UIC Goes 3-2 on Canadian Swing

On its first-ever foreign trip, the UIC men's basketball program stumbled out of the gate before rallying to win its final three games in Canada.

The Flames were led on the trip by Gabe Snider, who emerged as UIC's leading scorer on the trip. Snider started the tour with a 28-point outburst against Ottawa en route to averaging 14.4 points per game. Marc Brown, one of four seniors on the team, posted 20 in the Flames' 81-57 victory at York and averaged 10.0 ppg.

The backcourt tandem of D'Juan Miller and Jay Parker proved adept at handling the ball, combining for 47 assists against just 16 turnovers across the five games. In the post, Jake Weigand exploded in UIC's finale at Brock University, finishing with 25 points and 15 rebounds.

Game 1: Ottawa 79, UIC 76
UIC gave the University of Ottawa, the defending national runner-up, a run for its money on Wednesday night after the Flames led for a majority of the contest in their first game of a Canadian exhibition tour. The Gee-Gees ultimately prevailed by a final of 79-76 inside their home gym Montpetit Hall after hitting six fourth-quarter threes.

Gabe Snider poured in a game-high 28 points on 8-of-12 three-point shooting, while Ottawa was paced by Johnny Berhanemeskel with 25 points on 10-of-15 shooting.

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Game 2: Carleton 64, UIC 49
UIC faced top-level competition on Thursday night in game number two of its Canadian tour as the Flames squared off against Carleton University, national champions in nine of the last 10 seasons.  UIC owned a five-point lead early in the third quarter, but the Ravens made several runs in the second half to cement the exhibition victory by a final score of 64-49.

The Flames were led by senior Marc Brown with 11 points and the Ravens were paced by three-time national player of the year Philip Scrubb with 24 points.  Scrubb recently returned to Ottawa after competing with the Canadian National team.

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Game 3: UIC 87, Toronto 50
UIC held Toronto to 29-percent shooting in an 87-50 exhibition win on Saturday afternoon, picking up their first Canadian tour win. Five Flames recorded double-digit totals as junior Gabe Snider led the way with 22 points, hitting 8-of-12 from the field.

In the last three games, Snider is averaging 19.3 points and shooting 54 percent (13-of-24) from behind the arc.

Junior Jake Wiegand dropped in 15 points, senior Ahman Fells and sophomore Markese McGuire added 12, while junior Jason McClellan netted 10. Junior D’Juan Miller corralled a game-high seven rebounds as sophomore Marcus White dished out five assists to lead all players.

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Game 4: UIC 81, York 57
UIC picked up its second straight Canadian tour win on Sunday afternoon with an 81-57 victory against York University at the Tait McKenzie Centre. The Flames’ defense shined once again as they limited York to a shooting mark of 32.7 percent.

Senior Marc Brown posted a game-high 20 points as he shot 7-of-10 from the floor.

The Flames displayed a well-balanced offense with six separate players scoring eight or more points. Sophomore Markese McGuire and junior Jason McClellan joined Brown in double figures with 11 and 10 points, respectively. Junior D’Juan Miller was UIC’s main facilitator with a game-high nine assists, while junior Jake Wiegand neared double-double territory with eight points and eight rebounds.

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Game 5: UIC 71, Brock 57
Playing its fifth game in six days, UIC grinded out a 71-57 victory against Brock University on Monday night as the Flames concluded their Canadian tour with a 3-2 record.

Junior Jake Wiegand was a force in the post, recording a double-double with 25 points and 15 rebounds. Those totals smash his regular season career highs of 17 points and 10 boards. Wiegand shot 8-of-12 from the field for the game, which included five dunks, and sank all nine of his free throw attempts.

For the full recap, click here.