Preview: Illinois-Chicago at DePaul

[December 14, 2016]  SportsDirect Inc.

Getting off to a strong start will be important for DePaul when it hosts city rival Illinois-Chicago on Wednesday. As was the case in a recent loss against Northwestern, the Blue Demons went down big early against Temple at the Hoophall Miami Invitational before their big second-half rally once again fell short.

"When we create a problem, we are resilient to try to solve it," DePaul coach Dave Leitao told the media. "Our emphasis is not to create the problem, to come out of the game with the answers to the questions." This problem of starting slowly only to turn it on in the second half hasn't been limited to just their losses as the Blue Demons trailed at the half of three of their five wins. All told, DePaul is being outscored by 63 points in the first half, but enjoyed a 78-point edge in the second half. The Flames feature one of the youngest teams in the nation with one senior and nine players in their first or second seasons.

TV: 8 p.m. ET, Fox Sports 1

ABOUT UIC (4-5): One player stands above the rest for the Flames and he is sophomore Dikembe Dixson, who leads Steve McClain's team with 22.2 points and 6.7 rebounds per game. After ending his freshman campaign by scoring in double figures in the final 18 games, including a 40-point effort against Youngstown State, the 6-7 forward has picked up where he left off, getting 10 points or more in all nine games this season. There is a big drop to second- and third-leading scorers Marcus Ottey (11.8) and Tai Odiase (10.9) for the Flames.

ABOUT DEPAUL (5-3): The strong start to the season continues to erode for sophomore Eli Cain, who is 2-for-18 from 3-point territory in the last four games. While his poor shooting kept him in single digits for the first time this season against Northwestern, he was able to score 38 total points in the last two games by getting to the foul line. He is 16-for-21 from the line in the last two games to climb over 70 percent for the season.

TIP-INS

1. DePaul's Billy Garrett, Jr. made a season high 11 free throws out of 12 attempts against Temple, but still struggled in going 2-of-10 from the field.

2. The Blue Demons posted an 82-55 victory over the Flames last December to extend to an 8-1 lead in the series.

3. The Flames are among the best in the country at the foul line, averaging 22.2 points from the strip compared to 16.1 per game for their opponents.

PREDICTION: DePaul 78, UIC 60

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