February 10, 2013

• YSU_vs. UIC Highlights
• Head Coach Jerry Slocum Comments
• Junior Kendrick Perry Comments

Youngstown -- In a game where both UIC and Youngstown traded buzzer-beaters to force overtime and double overtime, UIC made nine of its 10 free throw attempts in the third overtime to outlast the Penguins 88-83 on Sunday afternoon at Beeghly Center.

UIC's Gary Talton hit a bucket in the lane with 0.8 seconds left in regulation to tie game at 57, and Youngstown State's Kendrick Perry hit a 3-pointer with 0.1 left in the first overtime to tie the contest at 66. Talton had a triple attempt sail wide at the end of the second overtime that finished with the teams tied at 72, and the Flames never trailed in the third extra period.

The Flames had 16 points in the third overtime, matching their output from the entire first half.

Perry finished with a game-high 29 points, and Talton had 23 to lead UIC. The Flames improved to 15-10 overall and 6-6 in Horizon League play while Youngstown State dropped to 14-11 overall and 6-6 in conference play.

Blake Allen became YSU's career record holder for 3-pointers made in the contest. His record-breaking triple came at the 14:33 mark of the second half from the left wing on a pass from Perry, and it sparked a 15-4 run for the Penguins that gave them a 40-31 lead with 11:44 left in regulation.

UIC scored the next seven points to make the score 40-38, and the Flames regained the lead at 47-46 on a Josh Crittle bucket with 4:12 remaining. That lead lasted just nine seconds, though, as Damian Eargle scored on YSU's next possession, and the Penguins led until Talton's bucket with 0.8 seconds left. Another Allen trey put YSU up 54-47 with 2:41 left, but UIC hit back-to-back 3-pointers to get within one, then followed a Perry 3 with by scoring the final four points of regulation to force overtime.

UIC's Hayden Humes scored on the first possession in the first overtime, and the Flames led until Perry's triple with 0.1 remaining. Perry had the chance after Allen came up with a rebound on D.J. Cole's 3-point attempt. Cole then scored on YSU's first possession of the second overtime, and the Penguins led until Humes hit a triple in the corner to tie the game at 72 with 48 seconds left. YSU missed two shots with less than 20 seconds left before Talton's winning attempt was wide.

Humes had a put-back on UIC's first possession of the third overtime, and Cole tied the score at 74-74 with 3:45 left on two free throws. Crittle made two free throws for the Flames with 2:42 left, and the visitors led the rest of the way. The closest YSU got was 78-77 on a three-point play by Perry, but Daniel Barnes hit a 3-pointer in the corner with 47 seconds left that ended up being a dagger.

The Penguins shot 32.9 percent for the game and went a combined 5-for-20 in the three extra periods. YSU was also 20-for-33 total from the free-throw line for the game, but it was 14-for-19 in the overtimes. The Penguins had 13 3-pointers, five of which came from Allen. Perry finished with four triples, and Kamren Belin scored nine of his 14 points from beyond the arc before fouling out in the first overtime.

UIC shot 42.9 percent overall and 43.8 percent in overtime.

Both teams struggled to score in the first half, and Youngstown State led 19-16 at halftime. The Flames actually held the advantage shooting at 27.3 percent to the Penguins' 25 percent, but YSU scored 12 of its points off of 12 UIC turnovers. The Flames had just six turnovers in the next 35 minutes.

Eargle scored the game's first point on a free throw at the 16:23 mark, and a jumper by Talton with 14:31 left accounted for the first field goal of the contest. The Flames hit another bucket nearly two minutes later to go up 4-1, and Perry's fast-break bucket with 11:40 left gave YSU its first field goal.

Following Perry's bucket, Belin scored the next seven points for the Penguins. His 3-pointer at the 8:08 mark started a 12-0 YSU run that saw it turn an 8-7 deficit into a 19-8 lead with 3:19 left. The Flames then scored the final eight points of the period to trim the deficit down to three. UIC made three of its final four attempts from the field in the half after starting 3-for-18.

The Penguins missed their first 12 field-goal attempts, and UIC made one of its first 10.

Allen surpassed Craig Haese's previous mark of 198 from 1997-2001. Allen had 47 treys as a sophomore transfer in 2010-11, 91 last year and 64 this year.

Youngstown State continues its homestand on Friday when it hosts Milwaukee at 7:05 p.m.