Second Half Surge Advances UIC to Horizon League Championship Game
March 5, 2006
Milwaukee, Wis. - A second half surge helped the UIC women's basketball team to its first-ever trip to the Horizon League Tournament championship game and its first win over UW-Green Bay since Feb. 24, 2000. Paced by junior LaShonda Grant with 30 points, the third-seeded Flames rolled past the #2 Phoenix, 74-62, in semifinal action at the Klotsche Center on Sunday afternoon. UIC (16-13) will now battle host UW-Milwaukee (21-8) on Monday at 3:00 p.m. with eyes on its first NCAA bid and league tournament crown. Along with Grant's 30 points, UIC senior Chrissy Dizon chipped in 13 points, four assists, five steals and seven rebounds. Sophomore Nicole Rinaldi led the Flames, pulling down eight boards and Jacquay Holmes added ten points in the win. UW-Green Bay junior Nicole Soulis paced the Phoenix with 17 points, eight rebounds and three blocks. Kati Harty pitched in 12 points and Amanda Popp added four buckets, totaling ten points. Holding the Phoenix early in the game, the Flames led by as many as seven points until the 4:32 mark when UW-Green Bay's Kati Harty hit a pair of free throws and drained a three pointer on its next possession. Down by four points, UIC answered with a trey from Grant. With less than a minute left in the first half, Kayla Groh nailed a three to help UW-Green Bay to a 31-27 advantage heading into halftime. UW-Green Bay hit five straight points to extend its lead to nine (36-27) to start the second half. The Flames sparked a 7-0 run with 16:40 remaining to tie it up at 40-40 on a layup by junior Kelly True.
Up by one and 11:03 on the clock, UIC took control of the game, knocking down nine consecutive points to lead 52-42. The Flames continued to sink their shots and slowly pulled away from the Phoenix, ending UW-Green Bay's season and advancing to the finals, 74-62. UIC shot 41.5 percent from the field and forced UW-Green Bay to 20 turnovers and outrebounded the Phoenix 38-30. On Monday, March 6th, the Flames will look to upset No. 1 UW-Milwaukee at the Klotche Center to earn a bid to the NCAA Tournament. |
