2016–17 UIC Flames men's basketball team

The 2016–17 UIC Flames men's basketball team represented the University of Illinois at Chicago in the 2016–17 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Flames, led by second-year head coach Steve McClain, played their home games at the UIC Pavilion as members of the Horizon League. They finished the season 17–19, 7–11 in Horizon League play to finish in sixth place. They defeated Green Bay in the quarterfinals of the Horizon League tournament before losing to Milwaukee in the semifinals. They were invited to the College Basketball Invitational where they defeated Stony Brook and George Washington before losing in the semifinals to Coastal Carolina.

2016–17 UIC Flames men's basketball
CBI, Semifinals
Conference	Horizon League
Record	17–19 (7–11 Horizon)
Head coach	Steve McClain (2nd season)
Assistant coaches	Ron Coleman Brendan Mullins Seth Cooper
Home arena	UIC Pavilion
Seasons ← 2015–16 2017–18 →

2016–17 Horizon League men's basketball standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		PCT			W		L		PCT
Oakland	14	–	4		.778			25	–	9		.735
Valparaiso	14	–	4		.778			24	–	9		.727
Green Bay	12	–	6		.667			18	–	14		.563
Northern Kentucky †	12	–	6		.667			24	–	11		.686
Wright State	11	–	7		.611			20	–	12		.625
UIC	7	–	11		.389			17	–	19		.472
Detroit	6	–	12		.333			8	–	23		.258
Cleveland State	5	–	13		.278			9	–	22		.290
Youngstown State	5	–	13		.278			13	–	21		.382
Milwaukee	4	–	14		.222			11	–	24		.314
† 2017 Horizon League Tournament winner

Previous season

The Flames finished the 2015–16 season 5–25, 3–15 in Horizon League play to finish in last place. They lost in the first round of the Horizon League tournament to Wright State.^[1]

Departures

Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Notes
Paris Burns	1	G	5'11"	165	Senior	Chicago, IL	Graduated
Gabe Snider	2	G	6'3"	180	Senior	Chicago, IL	Graduated
Julian Torres	15	F/C	6'9"	265	Freshman	Bolingbrook, IL	Transferred to SIU Edwardsville
Drew Hackett	22	G	6'2"	180	Freshman	Munster, IN	Transferred
Najeal Young	23	G/F	6'6"	225	Junior	Milwaukee, WI	Transferred to Texas Wesleyan
Hans-Christian Lauer	32	F	6'7"	220	Junior	Klein-Winternheim, Germany	Walk-on; transferred
Markese McGuire	34	G	6'3"	190	Junior	Elkhart, IN	Graduate transferred to Central State
Jake Wiegand	40	F	6'8"	245	Senior	Herndon, VA	Graduated

Incoming Transfers

Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Previous School
Kyle Guice	22	F	6'8"		Junior	Coeur d'Alene, ID	Junior college transferred from North Idaho College

Recruiting class of 2016

College recruiting information

Name	Hometown	School	Height	Weight	Commit date
K.J. Santos #37 SF	Geneva, IL	Sunrise Christian Academy	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	185 lb (84 kg)	Nov 12, 2015
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    (77)
Marcus Ottey #58 SG	Ajax, ON	Spire Institute	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	165 lb (75 kg)
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    (74)
Jordan Blount SG	Geneva, OH	Spire Institute	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	N/A	Nov 4, 2015
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    (NR)
Tarkus Ferguson SG	Belleville, IL	Althoff Catholic High School	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	Oct 3, 2015
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    (NR)
Godwin Boahen PG	Toronto, ON	The Hill Academy	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)	175 lb (79 kg)
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    (NR)
Overall recruit ranking:
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, On3, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2016 Team Ranking". Rivals. Retrieved October 19, 2016.

Recruiting class of 2017

College recruiting information (2017)
Name	Hometown	School	Height	Weight	Commit date
Greg Eboigbodin #53 PF	Detroit, MI	Univ. of Detroit Jesuit High School	6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)	N/A	Oct 11, 2016
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    (77)
Overall recruit ranking:
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, On3, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2017 Team Ranking". Rivals. Retrieved October 19, 2016.

