EMU Hoops Falls in Windy City Tussle, 74-48

CHICAGO, Ill. (EMUEagles.com) – In a battle between two of the best defensive teams in the country, the Eastern Michigan University men's basketball team fell on the road in the Windy City to the University of Illinois-Chicago Flames, 74-48, Saturday afternoon, Dec. 15 at UIC Pavilion.

Glenn Bryant (Detroit, Mich.-Oak Hill Academy) led EMU in scoring and rebounding in the loss, notching 10 points and grabbing seven rebounds. J.R. Sims (Fort Wayne, Ind.-Snider) scored nine points, and Antoine Chandler (Windor, Ontario-W.F. Herman Secondary) added a career-high six points off the bench for the Green and White, who fall to 6-3 on the season. The Eagles ended the contest with a 33.9 shooting percentage.

Former Eagle and Current UIC guard Daniel Barnes scored a career-high 30 points to lead UIC, shooting 6-of-13 from three point range. UIC shot 12-of-29 from beyond the arc including 9-of-13 in the second half. Fellow guard Gary Talton netted a dozen for the Flames as they improve their record to 9-1. UIC shot 17-of-28 in the second half to shoot 46.3 percent from the floor for the game.

Surprisingly, both teams got off to fast starts as both teams hit 4 of their first 7 shots. Barnes hit two threes, giving UIC an early 10-8 cushion. Jalen Ross (Greensboro, N.C.-Greensboro Day School) nailed a three to give the Eagles the lead; however, the Flames answered as Barnes converted the old-fashioned three point play to give the lead back to his team. On the next UIC offensive possession, Barnes hit two more free-throws, giving him 10 points and UIC a 14-11 advantage with 13:11 remaining in the first half.

Derek Thompson's (Detroit, Mich.-Melvindale) jumper made it 16-15 in favor of UIC at the 10:44 mark in the opening half. The game slowed down immensely as both teams' defenses settling in, and the offenses struggling to get any shots to fall. The game's next point would not come until over six minutes later when UIC's Gary Talton was intentionally fouled on a breakaway. Maintaining possession of the basketball, Barnes drilled another three to give the Flames a five point lead, 20-15 with 3:47 to go in the opening stanza.

With the Eagles trailing, 24-15, with 1:30 remaining in the first twenty minutes, Da'Shonte Riley (Detroit, Mich.-Detroit Country Day) finally ended EMU's nine minute scoring drought with a thunderous dunk as he was fouled. Riley missed his free throw, but Eastern kept the ball after UIC knocked it out of play. Riley took advantage of the second chance opportunity with a turnaround jumper from fifteen feet, and EMU went into halftime trailing 24-19.

EMU outshot (37.5 percent-30.8 percent) and outrebounded (20-16) UIC in the first half, but it was the Flames' conversion of 12 points off 11 turnovers that gave them the lead at the break.

The Eagles held UIC to 3-of-16 shooting from beyond the arc in the first half, but the Flames came out on fire to start the final twenty minutes. UIC hit its first four attempts as Barnes drained two more from long range along with Talton and Hayden Humes to give UIC a double-digit lead, 36-24 with 15:27 remaining in the game.

The Flames continued to be blistering from downtown, as a 10-2 run with help from another pair of treys, increased the difference to 20 and prompted EMU Head Coach Rob Murphy to take a timeout.

Following the timeout, Eastern responded with back-to-back buckets, but the Flames continued to find success on their side of the floor, keeping the game out of reach by outscoring the Eagles 50-29 in the second half.

EMU will be back in action with a pair of games next week. The Eagles will travel down the road to Ann Arbor to take on the No. 3 ranked University of Michigan Wolverines in the Battle of Washtenaw County, Dec. 20. The Green and White will then return home, Dec. 22, for an afternoon slate against in-state rival Oakland University with a 4 p.m. tip from the Convocation Center.

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Team Stats

Glenn Bryant

J.R. Sims

Derek Thompson

Da'Shonte Riley

Eastern Michigan Athletics