A Daly Dose Of Hoops

By Andy Thompson (@andythompson610)

Daly Dose Of Hoops is proud to introduce the Rob Report, a recurring feature of coverage in its newly-created Midwest bureau. In this series, Andy Thompson will catch up with UIC head coach Rob Ehsan, offering the latest insights and observations on the Flames as they navigate the Missouri Valley Conference. The inaugural edition is printed below:

On elevating the UIC program into an MVC contender in his first two years:

“I think first was creating a vision that we could successfully compete in the upper half of the Missouri Valley. And the Missouri Valley, as we know, (is) one of the best mid-major leagues in college basketball. Even with conference realignment, you have had these schools like Drake, you’ve had Bradley, Northern Iowa, you have all these schools, Illinois State, who have a rich tradition of success and history of basketball tradition in The Valley. I think not only had the program kind of not had a winning season in a while, we were also transitioning to a bigger conference. So I think creating this vision and belief that we could compete and be one of the best teams, I think that was the most important thing. I think it also helped that in (2024-25) we brought in 11 new guys, and we sold what we believed in, this vision that we can be one of the best mid-major teams in the country. And when you look at the facilities, the location, the resources, the support, there’s really no reason why we couldn’t. And it’s kind of been fun to watch that transpire.”

On growing the fan support at Credit Union 1 Arena over the last two seasons:

“I think winning, putting a product out there that could win and was competitive was the first step. And then the next step, as you mentioned, is can you build a home court advantage? (It) has been a big challenge. It was amazingly rewarding, satisfying to play games last year in front of really, really good crowds, arguably the best crowds they’ve had in 20 years here at UIC. That’s been another cool indication for us that we’re building something special, and we’ve done it with kids from all over, but also some kids from Chicago.”

On Chicago native Ahmad Henderson returning for a third season with UIC:

“Cool story. He was the first-ever guy to commit to us when we got the head coaching job, so that’s always meant something. And he could have, like all the kids, transferred the last couple years (rather than) stay here. He’ll get a degree from UIC. He’ll have finished his undergraduate career here. When he decided to come back last year, that was when he didn’t know that he would potentially have another year. And the other cool part is he’s from Chicago, and he has an amazing story of his size, his stature to be as successful as he’s been in our league, in the country for how small he is. It’s an incredible story. It’s a story that inspires many kids because of how he plays the game and his fearlessness and his confidence, and it’s meant a lot to us.”

On retaining over 60 percent of minutes played from last year’s MVC runner-up team:

“We have a really good thing going because we have really good people. It’s the assistant coaches we’ve kept. We’ve really had very little turnover with our staff. Great. We have a great staff. We’ve recruited high-character guys like who I think really enjoy being around each other. I think these guys have also seen themselves get better in this environment. It’s a team, it’s a program, it’s a level where they feel like they can be successful, they can be the best version of themselves. I give guys a lot of freedom to play the game, and then I also think they can compete at a high level. They know I have big dreams for the program. They do too, and I think their belief that we can go really big is another reason why they stayed, which has been cool.”

On which returning player(s) have made the biggest leap:

“I think Jayce (Nathaniel) has expanded his game shooting the ball from three this year. I think all of them have expanded their games in different ways that we’re excited to see about. Mekai (Lowery) has expanded his game in terms of handling the ball on the perimeter. Rashund (Washington), I think, is just going to take another monster jump from his freshman to sophomore year, where he really was a role player, to now stepping into a more significant role. I think Andy (Johnson) coming back from injury will provide his own challenges, and Ahmad, he’s a senior, right? I think being able to see that maturity and that level of knowing how long he’s been here, to see how that translates to his game and performances this year, will be fun.”

On the entire staff from last season’s MVC runner-up returning next season:

“We have such a good staff. They work incredibly hard. We have really great staff chemistry, which I think is sometimes hard to find in this level of competitive college coaching, and I think the system of how we play defensively and kind of the roles have been incredibly important. And I think our players, especially the guys coming back, part of it was also their relationships with the staff, not just my coaching or the program, but also they built such good relationships with some of our staff members who spent hours with them in the gym. I think that’s a big part of it.”

On the upcoming non-conference slate that features Miami University, Saint Mary’s, etc:

“Scheduling has been hard for us to be able to get all the games in the places we want them, especially here in Chicago. We played a ton of road games last year, so we’re excited to have some of those people come back. The Valley’s good enough where you want to put together a good enough non-conference schedule where if you win it or you’re fortunate to win a bunch of those games, you have a postseason opportunity. [Playing in the] NCAA Tournament, obviously, would be the best. They’re expanding the NCAA tournament. We’d have to have a really good non-conference, which I think we’re capable of, but then put ourselves in a position for the NIT if we weren’t able to accomplish the NCAA Tournament.”

On how he has developed his coaching style over the years:

“I think the first thing is that I let my staff do tons of coaching, so it’s not just my voice. I think I allow those guys to be leaders in our program, to be coaches in our program. And I think as I’ve gotten older, it’s just kind of knowing who I am better as a person, as a leader, and playing into my strengths. I think it’s the relationship piece, the freedom I give guys, the way I communicate with guys in my own way. I’m not a yeller and a screamer all the time. I’m naturally a positive energy person, so I would like to think that the way I coach these guys is through positive energy. I think I give guys confidence, and I think we have a good structure of how we do things to help hold guys accountable, push guys to be better. So we get our balance of maybe positive and negative coaching, but it’s in our own way.”

On the biggest areas of growth this year’s team has made since the first day of practice:

“I think the biggest area of growth is that we’ve been able to understand quickly, because of the returners, all of our defensive concepts and some of our offensive stuff. Because of the continuity, we’re a little further along in understanding how we want to play and what we want to do, as opposed to years past because of so many new guys. I think that’s kind of the biggest difference with this group.”

On Rashund Washington’s sophomore leap and the potential for an all-MVC season:

“Rashund has developed confidence. His confidence has gone to another level. That’s the first piece. He’s always been talented, but last year he was a freshman in a different role. So now, he’s been put into a new role where he’s going to have the ball in his hands more. He’s going to be more involved on both ends. And I think he just has the talent and also the right demeanor. He’s very unselfish. He plays the right way. There’s days in practice where he doesn’t get a lot of shots, just because he’s moving the ball. He’s a unique player because of his size and athleticism and position. So we’re going to have to do a good job of figuring out how to use him to get the most out of him. But I think he’s just worked incredibly hard. His body has gotten stronger, bigger. But the confidence piece, I think it’s the biggest piece.”

On the incoming freshman class and their runway to contribute early and often:

“I think Dikembe Shaw and Elijah Garrett both have had a tremendous start to their freshman careers here. With a few weeks before the season to go, I think they are both tracking to have a chance to be really good players for us. How it all shakes out with depth and injuries, I don’t know, but both Elijah Garrett and Dikembe Shaw have been really good on different days. Just like freshmen, they struggle some days, they play better some days, but both of them are going to be really good.”