Roster

2016–17 UIC Flames men's basketball team
Players	Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown G 0 Dominique Matthews 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 190 lb (86 kg) RS Fr St. Rita of Cascia High School Chicago, Illinois G 1 Michael Kolawole 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 195 lb (88 kg) So Rowlett High School Rowlett, Texas F 2 K. J. Santos 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Fr Sunrise Christian Academy Geneva, Illinois F 3 Hassan Thomas 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 210 lb (95 kg) So Woodrow Wilson High School Dallas, Texas G/F 4 Lance Whitaker 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 210 lb (95 kg) RS Jr Bartlett High School Bartlett, Illinois G 5 Tarkus Ferguson 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Fr Althoff Catholic High School Belleville, Illinois F 10 Dikembe Dixson 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 200 lb (91 kg) So Mingo Central Comprehensive High School Matewan, West Virginia F 13 Jordan Blount 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Fr SPIRE Academy Cork, Ireland G 15 Godwin Boahen 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Fr The Hill Academy Toronto, Ontario, Canada F/C 21 Tai Odiase 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Jr Homewood-Flossmoor High School Glenwood, Illinois F/C 22 Kyle Guice 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Jr North Idaho College Coeur d'Alene, Idaho G 23 Marcus Ottey 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Fr SPIRE Academy Ajax, Ontario, Canada G 25 Josh Joiner (W) 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 170 lb (77 kg) Sr Kennedy–King College Chicago, Illinois F/C 32 Clint Robinson 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 235 lb (107 kg) Jr State Fair Community College Montego Bay, Jamaica	Head coach Steve McClain (Chadron State) Assistant coach(es) Ron Coleman (Lamar) Brendan Mullins (Saint Michael's) Seth Cooper (Edgewood) Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible (W) Walk-on Injured Current redshirt Roster

