From University of Chicago Athletics

The University of Chicago men's basketball team owned the paint and held the Dominican University offense in check to pick up a 70-48 victory on Tuesday.

The Maroons moved to 2-0 on the young season and the Stars fell to 0-2. It marked the lowest number of points allowed by the Maroons since their 109-46 win at IIT on Nov. 26, 2013.

Dominican was ahead 16-15 with about seven minutes left in the first half. UChicago quickly went on a run to go up 26-18, which included a three-pointer and dunk by junior guard Jordan Smith. The Maroons went into halftime with a 28-24 lead.

In the first four minutes of the second half, UChicago jumped out to a large lead that the team would hold the rest of the game. Junior forward Nate Brooks threw down two dunks and scored a layup during a 13-2 run that put the visitors ahead 41-26. The Maroons led by double digits for the final 10 minutes of regulation. Sophomore guard Tyler Howard directed the offensive effectively with eight assists and also swiped six steals defensively – both career highs.

UChicago led points in the paint 36-16 and also held a 39-33 rebounding edge. Brooks contributed on both counts with 20 points and five rebounds in only 18 minutes. The Stars also committed 19 turnovers compared to eight turnovers by the Maroons. UChicago got to the free-throw line twice as much as Dominican (33 attempts to 17 attempts), but struggled to convert, shooting 48.5 percent.

UChicago Team Stats & Leaders
Field-goal Percentage – 44.6 percent (25-56)
Three-point Percentage – 26.7 percent (4-15)
Free-throw Percentage – 48.5 percent (16-33)
Nate Brooks (Forward, Jr.) – 20 points, 5 rebounds
Jordan Smith (Guard, Jr.) – 13 points, 6 rebounds
Blaine Crawford (Forward, So.) – 10 points, 3 rebounds
Tyler Howard (Guard, So.) – 7 points, 8 assists, 6 steals