UIC is heading into it’s fourth year with Howard Moore as the coach of the men’s basketball program.
UNIVERSITY VILLAGE- As colleges across the country begin their school years, the athletic department at the University of Illinois at Chicago has been very busy. This week, the UIC Flames unveiled the non-conference schedule for the hoops team for the upcoming 2013-2014 season. Below is the press release by UIC’s athletic department:
“UIC head men’s basketball coach Howard Moore released the Flames’ 2013-14 non-conference schedule on Wednesday morning, a lineup that includes home dates against Northwestern and Southern Methodist (SMU), a matchup against Illinois at the United Center and road games at Colorado State, UC-Riverside, and city-rival Loyola.
“We’re extremely pleased with the way our schedule turned out,” said Moore. “Coach Al Biancalana did a tremendous job of putting all the pieces together. It’s definitely a challenging schedule, but that’s what we want as we continue to raise every standard of our program.” After an exhibition contest on Nov. 2 against the University of Chicago, UIC begins the regular season with a four-game homestand, starting with Drake on Nov. 9.
A member of the Missouri Valley, the Bulldogs finished the 2012-13 campaign with a 15-17 record and recently hired Ray Giacoletti as their new head coach. Giacoletti spent the past six seasons as an assistant at Gonzaga, helping that program achieve a No. 1 seed in last year’s NCAA Tournament. Capping off the November home schedule will be a Wednesday night matchup against Northwestern. The Wildcats and new head coach Chris Collins will visit the UIC Pavilion on Nov. 20 for a 7 p.m. tipoff.
Collins spent 13 seasons with Mike Krzyzewski and the Duke coaching staff, serving as Associate Head Coach since 2008. The Flames defeated the Wildcats in Evanston, Ill., last year by a final of 50-44. “Our fan base will be highly entertained by the quality of opponents playing in the UIC Pavilion this season,” said Moore. “Establishing a home court advantage is extremely important to us.” UIC will participate in the bd Global Challenge from Nov. 25-27 in Naples, Fla.
The first-annual mid-major tournament field consists of St. Bonaventure, Southern Illinois, UNC-Greensboro, San Diego, Stetson, Louisiana Tech and Wagner. Matchups are scheduled to be announced in mid-September. On Dec. 4, the Flames will host SMU and Hall-of-Fame head coach Larry Brown for a 7 p.m. showdown. Brown enters his second season with the Mustangs and stands as the only head coach to win an NCAA title and an NBA Championship.
He has guided a record eight separate NBA teams to the postseason and is the sixth-winningest coach in league history. The Mustangs begin their membership with newly formed American Athletic Conference this season. “I got to spend time with Coach Brown this summer at recruiting events,” said Moore. “He has a wonderful basketball mind as well as being a quality person. We look forward to competing against his much improved program.”
On Dec. 7, the Flames will continue their long-standing tradition of playing city-rival Loyola at Gentile Arena in Rogers Park, despite the Ramblers departure from the Horizon League to the Missouri Valley. A week later on Dec. 14, UIC will travel to Southeast Missouri, a team that finished second in the Ohio Valley West Division, and then return home for a contest against Purdue-Calumet on Dec. 17.
The Flames then head west for tilts at UC-Riverside on Dec. 20 and Colorado State on Dec. 23. UIC claimed a 64-55 victory over CSU last season as the Rams went on to earn a No. 8 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Colorado State was eliminated by eventual-NCAA Champion Louisville in the third round. UIC concludes its non-conference season with a battle against in-state rival Illinois at the United Center on Dec. 28.
These two squads last met on Dec. 18, 2010 as the Flames upset then-No. 12/14 ranked Illinois, 57-54. The Fighting Illini garnered a No. 7 seed in last year’s NCAA Tournament, ousting Colorado in the second round. The Flames welcome the challenging slate of games as they look to improve upon last year’s 18-16 record, tops among all Chicago D-I teams and the program’s best mark in five years. UIC also participated in its first postseason since 2004 as they advanced to the second round of the CollegeInsider.com Tournament (CIT).
2013-14 UIC’s Non-Conference Schedule:
Nov. 2 vs. U of Chicago at 3 p.m. (EXH)
Nov. 9 vs. Drake at 7 p.m.
Nov. 13 vs. Roosevelt at 7 p.m.
Nov. 16 vs. Eastern Illinois at 3 p.m.
Nov. 20 vs. Northwestern at 7 p.m.
Nov. 25 at bd Global Challenge (Naples, Fla.)
Nov. 26 at bd Global Challenge (Naples, Fla.)
Nov. 27 at bd Global Challenge (Naples, Fla.)
Dec. 4 vs. SMU at 7 p.m.
Dec. 7 at Loyola at 3 p.m.
Dec. 14 at SEMO at TBA
Dec. 17 vs. Purdue-Calumet at 7 p.m.
Dec. 20 at UC-Riverside at 5 p.m.
Dec. 23 at Colorado State at TBA
Dec. 28 vs. Illinois at 1 p.m. (United Center)
This will be UIC’s first season without star players Gary Talton, Daniel Barnes and Josh Crittle. The Flames did make some noise with recruiting in the offseason, and they do return 10 players from last year’s squad. But without Talton, Barnes and Crittle, the Flames will look like a much different team come November.
Follow me on Twitter @GabeSalgado82
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