2008 Woodie Awards
Women finally finding their stride
Led by Miller's career night, Flames upset Milwaukee, claim first road victory
Andrew Smothers
Issue date: 1/28/08 Section: Sports
Media Credit: UIC AthleticsLed by sophomore guard Jessie Miller, the UIC women's basketball team claimed two Horizon League victories last week, including their first road victory of the season- a 62-59 upset at then-league leading Milwaukee.
The tide may be finally turning for the UIC women's basketball team. After dropping four straight Horizon League contests to begin league play, the team claimed two consecutive conference matchups last week, including a 62-59 upset at then-league leading Milwaukee.
A career-high 27 points by Flames' sophomore guard Jessie Miller helped UIC tally their first road victory of the season last Thursday at a venue notoriously unfriendly to the Flames.
"It was the first time we've beaten Milwaukee at Milwaukee since I've been there, so that's huge," said Lisa Ryckbosch, now in her sixth season as UIC head women's coach.
"More importantly though, just for where we were at as a team, this proved to ourselves and to the rest of the league that we can win a game on the road and be in the mix in the league race. I was very pleased with how we executed the game top to bottom. We're learning, we're getting better, and we're starting to settle in," said Ryckbosch.
Until last week, the season had been a struggle at best. The Flames lost nine of 10 games since Nov. 29, dropping those nine contests by an average of 19 points. But now that their ball handling has improved and the remarkably young team has begun to understand its roles and weaknesses more, the dark cloud appears to have moved on.
"I can't tell you we're going to win every game we're going to play from here on out," said Ryckbosch, "but I think from a basic understanding of what we're trying to do that we've passed a point of no return."
To be fair, that rough stretch began at a time when few expected the Flames to shine in the first place. With road games against national powerhouses LSU and DePaul, and a Dec. 2 meeting with the Fighting Illini at Assembly Hall, UIC and its nine underclassmen faced an uphill battle from the start. But coach Ryckbosch said the team did take plenty of tough lessons away from the difficult schedule.
"When you play a schedule like that it very much exposes your weaknesses," said Ryckbosch. "You talk in practice and tell the team that if they don't take better care of the basketball against better teams, that bad results are going to happen. But they don't necessarily believe you all the time. But when you get slapped upside the head by Illinois, DePaul, LSU, it becomes a wake up call."
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A career-high 27 points by Flames' sophomore guard Jessie Miller helped UIC tally their first road victory of the season last Thursday at a venue notoriously unfriendly to the Flames.
"It was the first time we've beaten Milwaukee at Milwaukee since I've been there, so that's huge," said Lisa Ryckbosch, now in her sixth season as UIC head women's coach.
"More importantly though, just for where we were at as a team, this proved to ourselves and to the rest of the league that we can win a game on the road and be in the mix in the league race. I was very pleased with how we executed the game top to bottom. We're learning, we're getting better, and we're starting to settle in," said Ryckbosch.
Until last week, the season had been a struggle at best. The Flames lost nine of 10 games since Nov. 29, dropping those nine contests by an average of 19 points. But now that their ball handling has improved and the remarkably young team has begun to understand its roles and weaknesses more, the dark cloud appears to have moved on.
"I can't tell you we're going to win every game we're going to play from here on out," said Ryckbosch, "but I think from a basic understanding of what we're trying to do that we've passed a point of no return."
To be fair, that rough stretch began at a time when few expected the Flames to shine in the first place. With road games against national powerhouses LSU and DePaul, and a Dec. 2 meeting with the Fighting Illini at Assembly Hall, UIC and its nine underclassmen faced an uphill battle from the start. But coach Ryckbosch said the team did take plenty of tough lessons away from the difficult schedule.
"When you play a schedule like that it very much exposes your weaknesses," said Ryckbosch. "You talk in practice and tell the team that if they don't take better care of the basketball against better teams, that bad results are going to happen. But they don't necessarily believe you all the time. But when you get slapped upside the head by Illinois, DePaul, LSU, it becomes a wake up call."
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