CHICAGO – University of Chicago men's basketball was back from Texas and well rested after the holiday break when they welcomed No. 16 Washington University to the Ratner Athletic Center to begin UAA play. The Maroons used runs to draw close several times and hit some clutch shots down the stretch as they began the new year with an upset of the Bears on Saturday in the Windy City.

FINAL SCORE
No. 16 WashU – 68
UChicago – 69

HOW IT HAPPENED

• University of Chicago (9-3, 1-0 UAA) started slow out of the gate and faced a seven-point deficit after just five minutes of action. They'd storm back however with a 9-0 run to take their first lead of the game.
• No. 16 Washington University (10-2, 0-1 UAA) quickly regained their advantage though and held onto it for almost the remainder of the period. The Bears wouldn't go into the locker room with the lead however thanks to a Joe Berry jumper with 11 seconds left to give the Maroons a slim two-point advantage heading into halftime.
• The early stages of the second half contained single possession leads on either side before WashU used a 6-0 run to create some separation and led 47-41 with just under 12 minutes left to play. Thankfully, UChicago was able to respond quickly once again and had the contest tied back up within two minutes of the Bears second frame high water mark.
• Neither team held more than a two-point lead for the last 8:22 of the game but a WashU three pointer put the outcome of the contest into question for the Maroons who were down by one with 33 seconds left. Eamonn Kenah came through for Chicago though and sank two shots from the charity stripe with 13 ticks left on the clock. A last second attempt refused to go in for the Bears as the Maroons begin 2024 by downing the 16^th ranked team in the country.

CHICAGO COMMENTS

• The victory is the Maroon's first over a ranked team since they defeated No. 15 Rochester at home back on February 5, 2023.

UCHICAGO STAT TRACKER
Points – Bryce Hopkins (16)
Rebounds – Thomas Kurowski (9)
Assists – Thomas Kurowski & Bryce Hopkins (3)
Blocks – Thomas Kurowski (2)

WHO'S ON DECK
The Maroons will look to move to 2-0 in UAA play when they take on Rochester to begin a doubleheader weekend at home. Game time against the Yellowjackets on Friday is slated for 7:30 pm.

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