeting the Panthers point for point for the majority of the first half. By half-time, the teams were locked in a 35-35 point stare-down.
But it started warming up when the second-half opened with a series of damaging plays by the Panthers. The culprit was Milwaukee's Ricky Franklin, who jumped the match to a 40-35 game with a quick three-pointer topped off with a lay-up in the next possession. From this point on, the Flames would never quite recover. The Panthers held the lead for the rest of the game.
Though never falling far behind, the Flames seemed to have an opportunity to close the gap when Franklin, the Panthers' starting point-guard, was benched due to foul trouble with less than 13 minutes left to play. This just goes to show that in life as well as basket ball, problems are better avoided than needing to be solved at all.
But the problems didn't completely end there, when Milwaukee's Lonnie Boga soon nailed a 3-pointer, putting the Panthers in a 59-50 lead over the Flames. Then the Flames retaliated when junior Robo Kreps sank his second three-pointer of the game, cutting Milwaukee's lead to six (65-59) with less than 5 minutes left to play.
Next, senior Chris Buchanan brought in two more points from the free-throw line, setting the game at 66-63. The closest the Flames came to a lead soon followed, when Zavion Neely stole the ball from the Panther jaws, only to be viciously fouled.
Just as a beast must be put down completely or it is sure to come back with a vengeance, Neely responded to his foul when he made both free-throws, putting UIC within one point of Milwaukee. The big cat began to feel the heat of the fire close behind.
But just then the temperature cooled as the cat began to pick up speed. Momentum faltered just when it was most needed. After a series of plays and well-executed free throws, the Panthers regained some breathing room with a four point lead. It was the unfortunate opportunities to Milwaukee allowed by UIC's fouls. When it was all said and done, the nails in UIC's coffin were hammered in from the free throw line.
Fouls plagued UIC for most of the game, delivering point opportunities to the Panthers like it was feeding time at the zoo. Skill was by no means lacking on behalf of the Flames, with Keps scoring a game total of 20 points, and Neely with 13. But unchecked aggression, or picky refs, caused the Flames' first-round elimination from the Horizon League, itself a first for UIC. The final season record was 8-22.
Be the first to comment on this story