DePaul University Athletics
Little Guys Spark Blue Demons Past Illinois-Chicago
12/14/2009 12:00:00 AM | MEN'S BASKETBALL
ROSEMONT, Ill. - Laughers are good for the soul, and Jeremiah Kelly was zinging some good-natured barbs across the DePaul locker room Sunday night at teammate Will Walker.
Walker had surpassed the 1,000-point mark in his career, scored a team-high 18 points and also had seven rebounds, five steals and three assists in leading the Blue Demons to a 77-56 victory over Illinois-Chicago at Allstate Arena.
Kelly, a sophomore, was asked if Walker, the senior who had made 5-of-11 three-pointers, was going to reward him for the assist on the historic shot.
"Are you talking about Gramps?" Kelly said as a mischievous smile crept across his face. "No, he's not taking me out for anything. All he's going to do is ice those creaky knees. It's no wonder he's scored 1,000 points. It seems like he's been here forever."
Then Kelly turned a little more serious.
"Congratulations to Will, that's quite an accomplishment," Kelly said. "He has had an amazing career.
"But even better than 1,000 points would be going to the (NCAA) tournament. We're trying to send Pops out on a high note."
A lineup featuring point guards Walker, Kelly and Michael Bizoukas gave the Blue Demons more quickness, snappy ball movement and crisp passing. Kelly finished with 11 points, six rebounds and three assists while the irrepressible Bizoukas contributed five points, nine rebounds, eight assists and three steals.
"On those rebounds, I was just going after the ball and I got lucky on some of them," said the 6-foot, 1-inch Bizoukas who tied with 6-9 Devin Hill (12 points, nine rebounds, five blocks) for game honors in rebounding. "All our big guys were blocking out the UIC guys and I was able to sneak in there.
"When coach (DePaul coach Jerry Wainwright) puts me, Will and Jeremiah in there, he wants us to keep the ball moving. We would dribble-drive and kick it out---especially to Will."
DePaul extended a 39-27 halftime lead by opening the second half with a 7-2 run. Walker's three-point shot with 18 minutes, five seconds left gave him 1,002 points for his career at that point while also providing the Blue Demons with a 46-29 lead.
"I didn't know about the 1,000-point thing until it was announced during the game," Walker said. "It's an honor for me to be among all the great players at DePaul who have scored this many points. It felt good, and it added some motivation to my game.
"We use the three-guard lineup to pressure the ball and force teams to drive on us. Robo Kreps (18 points, 4-of-7 on three-pointers) was shooting the ball well, so we made an adjustment."
Bizoukas led the way in putting the clamps on Kreps by helping limit the Flames' guard to seven points in the second half as UIC (1-6) lost its sixth in a row. The 6-0 Walker, 6-1 Kelly and Bizoukas combined for 34 points, 22 rebounds, 21 assists and eight steals.
Hill had his best game of the season for the Blue Demons, and it was no surprise to Walker.
"I like the way Devin has been performing in practice," Walker had said last Thursday. "He is getting after people, talking a lot on defense and is shooting it.
"It seems like he is starting to get comfortable in his role. I think he will be the guy who steps up for us in the next few games."
With 5:50 left in the first half, UIC's 6-11, 270-pound K.C. Robbins leveled Mario Stula with a forearm. While Stula lay on the court recovering from the blow, Robbins was assessed a flagrant foul and ejected from the game.
"I want to apologize to the Blue Demon fans for what K.C. Robbins did," said UIC coach Jimmy Collins. "That was totally uncalled for."
Wainwright enjoys watching his little guys control a game, but he also realizes what is looming ahead.
"We're going to be playing some teams real soon that have some huge players," Wainwright said about BIG EAST Conference play which begins Dec. 28 at Pittsburgh. "We're going to need Mac back (6-10 Mac Koshwal, out until the end of the month with a foot injury).
"I thought Devin played well, and a game like this helps him. He is getting used to playing on the inside. His defense since Mac has been down (Nov. 23) has been terrific."
The next chance for Wainwright to use his three-guard set is Wednesday when DePaul welcomes American to Allstate Arena for a 7:30 p.m. game.