After 45 minutes of basketball and with both teams rapidly running out of gas, Illinois-Chicago coach Jimmy Collins asked his Flames to reach back for one last burst of energy.
The Flames responded with a 17-7 run in the second overtime to claim a 78-68 Horizon League victory over Loyola before a crowd of 5,149 Saturday night at the Pavilion.
“We had to pick up our intensity,” Collins said. “We picked it up another notch and looked like they had that extra step.”
That step enabled UIC (9-7, 3-2) to extend its season-long Pavilion winning streak to seven games and snap a three-game losing streak. Loyola’s loss was its sixth in the last seven games.
The Flames took control quickly in the second overtime with back-to-back buckets from senior center Scott VanderMeer and sophomore forward Jeremy Buttell before Robert Bush’s baseline three-pointer. That gave them a 68-61 advantage with 2 minutes 26 seconds left.
Loyola never got closer than five points the rest of the way.
The Ramblers (5-11, 1-5) had claimed momentum with a late stretch run in regulation that featured a comeback from a five-point deficit to force a tie. They then went for the victory in the first overtime only to see a potential game-winning shot fall short.
After scoring just five points in the first half, junior guard Josh Mayo added 15 over the next 30 minutes to close with a team-high 20.
Loyola guard J.R. Blount led all scorers with 23 points, while junior Justin Cerasoli added 21.
The Ramblers had rallied from 54-49 deficit in the final 2:45 of regulation to force a 56-56 tie when Blount hit a three-pointer from the top of the key.
Cerasoli, a former West Aurora standout, was the big spark in the first overtime with five points and a steal. But with the game deadlocked 61-61 Blount’s last-second potential game-winning baseline jumper fell short.
“The very first thing we talked about [before the second overtime] was ball protection — hang on to the ball,” Collins said. “We talked about keeping the energy level up, and the defense had to improve.
“From where I stood, it almost appeared that Loyola scored when they wanted to. They played well, they played scrappy and didn’t lay down.”
UIC senior forward Jermaine Dailey left the game with an injured left ankle and knee late in the first half and did not return. Dailey, who was averaging 4.9 points and four rebounds per game, is expected to have an MRI performed to determine the seriousness of his injuries.