Schedule and results

Date time, TV	Rank#	Opponent#	Result	Record	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Site (attendance) city, state
Exhibition
Nov 5* 3:00 pm, ESPN3		Judson	W 95–78		34 – Dixson	6 – Robinson	4 – Santos	UIC Pavilion (1,661) Chicago, IL
Non-conference regular season
Nov 11* 10:00 pm		at San Francisco	L 80–82	0–1	15 – Dixson	8 – Santo	7 – Boahen	War Memorial Gymnasium (2,163) San Francisco, CA
Nov 16* 7:00 pm, CSNCH/ESPN3		UTSA	W 86–78	1–1	31 – Dixson	9 – Dixson	2 – 4 tied	UIC Pavilion (3,571) Chicago, IL
Nov 19* 7:00 pm, ESPN3		Trinity Christian	W 102–66	2–1	20 – Odiase	9 – Dixson	5 – Ferguson	UIC Pavilion (1,713) Chicago, IL
Nov 23* 4:30 pm		vs. Elon NIU Thanksgiving Classic	L 80–91	2–2	32 – Dixson	10 – Dixson	3 – Dixson & Ferguson	Convocation Center (844) DeKalb, IL
Nov 25* 3:30 pm		vs. Cal Poly NIU Thanksgiving Classic	W 84–71	3–2	24 – Dixson	6 – 3 tied	3 – Ferguson & Boahen	Convocation Center (712) DeKalb, IL
Nov 26* 3:30 pm		at Northern Illinois NIU Thanksgiving Classic	L 81–92	3–3	31 – Dixson	5 – Dixson & Odiase	2 – Santos & Matthews	Convocation Center (1,398) DeKalb, IL
Nov 30* 7:00 pm, ESPN3		Chicago State	W 74–58	4–3	20 – Dixson	8 – Odiase	4 – Boahen & Ferguson	UIC Pavilion (3,718) Chicago, IL
Dec 4* 3:00 pm, ESPN3		Eastern Illinois	L 76–90	4–4	16 – Ottey	7 – Odiase & Robinson	5 – Ferguson	UIC Pavilion (1,786) Chicago, IL
Dec 10* 8:00 pm		at Grand Canyon	L 69–73	4–5	19 – Dixson	9 – Odiase	2 – Ottey & Kolawole	GCU Arena (6,804) Phoenix, AZ
Dec 14* 7:00 pm, FS1		at DePaul	L 70–75	5–5	14 – Guice	6 – Ferguson & Robinson	5 – Ferguson	McGrath–Phillips Arena (2,099) Chicago, IL
Dec 17* 3:00 pm, ESPN3		Loyola–Chicago	L 75–81 OT	5–6	14 – Santos	10 – Odiase	4 – Boahen & Feruson	UIC Pavilion (2,376) Chicago, IL
Dec 20* 7:00 pm		Northern Arizona	W 75–65	6–6	24 – Odiase	11 – Odiase	9 – Ferguson	UIC Pavilion (2,810) Chicago, IL
Dec 22* 7:00 pm, ESPN3		Roosevelt	W 91–53	7–6	18 – Odiase	12 – Boahen	11 – Boahen	UIC Pavilion (2,647) Chicago, IL
Horizon League regular season
Dec 30 4:00 pm, ESPNU		Valparaiso	L 59–70	7–7 (0–1)	16 – Ferguson	7 – Odiase	5 – Guice	UIC Pavilion (3,826) Chicago, IL
Jan 6 7:00 pm, ESPN3		Detroit	W 78–64	8–7 (1–1)	16 – Ferguson	6 – Ferguson & Boahen	7 – Boahen	UIC Pavilion (1,832) Chicago, IL
Jan 8 4:00 pm, ASN		Oakland	L 57–58	8–8 (1–2)	15 – Ferguson	13 – Odiase	4 – Ferguson	UIC Pavilion (1,970) Chicago, IL
Jan 12 6:45 pm, ESPN3		at Cleveland State	W 59–54	9–8 (2–2)	11 – Robinson & Matthews	9 – Santos	3 – Santos & Ferguson	Wolstein Center (1,393) Cleveland, OH
Jan 14 6:00 pm, ESPN3		at Youngstown State	W 92–89 OT	10–8 (3–2)	21 – Matthews	10 – Ferguson	3 – 3 tied	Beeghly Center (2,787) Youngstown, OH
Jan 17 6:00 pm, ESPN3		at Milwaukee	W 71–57	11–8 (4–2)	20 – Odiase	12 – Odiase	6 – Ferguson	UW–Milwaukee Panther Arena (2,726) Milwaukee, WI
Jan 22 4:00 pm, ASN		at Valparaiso	L 65–96	11–9 (4–3)	12 – Ferguson & Matthews	5 – 3 tied	6 – Ferguson	Athletics–Recreation Center (3,881) Valparaiso, IN
Jan 27 7:00 pm, ESPN3		Northern Kentucky	L 62–79	11–10 (4–4)	19 – Boahen	7 – 3 tied	6 – Ferguson	UIC Pavilion (2,898) Chicago, IL
Jan 29 3:00 pm, ESPN3		Wright State	L 86–88	11–11 (4–5)	17 – Kolawole	10 – Fergusan	9 – Fergusan	UIC Pavilion (2,508) Chicago, IL
Feb 2 7:00 pm, ESPN3		at Green Bay	L 80–84	11–12 (4–6)	22 – Matthews	13 – Odiase	5 – Ferguson	Resch Center (2,760) Green Bay, WI
Feb 4 2:00 pm, ESPN3		Milwaukee	W 105–100 OT	12–12 (5–6)	25 – Ferguson	7 – Kolawole	11 – Ferguson	UIC Pavilion (1,622) Chicago, IL
Feb 9 7:00 pm, CSNCH/ESPN3		Youngstown State	W 84–81	13–12 (6–6)	28 – Matthews	10 – Robinson	6 – Ottey & Ferguson	UIC Pavilion (5,519) Chicago, IL
Feb 11 3:00 pm, ESPN3		Cleveland State	L 63–66	13–13 (6–7)	17 – Odiase	7 – Odiase	6 – Ferguson	UIC Pavilion (4,711) Chicago, IL
Feb 17 6:00 pm, ESPN3		at Detroit	W 74–69	14–13 (7–7)	20 – Ferguson	8 – Robinson	3 – Ferguson	Calihan Hall (1,203) Detroit, MI
Feb 19 2:00 pm, ESPN3		at Oakland	L 75–87	14–14 (7–8)	16 – Odiase	14 – Odiase	16 – Ferguson	Athletics Center O'rena (2,638) Rochester, MI
Feb 21 7:00 pm, CSNCH/ESPN3		Green Bay	L 79–87	14–15 (7–9)	16 – Odiase	12 – Odiase	8 – Ferguson	UIC Pavilion (3,583) Chicago, IL
Feb 24 6:30 pm, ESPN3		at Northern Kentucky	L 82–90	14–16 (7–10)	25 – Ottey	10 – Ferguson	7 – Ferguson	BB&T Arena (3,025) Highland Heights, KY
Feb 26 1:00 pm, ESPN3		at Wright State	L 49–87	14–17 (7–11)	18 – Kolawole	6 – Tied	1 – 4 Tied	Nutter Center  Dayton, OH
Horizon League tournament
Mar 5 5:00 pm, ESPN3	(6)	vs. (3) Green Bay Quarterfinals	W 79–70	15–17	16 – Odiase	10 – Fergusen	5 – Fergusen	Joe Louis Arena (5,654) Detroit, MI
Mar 6 8:00 pm, ESPNU	(6)	vs. (10) Milwaukee Semifinals	L 68–74	15–18	21 – Matthews	7 – Robinson	4 – Boahen	Joe Louis Arena (3,708) Detroit, MI
CBI
Mar 16* 7:00 pm		Stony Brook First Round	W 71–69	16–18	21 – Matthews	7 – Ferguson	10 – Ferguson	UIC Pavilion (1,197) Chicago, IL
Mar 20* 7:00 pm		George Washington Quarterfinals	W 80–71	17–18	23 – Odiase	10 – Ferguson	12 – Ferguson	UIC Pavilion (1,048) Chicago, IL
Mar 22* 6:00 pm		at Coastal Carolina Semifinals	L 78–89	17–19	27 – Ferguson	7 – Ferguson	4 – Tied	HTC Center  Conway, SC
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Central Time.