DePaul University Athletics
Men's Hoops Host UIC at Allstate Arena
12/12/2009 12:00:00 AM | MEN'S BASKETBALL
The Blue Demons are 5-3 and have dropped their last two games. DePaul opened the month of December with a 58-50 win over Alabama State on Dec. 2 before a 67-54 loss at Vanderbilt on Dec. 5, and a 76-45 defeat against Mississippi State in the DIRECTV SEC/BIG EAST Invitational on Thursday in Tampa, Fla.
DePaul posted a 4-1 record in November with wins over Columbia, Northern Iowa, Saint Joseph's and Detroit. At the Paradise Jam, DePaul knocked off Northern Iowa, 60-52, before falling to then-No. 10/11 Tennessee by a 57-53 score. The Blue Demons came back in the consolation game to defeat Saint Joseph's, 58-51, to claim third place.
UIC is 1-5 overall and 0-2 in Horizon League play following league losses at Milwaukee and Green Bay last weekend. Sunday is the fifth all-time meeting between the two programs with the Blue Demons holding a 3-1 advantage. UIC's lone win in the series came in the last meeting at Allstate Arena on Dec. 15, 2007. The Flames knocked off the Blue Demons by a score of 85-80.
Sunday's game is scheduled for a 5 p.m. start at Allstate Arena and can be seen heard on WSCR "The Score" (670 AM) with Laurence Holmes (play-by-play) and Stephen Howard (analyst) calling all the action. The game can also be heard globally with on Blue Tube at www.depaulbluedemons.com. In-game scoring updates and notes can also be found at www.twitter.com/depaulsid.
Following the UIC game, the Blue Demons host the American Eagles on Wednesday night at 7:30 p.m. before the Texas State Bobcats venture to Rosemont on Saturday at 1 p.m. DePaul closes the non-conference schedule at Florida Gulf Coast on Dec. 22 before opening BIG EAST play at Pittsburgh on Dec. 28.
Noting the Blue Demons: The men's basketball program is 1,362-816 (.625) all-time... the Blue Demons have knocked down at least one three-pointer in 498 straight games... DePaul's last game without a three was Feb. 16, 1993 against UAB at Allstate Arena... Will Walker has started 41 straight games... the win over Columbia in the season opener ended an 18-game losing streak in regular-season games... the Blue Demons have won four of their first five games in two straight seasons... in three of Jerry Wainwright's four seasons at DePaul, the Blue Demons have defeated at least one top 25 opponent... DePaul has played its first home game on Nov. 17 in each of the last four seasons... the four turnovers against Alabama State on Dec. 2 were the fewest in a game since four miscues against Chaminade in the Maui Invitational on Nov. 21, 2006.
Opponent No. 9 - UIC Flames: UIC stands at 1-5 entering Sunday's action at Allstate Arena... the Flames defeated Illinois-Springfield, 72-59, in the season-opener before dropping the last five games... UIC opened Horizon League play last weekend with a pair of road defeats at Milwaukee and Green Bay... Zavion Neely leads three players averaging in double-figures with 14.2 points per game... he is followed by Robo Kreps at 12.7 points per game and Jeremy Buttell's 10.4 scoring average... K.C. Robbins leads the club with 6.7 rebounds per outing while Kreps has knocked down a team-high 11 three-pointers... head coach Jimmy Collins is in his 14th season at UIC and holds a 211-191 record with the Flames... associate head coach Tracy Dildy was on the DePaul staff from 1997-2002.
The Series: Sunday's game is the fifth all-time meeting between the two programs... DePaul has won three of the previous four games, including a 67-63 decision at UIC last November... the lone UIC win was in the last game between the two programs at Allstate Arena... the Flames posted an 85-80 victory on Dec. 15, 2007.
The Last Meeting: DePaul posted a 67-63 win at UIC on Nov. 22, 2008 at the UIC Pavilion... Will Walker led the Blue Demons with 17 points while Mac Koshwal put together a 14-point, 15-rebound double-double... UIC's Josh Mayo led all scorers with 23 points while Scott VanDermeer added 12 and five rebounds... the Blue Demons held a one-point lead at halftime and outrebounded the Flames, 49-37.
Against the Horizon League: DePaul is 102-36 all-time against the current lineup of Horizon League programs... UIC is the second of two Horizon League opponents on the regular-season schedule... the Blue Demons defeated Detroit, 68-66, in overtime on Nov. 28 at Allstate Arena... DePaul's last loss to a Horizon League opponent was UIC... the Flames knocked off the Blue Demons, 85-80, at Allstate Arena on Dec. 15, 2007.
It Could Happen: Will Walker needs seven points for 1,000 in his career... he will be the 45th player in DePaul history to reach the milestone... Jeremiah Kelly needs four assists for 100 in his career.
Demon Doings: Notes following DePaul's 76-45 loss against Mississippi State in the DIRECTV SEC/BIG EAST Invitational on Dec. 10:
- DePaul lost back-to-back games for the first time this season... the Blue Demons dropped a 67-54 decision at Vanderbilt last Saturday.
- The 31-point margin of defeat is the largest since the 99-54 loss at Louisville on Feb. 15, 2009.
- Mississippi State is the first team to scored at least 70 points against DePaul this season.
- Will Walker now has 993 career points... he moved into 46th on DePaul's scoring list and needs seven points to become the 45th player in program history with 1,000 career points... the game was his 100th career game at DePaul.
- Mario Stula made his first start of the season and the fifth of his career... DePaul used its fourth different starting lineup tonight.
- Joe Belcaster made his collegiate debut.
- Jarvis Varnado blocked his 38th and 39th shots to lead the nation... he needs 102 to match the NCAA record set by Wojciech Mydra (1998-02) of Louisiana Tech with 535 career rejections.
- Mississippi State is 6-0 this season when leading at halftime... the Bulldogs have held six of eight opponents to less than 65 points.
- The series is tied 1-1... DePaul claimed the previous meeting in Dec. 1988.
- The Blue Demons are now 16-33 all-time against teams from the Southeastern Conference... DePaul is 0-3 this season with against the SEC with losses to Tennessee, Vanderbilt and Mississippi State... the Blue Demons have dropped seven straight games to SEC programs.
- Mississippi State is 9-13 all-time against teams from the BIG EAST.
Three Decades in Rosemont: DePaul is in its 30th season in 2009-10 at Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Ill. The Blue Demons are 299-113 (.726) all-time in Rosemont. DePaul University played its first season in 1980-81 at the then-named Rosemont Horizon. The Blue Demons debuted in Rosemont with a 74-56 win over Gonzaga and John Stockton on Dec. 1, 1980.
