Aces and Flames square off at 7 p.m. in Chicago
EVANSVILLE, Ind. – Looking to pick up its second consecutive Missouri Valley Conference road victory, the University of Evansville men’s basketball team travel to UIC for a 7 p.m. contest on Tuesday. ESPN+ and Purple Aces Radio Network will have the broadcast.
Last Time Out
– On January 13, UE and Bradley battled in a hard-fought overtime game at the Ford Center with the Braves taking the 94-90 win
– Leif Moeller (26 points) and Bryce Quinet (20 points) both set their career scoring highs in the game
– All five UE starters scored in double figures
– Jaquan Johnson of BU scored 35 points, tying him for the highest total scored by an opposing player in Ford Center history
Hitting Half
– UE did not shoot 50% until the 17th game of the season and has now done so in three consecutive games
– The last time UE shot 50% or higher in three games was from Feb. 13-21, 2024 when the Aces did so against Drake, Illinois State, and UIC
Freshmen on Fire
– Leif Moeller and Bryce Quinet accomplished a feat that had not been done by the program in almost 30 years
– The duo became the first pair of UE freshmen to record 20 points in a game since January 17, 1996
– Taking on Southwest Missouri State, freshmen Justin Farley and Marcus Wilson each had 20-point games in an 84-82 win
– Farley scored 24 points while Wilson added 22 in the contest
Top Performance
– Leif Moeller scored a career-high 26 points against Bradley marking the highest point tally by a UE player this season
– He was 8-of-17 from the field and 3-for-8 from outside; he is 6-for-12 from 3-point range in the last two games
– In the win at Indiana State, Moeller had 17 points, 8 boards, and 8 assists as he approached a triple double
– It was the second time this season he had a realistic shot at accomplishing the feat as he tallied 7 points, 8 boards, and 8 helpers in the victory over Oakland City
Keeping it Rolling
– Bryce Quinet has reached double figures in five of his first eight MVC games and is coming off a career-high 20 points versus Bradley
– Quinet is averaging 9.0 PPG in his last five contests; after recording 10 in the opener versus Belmont, he had 11 at Bradley before scoring a team-high 13 points at Illinois State
– He added 13 points versus Murray State while hitting five field goals and dishing out four assists
– Quinet is 23-for-48 from the field in the last six games and has connected on six of his last eight 3-point tries
Scouting the Opponent
– UIC enters Tuesday’s game with a 9-10 mark and sit at 4-4 in the MVC
– The Flames have won four league games in a row following a 74-67 win over Drake on Saturday
– Along with the win over the Bulldogs, the Flames have defeated SIU, Illinois State, and UNI on their recent streak
– Andy Johnson and Ahmad Henderson II pace UIC with 12.9 points per game
– Johnson has chipped in 3.3 rebounds per game while Henderson leads the team with 45 assists
– Elijah Crawford is averaging 8.9 PPG while Mekhi Lowery checks in with 8.7 PPG and a team-high 6.1 boards
