PREMIUM
Rogers' 10* CIT SEMIFINAL SHOWDOWN >> *ON FIRE* (19-8-1 Last 6 Days!)
(NCAAB) UIC vs. Liberty,
Point Spread: -5.50 | -109.00 Liberty (Home)
Result: Loss
Point Spread: -5.50 | -109.00 Liberty (Home)
Result: Loss
The set-up: The CIT Tournament flies "way under the radar" but the semifinals of this tourney will be contested tonight. The UIC Flames and Liberty Flames will square off at the Vines Center, Liberty's homecourt in Lynchburg, Va. UIC has had a nice season as the 19-15 Flames will finish this season with their first winning record since the 2012-13 season and look poised to be a contender in the Horizon League next year. Liberty made it to the Big South championship game where it was nipped by Radford at the buzzer and comes into this contest at 22-14, after two home wins.
UIC: The Flames defeated Austin Peay a week ago Wednesday, despite trailing by a 14-points early in the 2nd half. An 11-0 run was the key and after a Tai Odiase dunk gave the Flames an 80-76 lead with 1:11 left in regulation., UIC held on for an 83-81 win. Did UIC hold Austin Peay to just 2-of-16 shooing from beyond the arc, or did the Governors just shoot poorly? Leading the way for the Flames was Tarkus Ferguson ,who had 21 points, nine rebounds, four assists, and a steal. Ferguson (10.2-5.3-5.2) is joined by two others in double digits. The 6-7 Dixson (14.2 & 3.5) is the team's leading scorer (more on that in a bit) and guard Ottey adds 13.5 PPG. Odiase, the team's 6-9 center, adds 9.4 PPG and a team-high 5.7 RPG. UIC averages 75.6 PPG (12nd) on 45.3% shooting.
Liberty: Try to figure out the CIT bracket methodology. Liberty's first game was Mar 12 (a 65-52 home win over NC A&T) but then didn't play again until March 24, when it used a big second half to defeat the Central Michigan Chippewas 84-74, this past Saturday. Liberty closed the 1st half on a 9-0 run to tie the game at 39-all. Then pulled away from Central Michigan midway through the 2nd half after an 11-0 Flames run gave Liberty a 64-53 lead with 9:18 left in regulation. Liberty shot 56.1% from the floor and 44.0% (12-25) from beyond the arc in the victory. Leading the way for the Flames was Scottie James who had 20 points and nine rebounds. The 6-7 James (a transfer from Bradley) leads in scoring (13.6) and rebounding (8.9), while four guards follow, three in double digits. PG Cabbil (11.2-4.4-3.8) heads the team's quartet of guards, followed by Kemrite (10.3), Pacheco-Ortiz (10.1) and Homesley (8.1 & 4.6). Liberty averages a modest 71.4 PPG (243rd) but holds opponents to just 63.5 PPG (9th) on 41.5% shooting (50th).
The pick: Maybe this is "Chicago's year," considering Loyola is in the Final Four? Then again, winning on Liberty's homecourt will be a real challenge, as head coach Ritchie McKay's team already owns a pair of 13-point home wins in this tourney. What's more, UIC's leading scorer, Dikembe Dixson, decided to go the Leonard Fournette/Christian McCaffrey route and sit out the postseason to instead prepare for the upcoming NBA draft. Does he think he's LBJ??? Make Liberty a 10* play.
UIC: The Flames defeated Austin Peay a week ago Wednesday, despite trailing by a 14-points early in the 2nd half. An 11-0 run was the key and after a Tai Odiase dunk gave the Flames an 80-76 lead with 1:11 left in regulation., UIC held on for an 83-81 win. Did UIC hold Austin Peay to just 2-of-16 shooing from beyond the arc, or did the Governors just shoot poorly? Leading the way for the Flames was Tarkus Ferguson ,who had 21 points, nine rebounds, four assists, and a steal. Ferguson (10.2-5.3-5.2) is joined by two others in double digits. The 6-7 Dixson (14.2 & 3.5) is the team's leading scorer (more on that in a bit) and guard Ottey adds 13.5 PPG. Odiase, the team's 6-9 center, adds 9.4 PPG and a team-high 5.7 RPG. UIC averages 75.6 PPG (12nd) on 45.3% shooting.
Liberty: Try to figure out the CIT bracket methodology. Liberty's first game was Mar 12 (a 65-52 home win over NC A&T) but then didn't play again until March 24, when it used a big second half to defeat the Central Michigan Chippewas 84-74, this past Saturday. Liberty closed the 1st half on a 9-0 run to tie the game at 39-all. Then pulled away from Central Michigan midway through the 2nd half after an 11-0 Flames run gave Liberty a 64-53 lead with 9:18 left in regulation. Liberty shot 56.1% from the floor and 44.0% (12-25) from beyond the arc in the victory. Leading the way for the Flames was Scottie James who had 20 points and nine rebounds. The 6-7 James (a transfer from Bradley) leads in scoring (13.6) and rebounding (8.9), while four guards follow, three in double digits. PG Cabbil (11.2-4.4-3.8) heads the team's quartet of guards, followed by Kemrite (10.3), Pacheco-Ortiz (10.1) and Homesley (8.1 & 4.6). Liberty averages a modest 71.4 PPG (243rd) but holds opponents to just 63.5 PPG (9th) on 41.5% shooting (50th).
The pick: Maybe this is "Chicago's year," considering Loyola is in the Final Four? Then again, winning on Liberty's homecourt will be a real challenge, as head coach Ritchie McKay's team already owns a pair of 13-point home wins in this tourney. What's more, UIC's leading scorer, Dikembe Dixson, decided to go the Leonard Fournette/Christian McCaffrey route and sit out the postseason to instead prepare for the upcoming NBA draft. Does he think he's LBJ??? Make Liberty a 10* play.
