UIC Adds Much Needed Guard Depth

New UIC head coach Luke Yaklich and his staff have added more back court players to the roster, once again tapping into the junior college and transfer market.

Maurice Commander, a transfer from Chattanooga, verbally committed to UIC on May 11th. As a sophomore, Commander started 31 of 32 games for the Mocs. A Chicago-native and former standout at Marist and Curie, he played on and off the ball for Chattanooga and averaged 6.2 points per game and 2.6 assists per game in 29.2 minutes. Listed at 6-feet tall, Commander will add much needed depth to the Flames backcourt, joining fellow newcomers Teyvion Kirk and RayQuawndis Mitchell. He is also the third Illinois-native to transfer to UIC since Yaklich has taken over, along with Kirk (Colorado State) and Zion Griffin (Iowa State).

In addition to Commander, Jalen Johnson committed to UIC last week. Johnson, who hails from Hopkinsville, KY, started his career at Murray State in 2018-2019. After playing sparingly, Johnson transferred to John A. Logan College in Chicago for the 2019-2020 season and thrived as a floor-spacer. He averaged 9.3 points per game while shooting 42% from three, making 66 3-pointers in 33 games. Johnson was listed at 6-foot-1 on the John A. Logan roster, so he will be another important addition to UIC’s crop of guards.

UIC has now filled 12 of 13 allotted scholarships for the 2020-2021 season.