Nov. 13, 2007
Illinois State-SEMO Game Notes in PDF Format 
STORYLINES
► Wednesday's non-conference contest marks the seventh all-time meeting between Illinois State and Southeast Missouri State. The Redbirds lead the all-time series 5-1, and have rolled off four-straight wins against the RedHawks.
► The Redbirds will be looking to clinch their first 2-0 start to the regular season since the 2001-02 campaign, when ISU opened the season with back-to-back victories over Weber State (74-70) and UC-Irvine (58-52).
► Illinois State has lost its second non-conference game in each of the last five seasons and in seven of the last eight campaigns.
► Illinois State and Southeast Missouri State will be playing in the first round of the Chicago Invitational Challenge. The Redbirds will take on the RedHawks Wednesday and host UNC Wilmington Sunday (Nov. 18) before completing the final two rounds of the invitational against No. 9/9 Indiana (Nov. 23), and either Xavier or Kent State (Nov. 24) at the Sears Centre in Hoffman Estates, Ill.
ABOUT THE REDHAWKS
► Southeast Missouri State is located in Cape Girardeau, Mo., and has an enrollment of 10,477. The Redhawks are members of the NCAA Division I and the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC).
► Head coach Scott Edgar (Pittsburgh-Johnstown `78) is beginning his second season at the helm of the Redhawk program. Edgar owns a 119-115 record in eight years as a collegiate head coach, with stops at Murray State and Duquense. In his 26 years coaching at the Division I level, Edgar has also made stops as an assistant coach at Tennessee, UAB, Arkansas and Tulsa.
► SEMO returns four starters from last season, including David Johnson, the Redhawks' leading returning scorer at 10.2 points per game.
► Southeast Missouri State (11-20, 9-11 OVC) finished in sixth place in the Ohio Valley last season, losing in the first round of the conference tournament.
THE STARTING FIVE
(1) Gettin' Defensive - Illinois State showed flashes of why it could be a dominant defensive team this season in the Redbirds' 70-37 season-opening win over Missouri-St. Louis Sunday in Doug Collins Court at Redbird Arena. ISU forced UMSL into a Redbird Arena record 34 turnovers, tallied 17 steals (the most since Dec. 2, 2003 vs. Bellarmine) and held the Tritons to just 12 field goals, including not allowing UMSL to convert a three-point attempt (0-4).
(2) Narrowing Down a Rotation - First-year Redbird head men's basketball coach Tim Jankovich went deep into his bench in both the exhibition game against Quincy and versus UMSL Sunday. All twelve available players saw action against the Tritons, and 11 players cracked the lineup versus the Hawks. Ten Redbirds played at least 14 minutes in the convincing win over Missouri-St. Louis.
(3) Newcomers In the Boxscore - All three of Illinois State's available newcomers scored in Sunday's 70-37 win over UMSL in Doug Collins Court at Redbird Arena Sunday. Junior JUCO transfer Emmanuel Holloway converted his first career field goal with 15:30 remaining in the second half; freshman guard Alex Rubin hit a three-pointer at the 13:49 mark of the first half to break a 5:11 ISU scoring draught and junior JUCO transfer Brandon Sampay scored his first career points with 4:50 remaining in the opening frame.
(4) Gettin' the Jitters Out - After going scoreless for more than five minutes in the early stages of the first half, Illinois State went on an 11-4 run to take a 16-6 lead with 7:30 remaining in the opening frame. The spurt was capped off by three-consecutive dunks, including back-to-back alley-oops completed by Osiris Eldridge (9:13) and Anthony Slack (8:37), respectively.
(5) Setting the Pace - Senior forward Anthony Slack scored a team-high 12 points against UMSL Sunday. Slack led the Redbirds in scoring six times during the 2006-07 season.
CHICAGO INVITATIONAL CHALLENGE AT-A-GLANCE
Illinois State's next four games will be in the Chicago Invitational Challenge. The Redbirds will play home contests against Southeast Missouri State (Nov. 14) and UNC-Wilmington (Nov. 18) before taking on No. 9 AP/No. 9 coaches Indiana Nov. 23, and either Kent State or Xavier Nov. 24 in the Sears Centre at Hoffman Estates, Ill. Below is the game schedule for the challenge at the Sears Centre.
