2008 Woodie Awards
Beating the Bulldogs
Keys to Toppling #9 Butler
Andrew Smothers
Issue date: 2/18/08 Section: Sports
Media Credit: Ryan CalacsanUIC senior forward Jermaine Dailey slams home a dunk in last Monday's romp of Valparaiso at the Pavilion. A loss on Thursday to league bottom feeder Detroit, however, continued the Flames struggles on the road.
They did it last year with only eight players and an interim head coach. Who's to say the Flames cannot do it this year, too, with a deeper bench and an improved shooting team?
UIC defeated a very similar Butler team last January at the Pavilion, 73-67 in overtime. And that was just a few weeks after two former Flames quit the team, Karl White Jr. was ruled academically ineligible for the spring '07 semester, and coach Jimmy Collins took a leave of absence before undergoing season-ending surgery.
With no such turmoil apparent this season and a gaudy 11-1 home record backing the Flames, UIC appears to have a real chance at beating the Bulldogs again in '08.
The key last year was shutting down guard Mike Green, and the same will likely be true this time around. Fellow senior guard A.J. Graves has gotten much of the press, but Green has taken on much of the scoring load as of late, as seen by his 24 points to rally Butler over Milwaukee on Feb. 12. Green has been hobbled a bit recently with a sprained ankle, but the stat sheet hasn't shown much difference as he posted another team-high 18 points versus Youngstown State on Thursday.
If the Flames can shut down Green like they did last season, when they limited him to only four points in 38 minutes and force Graves to carry the team, UIC will have a definite shot.
Another key will be running the game at UIC's favored up-beat tempo. Running the game at their own pace will make it difficult for Graves and Green to settle into their preferred slow style of play. Although the Bulldogs' loss at Wright State was a 43-42 waltz, the Flames have not shown the same defensive tenacity that the Raiders consistently bring, so running may be their only option.
Butler's only other loss came to the hands of an inspired, determined Cleveland State team. Hopefully coach Collins takes note of that and can get his men fired up to that necessary level.
The Flames need to also make their presence known inside, especially on the defensive end. In their meeting earlier this season at Hinkle Fieldhouse, the Bulldogs dominated the lane, outscoring the Flames 32-18 in the paint. The continual emergence of senior Jermaine Dailey and an aggressive showing from 7'0 junior Scott VanderMeer are a necessity.
And finally, UIC must treasure the basketball on the offensive end and not unravel when they do make a mistake. The Flames need to find quality shots instead of forcing them and stop the questionable passes and alley-oop attempts that seem to continually lead to turnovers.
Simply put, UIC certainly has a chance to turn Pack the Pavilion night into a rush the court event. It's just a matter of hustle, heart and level-headedness.
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UIC defeated a very similar Butler team last January at the Pavilion, 73-67 in overtime. And that was just a few weeks after two former Flames quit the team, Karl White Jr. was ruled academically ineligible for the spring '07 semester, and coach Jimmy Collins took a leave of absence before undergoing season-ending surgery.
With no such turmoil apparent this season and a gaudy 11-1 home record backing the Flames, UIC appears to have a real chance at beating the Bulldogs again in '08.
The key last year was shutting down guard Mike Green, and the same will likely be true this time around. Fellow senior guard A.J. Graves has gotten much of the press, but Green has taken on much of the scoring load as of late, as seen by his 24 points to rally Butler over Milwaukee on Feb. 12. Green has been hobbled a bit recently with a sprained ankle, but the stat sheet hasn't shown much difference as he posted another team-high 18 points versus Youngstown State on Thursday.
If the Flames can shut down Green like they did last season, when they limited him to only four points in 38 minutes and force Graves to carry the team, UIC will have a definite shot.
Another key will be running the game at UIC's favored up-beat tempo. Running the game at their own pace will make it difficult for Graves and Green to settle into their preferred slow style of play. Although the Bulldogs' loss at Wright State was a 43-42 waltz, the Flames have not shown the same defensive tenacity that the Raiders consistently bring, so running may be their only option.
Butler's only other loss came to the hands of an inspired, determined Cleveland State team. Hopefully coach Collins takes note of that and can get his men fired up to that necessary level.
The Flames need to also make their presence known inside, especially on the defensive end. In their meeting earlier this season at Hinkle Fieldhouse, the Bulldogs dominated the lane, outscoring the Flames 32-18 in the paint. The continual emergence of senior Jermaine Dailey and an aggressive showing from 7'0 junior Scott VanderMeer are a necessity.
And finally, UIC must treasure the basketball on the offensive end and not unravel when they do make a mistake. The Flames need to find quality shots instead of forcing them and stop the questionable passes and alley-oop attempts that seem to continually lead to turnovers.
Simply put, UIC certainly has a chance to turn Pack the Pavilion night into a rush the court event. It's just a matter of hustle, heart and level-headedness.
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