Illinois-Chicago rallies to top UC Irvine
Banks scores 25 as Flames force 23 turnovers in 77-65 win

Box Score

CINCINNATI - Cedric Banks scored 25 points and had a driving layup during a 13-point run that swept Illinois-Chicago to a 77-65 victory Saturday over UC Irvine in the Dell™ Black Coaches Association Classic.

		UC Irvine's Stanislaw Zuzak (12) battles Illinois-Chicago's Josip Petrusic for a loose ball in UIC's 77-65 win.

Illinois-Chicago (1-0) used its superior speed to force 23 turnovers, setting up its comeback after trailing most of the first half.

Aaron Carr added 17 points for Illinois-Chicago, which is picked to win the Horizon League with a lineup that includes five returning starters.

Stanislav Zuzak made six of his seven 3-point attempts and finished with a career-high 29 points for UC Irvine, which returns three starters from a team that went 20-9 last season and finished second in the Big West.

The eight-team tournament is being played over three days on Xavier's home court.

UC Irvine used its pronounced height advantage to build a nine-point lead in the first half. The Anteaters start four players who are 6-foot-5 or taller, topped by 7-foot center Adam Parada.

Illinois-Chicago, which has only one starter taller than 6-foot-4, did a better job of speeding up the pace in the second half, setting up a back-and-forth game.

It got so physical that the officials assessed a double technical foul against Parada and Illinois-Chicago center Josip Petrusic as they went belly-to-belly and shoved while setting up for an inbound play. It was Parada's third foul.

Illinois-Chicago was already in the bonus with 17:05 left, and UC Irvine went into the bonus as well two minutes later.

Banks' driving layup built Illinois-Chicago's lead to 53-44, but Zuzak banked in a 3-pointer and had a jumper in a 10-point spurt, the first of four rapid-fire lead changes.

Five players scored in the 13-point run that put Illinois-Chicago ahead 67-58, and UC Irvine never got closer than six points.