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Illinois-Chicago (+4.5) at Western Michigan Analysis
Season Record: 41-29 +13.0 UNITS
One play today.
Illinois-Chicago (+4.5) at Western Michigan - 4:00pm Pacific - NIT
The top three teams of the Horizon conference had excellent seasons. While Butler (25-5, 14-2) & Wisconsin Milwaukee (24-7, 13-3) earned bids to the NCAA tournament, Illinois-Chicago (21-8, 12-4) was not far behind. The Flames had eventual conference tournament champ Wisconsin Milwaukee down for the count in semifinal matchup and came just a play away from knocking them off despite a series of misfortunes. Firstly, the tournament was hosted by Wisconsin Milwaukee. The Panthers were called for 7 fewer fouls and shot 13 more free throw attempts. Flames leading scorer Cedrick Banks picked up his 4th foul early in the 2nd half and eventually fouled out with 5:38 to play with his team leading by 3. They increased the lead to 5 with under 5:00 to play before a foul on a 3-point shooter was called and was followed by a technical for arguing the call giving Milwaukee 5 free throws! The game still went to the wire with UIC losing by 2 after failing to score on the last possession of the game. Milwaukee went on to beat Butler in championship game and earn the automatic NCAA birth.
This is a talented group of players. The team is upperclassmen dominated with 5 juniors and 2 seniors in the top 7. Junior guard Cedrick Banks (19.0ppg) was rated city prep player of the year in high school by Chicago Sun Times ahead of the likes of Dwayne Wade (Marquette) & Eddy Curry (Chicago Bulls). He is a legitimate go to threat. Junior point guard Martell Bailey (10.1ppg) leads the nation with 8.3 assists per game! Senior center Kyle Kickert was inserted in to the starting lineup in mid-February and since has doubled both his scoring (7.1ppg) and rebounding (8.4rpg) outputs. Junior forward Armond Williams (13.3ppg, 7.7rpg) has recorded 9 double doubles this season and is 4th in the country in FG % (.645). He has scored in double figures in 19 of last 21 games. Aaron Carr (11.4ppg, 4.2rpg) & Jonathan Schneiderman (10.3ppg, .511 3-point shooter) give the team 5 double figure scoring options. UIC ranks third in the country in 3-point shooting accuracy (.412).
After a solid 8-2 start to the season vs non-conference opponents, WMU went just 10-8 in conference play in what was a very down year for the MAC. The Broncos were beaten soundly in the 2nd round of the MAC tournament by Northern Illinois. The same Northern Illinois team that UIC beat by 32 on NIU's home floor back in late December! WMU ranks 9th in the MAC in points scored and 10th in FG% (.433) offense. Even on their home court it will be difficult for them to trade points with a potent UIC offense.
UIC is ecstatic to be in the NIT, their first invite in school history. A win would give them their first postseason win ever and tie a school record for wins (22) in a season. With an outstanding point guard it is not surprising this team has fared well on the road. Coming into this game they are 9-5 (.642) ATS in road games and 5-3 (.625) ATS as a road dog. In addition to a dominating win at Northern Illinois earlier in the season, UIC also knocked off MAC foe Bowling Green handily by 11 points just a few weeks ago in "Bracket Buster" game. That same day the Horizon conference was flattered by Wisconsin Milwaukee's narrow 2 point loss at Southern Illinois and Detroit U's resounding win at UCSB. Flames are the superior team from superior conference. Take the points.
Illinois-Chicago 1 UNIT
Good luck to everyone this March Madness!
Edward
Right Angle Sports
http://www.handicapper.net
One play today.
Illinois-Chicago (+4.5) at Western Michigan - 4:00pm Pacific - NIT
The top three teams of the Horizon conference had excellent seasons. While Butler (25-5, 14-2) & Wisconsin Milwaukee (24-7, 13-3) earned bids to the NCAA tournament, Illinois-Chicago (21-8, 12-4) was not far behind. The Flames had eventual conference tournament champ Wisconsin Milwaukee down for the count in semifinal matchup and came just a play away from knocking them off despite a series of misfortunes. Firstly, the tournament was hosted by Wisconsin Milwaukee. The Panthers were called for 7 fewer fouls and shot 13 more free throw attempts. Flames leading scorer Cedrick Banks picked up his 4th foul early in the 2nd half and eventually fouled out with 5:38 to play with his team leading by 3. They increased the lead to 5 with under 5:00 to play before a foul on a 3-point shooter was called and was followed by a technical for arguing the call giving Milwaukee 5 free throws! The game still went to the wire with UIC losing by 2 after failing to score on the last possession of the game. Milwaukee went on to beat Butler in championship game and earn the automatic NCAA birth.
This is a talented group of players. The team is upperclassmen dominated with 5 juniors and 2 seniors in the top 7. Junior guard Cedrick Banks (19.0ppg) was rated city prep player of the year in high school by Chicago Sun Times ahead of the likes of Dwayne Wade (Marquette) & Eddy Curry (Chicago Bulls). He is a legitimate go to threat. Junior point guard Martell Bailey (10.1ppg) leads the nation with 8.3 assists per game! Senior center Kyle Kickert was inserted in to the starting lineup in mid-February and since has doubled both his scoring (7.1ppg) and rebounding (8.4rpg) outputs. Junior forward Armond Williams (13.3ppg, 7.7rpg) has recorded 9 double doubles this season and is 4th in the country in FG % (.645). He has scored in double figures in 19 of last 21 games. Aaron Carr (11.4ppg, 4.2rpg) & Jonathan Schneiderman (10.3ppg, .511 3-point shooter) give the team 5 double figure scoring options. UIC ranks third in the country in 3-point shooting accuracy (.412).
After a solid 8-2 start to the season vs non-conference opponents, WMU went just 10-8 in conference play in what was a very down year for the MAC. The Broncos were beaten soundly in the 2nd round of the MAC tournament by Northern Illinois. The same Northern Illinois team that UIC beat by 32 on NIU's home floor back in late December! WMU ranks 9th in the MAC in points scored and 10th in FG% (.433) offense. Even on their home court it will be difficult for them to trade points with a potent UIC offense.
UIC is ecstatic to be in the NIT, their first invite in school history. A win would give them their first postseason win ever and tie a school record for wins (22) in a season. With an outstanding point guard it is not surprising this team has fared well on the road. Coming into this game they are 9-5 (.642) ATS in road games and 5-3 (.625) ATS as a road dog. In addition to a dominating win at Northern Illinois earlier in the season, UIC also knocked off MAC foe Bowling Green handily by 11 points just a few weeks ago in "Bracket Buster" game. That same day the Horizon conference was flattered by Wisconsin Milwaukee's narrow 2 point loss at Southern Illinois and Detroit U's resounding win at UCSB. Flames are the superior team from superior conference. Take the points.
Illinois-Chicago 1 UNIT
Good luck to everyone this March Madness!
Edward
Right Angle Sports
http://www.handicapper.net