Dec. 31, 2006
Box Score
NORMAL, Ill. - Starting guards Kristi Cirone and Maggie Krick combined for 39 points and 12 rebounds to lead the Illinois State women's basketball team to a convincing 64-50 win over Missouri Valley Conference preseason favorite Drake at Redbird Arena Sunday afternoon. The Redbirds have now won their initial two league contests for the first time since the 2003-04 season. The victory also clinched head coach Robin Pingeton's 50th win at the helm of Illinois State.
Illinois State improves to 9-4 on the season (2-0 MVC) with the win. Drake drops to 5-7 and 0-2. Senior guard Megan McCracken, who started the second half for the second consecutive game, scored nine points and dished out three assists while holding the Bulldogs' Lindsay Whorton scoreless in the second half. Drake was led by Brandy Dahir's 14 points on 4-of-11 shooting.
The Redbirds built as large as an 11-point lead in the first half before Drake made a late run to pull within five (29-24) at the intermission. In the second half, the Bulldogs stayed within striking distance in the early stages before McCracken's layup with 6:22 remaining gave the Redbirds a double-digit advantage that they would not relinquish. ISU finished the game on a 9-4 run.
Pingeton was pleased with her team's performance, particularly on the defensive end and on the glass. The Bulldogs were the first team that the Redbirds have held to 50 or less points this season, and ISU out-rebounded its opponent for the ninth time in 13 games.
"Our defensive effort was great tonight, but it is ironic, because as happy as I am to hold a team under 50 points, there were still some instances in which we had breakdowns. But particularly in the late stages of the game, we really dug in and played tough on the defensive end. I thought Megan McCracken did an incredible job defending Lindsay Whorton, who is a really talented player for Drake.
"We've said since the beginning of the season that we want our signature to be defense and rebounding. Our rebounding has been consistent all year, and when you consider the athleticism and size we have up front, it is something we feel we can take advantage of."
Lindsay Whorton hit two field goals in the first four minutes to give Drake the early 7-4 lead, but the Redbirds responded with 7-0 run to claim an 11-7 edge. Cirone had a three-pointer and two driving jumpers in the stretch. Illinois State continued the surge, recording a 6-2 spurt between the 12 and eight minute media timeouts to open up a commanding 22-12 lead. Krick and Nicolle Lewis jumpstarted the run with back-to-back buckets in the paint.
The Bulldogs cut the Redbird lead to three points (25-22) with just under two minutes left in the first half after 10-1 surge, but ISU fought back to push the lead back to 29-22 after four straight points from Cirone. Whorton hit a jumper from the free throw line with three seconds remaining in the half to pull the Bulldogs within five, 29-24, heading into the locker room at halftime. Cirone and Krick combined for 25 points in the half, while Whorton had nine points to lead the Drake offensive output. The Redbirds out-rebounded the Bulldogs in the stanza, 18-11.
Both teams traded baskets in the early stages of the second half before the Redbirds went on a 7-2 run over 3:20 paced by three McCracken field goals. She started the run with a three-pointer, added a driving layup, and hit an off-screen jumper with the shot clock winding down to extend the ISU lead to 43-33, their largest advantage since the eight-minute mark of the first half.
The Bulldogs committed their seventh team foul with 5:34 remaining, putting the Redbirds in a one-and-one penalty situation from the free throw line. Following the foul, Krick scored five straight points, two from the charity stripe and one from three-point land, to give ISU a 60-44 lead with just under five minutes (4:59) remaining. The Bulldogs were held to just two field goals in the final five minutes of the game.
The Redbirds will open their MVC road slate Thursday when they play at Southern Illinois. The Salukis are also 2-0 in the Valley after posting victories over Wichita State and Missouri State.
