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Mays returns from injury, lifts Raiders to victory

Junior guard sets  WSU record by making 19-of-20 free throws.

Wright State forward Johann Mpondo is fouled by UIC center Darrin Williams in the first half at the Nutter Center in Fairborn Wednesday, Jan. 25, 2012.

EL Hubbard Wright State forward Johann Mpondo is fouled by UIC center Darrin Williams in the first half at the Nutter Center in Fairborn Wednesday, Jan. 25, 2012.

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By Kyle Nagel, Staff Writer Updated 1:40 AM Thursday, January 26, 2012

FAIRBORN — With a sleeve over his left calf to keep his fragile Achilles tendon warm and loose, Wright State junior guard Julius Mays went out for warm-ups on Wednesday knowing he would play.

He had missed the Raiders’ previous game, a 16-point loss against Detroit. He was cleared to play Wednesday, and he was excited.

Then he started shooting.

“I was not confident in shootaround, because all the shots I usually hit with nobody guarding me, I wasn’t hitting,” Mays said. “When I came out, and the first one dropped for me, I felt like it was gonna be a good night.”

Both guarded and unguarded. Mays scored a career-best 33 points and set a WSU record with 19 made free throws in a 69-63 win against Illinois-Chicago that snapped a three-game losing streak.

Each of those losses came after Mays injured the Achilles in a win against Valparaiso on Jan. 8. After time to rest, he scored 19 points in the first half Wednesday, made 19-of-20 free throws and reached at least 20 points for the eighth time this season.

In his past nine games, Mays is averaging 20 points.

“He just makes it so much easier for everybody else,” said senior forward Johann Mpondo, who had 10 points and six rebounds. “They have to focus on guarding him.”

Wright State jumped to leads of 18-7, 25-9 and 42-24 and led by as many as 18 points in the first half. But UIC used a 17-2 run that spanned both halves, aided by a technical foul called against Mays for swinging an elbow following a steal, to cut the deficit to 44-41 with 14 minutes left.

The Flames got as close as 52-51 with 7:25 left on a Hayden Humes 3-pointer. But Mays scored 10 straight WSU points, including a big 3-pointer with 1:25 left that boosted the lead to 62-57. The Raiders made 12-of-14 free throws in the final 5:03.

“We had some unfortunate foul calls that kind of stopped our momentum in getting stops,” said UIC coach Howard Moore. “That’s hard to take that momentum back.”

Next game:

Who: Loyola (5-15, 0-10) at Wright State (10-12, 5-5)

When: 7 p.m. Friday

Radio: WBZI-FM (100.3), Info 1660 AM

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