Saturday, January 29, 2011
CHICAGO
Brad Birton and Paul Carter had double-doubles to lead Illinois-Chicago to its first conference victory of the season with an 83-61 decision over Youngstown State on Saturday.
Birton had 14 points and 14 rebounds while Carter had 14 points and 10 rebounds for the Flames (6-16, 1-9 Horizon League), which had dropped nine in a row since upsetting Illinois on Dec. 18.
Robo Kreps added 12 points and a game-high six assists, and Dipanjot Singh scored 11 points.
Blake Allen’s 14 points led the Penguins (7-14, 1-10), who lost their fifth in a row. Vytas Sulskis added 11.
The Flames trailed by five midway through the first half but led 34-32 at intermission and exploded in the second half, pushing their advantage to 79-48 with 2:59 left.
The teams split the season series, the Penguins winning 71-69 Dec. 30.