Men's Basketball Preview - Part 4: UIC
Oct. 25, 2005
From the outside looking in, it may seem as if the UIC men's basketball team has some pretty big holes to fill heading into the 2005-06 campaign.
No longer will Head Coach Jimmy Collins be able to call upon four-time All-Horizon League honoree Cedrick Banks, the program's all-time leading scorer, to spark the Flames' offense. Collins will also not be able to count on the frontcourt presence and post defense of three-time team leader in rebounding Armond Williams.
Both Banks and Williams have graduated from UIC to professional basketball careers overseas, forcing the Flames to find new heroes to spark the team this season.
Collins is positive that with three starters and a veteran core returning to the lineup, added to another talented recruiting class, that 2005-06 will not be a rebuilding campaign as his squad is already reloaded and poised for a run at the Horizon League title.
"I think this year's team has more depth and a very positive attitude about playing the style of basketball we want to play," Collins said. "The new guys are more than adequate in filling the vacancies left from last year's squad.
"This is a hard-working, hard-driving and focused basketball team."
It's no surprise that the one thing Collins' best squads have had in common is strength at the point guard position.
Collins has counted on standouts like Anthony Coomes and Martell Bailey to direct his offense to the NCAA Tournament in the past, and this season he is counting on senior Rocky Collum, as well as newcomers D.J. Smedley and Josh Mayo to be his floor generals.
Collum overcame a preseason knee injury last season to lead the team in assists at over three helpers per game. He also averaged 8.7 points per outing while giving the squad another threat as its top three-point marksman (37 percent).
Smedley comes to UIC from Saddleback Junior College in Mission Viejo, Calif., where he was tabbed as one of the Top 10 junior college point guards in the nation by Lindy's College Basketball. Smedley earned Orange Empire Conference Co-MVP honors last year after leading the conference at almost five assists per game.
Mayo is a true freshman that will make his way to the Pavilion hardwood after a decorated prep career at Merrillville High School in Merrillville, Ind. The two-time All-State honoree averaged over 16 points and three assists per game during his career. This past summer he earned a spot on the prestigious Indiana All-Stars Team.
Anchoring the two-guard spot for the Flames will be last year's top freshman performer, Karl White.
The Omaha, Neb., native made an immediate impact with UIC last season even while playing most of the year out of position at point guard.
White tallied 5.6 points and 1.6 rebounds per game last year, but blossomed down the stretch for the Flames, averaging 10.2 points, 4.0 assists, 2.8 rebounds and 2.2 steals in his last five games.
Sophomores Kevin Bond and Robert Bush with both also see time at both the off-guard and wing spots for the Flames during the season.
Bond, who tallied a career-best 10 points in the Flames' Horizon League Tournament opening win over Cleveland State, tabbed just under two points per outing as a reserve last season while Bush averaged 1.0 point per game.
With his frontcourt, Collins has an ample supply of ability, length and versatility in 2005-06.
At the small forward spot both junior Jovan Stefanov and senior Justin Bowen return for the Flames with newcomer Othyus Jeffers being added to the mix.
Stefanov started in 24 games for UIC last year, averaging 8.8 points and 5.1 rebounds per game. He was third on the team in three-pointers made last year and often saved his best for some of the top opponents on the Flames' schedule with a near double-double versus then-No. 3 Georgia Tech and a team-high 15 points at then-No. 9 Duke.
Bowen shifted between starter and potent sixth man for the Flames last season while also switching between the wing and the power forward position. The 6-foot-7 jumping jack excelled in all areas as he averaged 7.8 points and 5.4 rebounds per game, which ranked him among the top 15 in the Horizon League in the category.
Jeffers is a Chicago product from Hubbard High School who came to UIC last season after spending one year at Los Angeles Southwest Community College. The cousin of former Flames standout Mark Miller, Jeffers averaged 22.3 points and 10.7 rebounds per game back in 2003-04 at L.A. Southwest.
With Miller's permission, Jeffers will don his No. 12 jersey that was retired by UIC five years ago.
At the four spot, Bowen and Jeffers will slide down with their jumping ability and rebounding prowess while newcomer Danijel Zoric will also see significant time in this role for the Flames.
Zoric, a native of Serbia and Montenegro, totaled 19.3 points and 8.0 rebounds per game at Collin County Community College in Plano, Texas, last season en route to All-Region V and All-Conference accolades.
Fellow Serbia and Montenegro native Jovan Ignajtovic will also see time in the post for the Flames. The 6-foot-9 true freshman played one season of basketball in the U.S., competing in 2004-05 at Chicago's Whitney Young High School, where he averaged over 17 points per outing.
In the middle, top returning scorer and rebounder Elliott Poole is back to help lead the Flames. Poole averaged 9.9 points and 5.8 rebounds last season, ranking third and second respectively on the team in those categories while rating fourth in the Horizon League in field goal percentage (52 percent).
The 6-foot-7 Farragut product produced these numbers in just less than 27 minutes per outing. His pro-rated stats average out to 14.7 points and 8.6 rebounds per 40 minutes, which are numbers Poole is likely to reach with extended playing time as one of the team's go-to performers.
Just like every year, the Flames will embark on a rigorous non-conference schedule as they prepare for a run at the Horizon League title.
This year's slate includes schools representing the ACC, SEC, Big Ten and Big East, not to mention the border war battles that take place in Horizon League play.
"This is the type of schedule that is obviously very competitive and is going to add plenty of visibility to our program," Collins said. "We always tell our recruits that we are going to play a tough schedule against some of the top teams in the country.
"Once again, this year I think we have done that."
UIC will get a chance to bond as a team while playing in a postseason tournament atmosphere to open the 2005-06 campaign as the Flames compete in the BP Top of the World Classic in Fairbanks, Alaska. UIC opens the event and the season on Thursday, Nov. 17th, when they take on Montana State.
Less than a week later UIC will continue on the road with a trip through Georgia to take on both Georgia Tech and Georgia Southern.
The Flames finally get a little home cooking in December with dates versus Ole Miss (12/10), Northern Illinois (12/17) and Chicago State (12/5), along with a trip across town to meet Northwestern (12/14) prior to opening league play on New Year's Eve at home versus Youngstown State (12/31).
UIC will also travel to Syracuse on Dec. 23rd to take on the Orange in the Carrier Dome.
As always the Horizon League road will be a treacherous one with the likes of UW-Milwaukee, which returns four starters from its `Sweet 16' team from last year, as well as Detroit and Loyola among just a few who will all have eyes on taking out the Flames.
Story provided by UIC Office of Sports Information
