Final Score: Illinois-Chicago 59, UC Riverside 52

Chicago, IL (Sports Network) - Josh Crittle finished with 15 points, seven rebounds, and five blocks as the Illinois-Chicago Flames defeated the UC Riverside Highlanders 59-52 in a non-conference tilt at UIC Pavilion.

Joey Miller provided a spark off the bench for UIC (1-1) by netting 14 points on 4-of-6 shooting from beyond the arc. Hayden Humes and Gary Talton both scored 10 points. Talton also registered seven assists and four steals.

Josh Fox produced a double-double for UC Riverside (1-1) with 10 points and 10 rebounds. Chris Patton also scored 10 points. The Highlanders had trouble converting from distance and went 4-of-17 from three-point range in the contest.

The Flames took a 30-25 lead into the intermission after they made 6-of-12 from beyond the arc in the opening 20 minutes. UIC led by 13 points at the 9:01 mark of the first half before the visitors chipped the advantage back down to single digits.

The Highlanders rallied in the second half and trailed by just three points, 53-50, with 2:28 left in regulation. Talton made a pair of free throws before Daniel Barnes hit a dagger from deep to push UIC's lead back up to eight points with just over a minute remaining on the clock.

Despite the loss, UC Riverside held a 40-29 edge in the rebounding battle.