Jan. 16, 2006
Box Score
NORMAL, Ill. -
A three-point basket by Brandon Holtz with eight minutes left to play in the first half gave Illinois State a 10-point lead that propelled the Redbirds to a 65-57 win over Evansville in Missouri Valley Conference action Monday night at Redbird Arena in front of 4,143 fans.
Illinois State improves to 7-9 overall and 2-6 in Valley play, while Evansville falls to 5-10 overall and 1-6 in the league.
Holding Evansville to only 30.8 percent shooting from the field in the first half, Illinois State was able to take the lead in the opening minutes of play. The two teams traded baskets early, until the Redbirds took a five-point lead off of a Greg Dilligard lay-up and a tip-in by Nedu Onyeuku.
A Dana Ford layup sparked a 10-3 run at the 11:22 mark in the first half. The ISU run was halted on a three-pointer by Evansville's Justin Petty with 7:40 left to go in the half. The Redbirds hit four straight free throws to take a 33-20 into the locker room at the break.
Down by 13 points at the half, the Aces battled back on a tip-in by Art Stalbergs and a layup by Shy Ely, which cut the lead to nine just a minute into the second half. Illinois State went on to rack up 12 points to gain its largest lead of the half at 45-27. Evansville continued to claw their way back eventually cutting the Redbird lead to three points at 48-45 with 4:51 to go in the half. But that was as close as Evansville got as the Redbirds sealed the win with 13 free throws.
The Redbirds made a season-high 23 free throws on 37 attempts to hang on to the lead in the second half. The `Birds also recorded a season-high 44 rebounds.
Onyeuku and the Aces Shy Ely led all-scorers with 14 points a piece, while Khalif Ford tied his career-high with 11 points and 7 rebounds for the `Birds. Neil Plank also chipped in 11 points and seven rebounds, while Mike Vandello and Greg Dilligard added 10 points a piece. Dilligard also pulled down 10 boards on the night for his third career double-double.
Up next for the Redbirds will be a 2:05 p.m. match-up against Southern Illinois on Sunday, January 22 in Carbondale, Ill.
