Illinois-Chicago will be playing Youngstown State in the friendly confines of the Pavilion, while Loyola will have to overcome the hostile environment of Wisconsin-Milwaukee’s U.S. Cellular Arena when the Horizon League playoffs begin Tuesday night.
The Flames’ 11-2 record in the Pavilion and their 63-55 victory at Wisconsin-Milwaukee in their last regular-season game suggest they might be able catch fire in the tournament.
“Everybody I inserted in that game [at UWM] contributed,” coach Jimmy Collins said. “Everybody played with good energy and everybody played with a purpose.
“We’re looking forward to playing in the tournament and perhaps getting to the point where we will play Butler (the regular-season champion, in the semifinals).”
Loyola ended the regular season with a 71-66 loss at Wisconsin-Green Bay, the Ramblers’ eighth defeat in nine league games on the road. But there was a bright spot for coach Jim Whitesell — the unexpected outstanding performance of recently promoted starter Ross Forman, who scored 28 points (23 above his average) and grabbed 15 rebounds (13 above his average).
“Ross has practiced well lately and gives us some good size (6 feet 8 inches) in our lineup,” Whitesell said. “I’m very happy with the way he played.”
If both fourth-seeded UIC and eighth-seeded Loyola win, they will meet in Friday’s quarterfinals at Butler’s Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
Under the tournament’s unconventional format, first-round playoff sites and seeding for the 10 teams are determined by regular-season records in league play.
Butler and second-place Cleveland State were awarded byes for both the first round and the quarterfinals. As an added bonus for winning the regular-season title, Butler gets to host the quarterfinal and semifinal games.
If the Bulldogs succeed in the semis, they will go back to their Hinkle home court for the title game on Tuesday, March 11. But if top-seeded Butler is upset in the semis, the highest-seeded finalist will host the title game.
Like UIC, fifth-seeded Valparaiso will begin the tournament on its home court Tuesday. The Crusaders’ opponent will be Wisconsin-Green Bay. A victory would send them to a Friday quarterfinal against the winner of the game between third-seeded Wright State and 10th-seeded Detroit.
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nmilbert@tribune.com