Third Round Schedule - Nov. 23
Noon - UNC Wilmington vs Longwood
2:30 p.m. - SEMO vs Coppin State
5 p.m. - Xavier vs Kent State
7:30 p.m. - Indiana vs Illinois State
Championship Round - Nov. 24
11:30 a.m. - Loser of UNCW/LU vs Loser of SEMO/CSU
2 p.m. - Winner of UNCW/LU vs Winner of SEMO/CSU
5 p.m. - Loser of XU/KSU vs Loser of IU/ISU
7:30 p.m. - Winner of XU/KSU vs Winner of IU/ISU
SCOUTING THE REDHAWKS
Southeast Missouri State opened its 2007-08 season, and play in the Chicago Invitational Challenge, with a 90-59 loss at Xavier Saturday. The Muskeeters jumped to an early 10-0 lead and never looked back. Xavier led 46-30 at the half and opened the second half with a 15-3 run to put the game away. Southeast Missouri was led by guards Roderick Pearson with 13 points and Marcus Rhodes with 11. Freshman Will Bogan led all rebounders with 10 and added seven points and five blocked shots. The RedHawks went 2-0 in the exhibition season, tallying wins over Lincoln (102-96) Nov. 1, and upended Missouri-Rolla (80-43) Nov. 3. Both games were played inside the Show Me Center.
AGAINST THE OVC
Illinois State owns a 83-53 all-time record against current members of the Ohio Valley Conference, Southeast Missouri State's conference affiliate. The Redbirds lead the all-time series against Eastern Illinois, 70-47, captured the lone meeting against both Eastern Kentucky, Samford and Tennessee Tech (1-0), own a 2-1 all-time series lead against Morehead State, dropped their only decision against Murray State (0-1), and as mentioned, have a 5-1 all-time series lead against the RedHawks.
COACHING LINK REVISITED
Illinois State assistant coach Anthony Beane, who is serving his second stint as with the Redbirds (he also assisted former head coach Tom Richardson from 2000-02), also spent time on the staff at Southeast Missouri State. Prior to his stint at ISU, Beane broke into the Division I coaching ranks at SEMO (1997-00) under former RedHawk coach Gary Garner. Beane helped Southeast Missouri State reach the 1999 NCAA Tournament after the then-Indians captured both the regular season and Ohio Valley Conference Tournament championships.
FOR STARTERS
Illinois State's starting lineup in Sunday's opener against UMSL consisted of Osiris Eldridge, Anthony Slack, Boo Richardson, Dom Johnson and Dinma Odiakosa. Eldridge and Slack each started 13 games in their first seasons as Redbirds; Johnson registered 26 starting assignments last season; Odiakosa redshirted last season, but started 50 percent of the games he played in as a freshman (2005-06) and Richardson has started all 32 games of his one-plus year Illinois State career.
DYER OFF THE BENCH
When senior center Levi Dyer came off the bench in Illinois State's 2007-08 season opener, it marked just the second time in the past 21 regular-season games that Dyer did not record a start. When Dyer started last season, he averaged 16.1 points-per-game; in his 12 non-starting assignments, Dyer averaged just 5.8 points-per-contest. Dyer did play 22 minutes against the Tritons, however, which is six more minutes than he averaged (14.0 mpg) in Dyer's non-starting duty last season. Dyer was ISU's first sub at the 16:14 mark of the first half.
SHARING THE ROCK
While Illinois State's defensive effort may still be admittedly more fine-tuned than the offense, the Redbirds showed signs of their ability to grasp Jankovich's new offensive system in Wednesday's exhibition game and Sunday's opener. ISU registered 22 team assists against the Hawks, which was the most by the Redbirds in an exhibition game since Nov. 8, 1997, when ISU had 26 assists against the Converse All-Stars. Against UMSL, the Redbirds tallied 21 assists, the most since ISU recorded 23 assists in a win over Lewis, Dec. 23, 2006.
STEALIN' THE SHOW
Illinois State tallied 17 assists in Sunday's 70-37 win over Missouri-St. Louis, the first time the Redbirds have tallied 15 or more steals in a regular-season game since collecting 15 thefts against Bellarmine, Dec. 2, 2003.
WITH AUTHORITY!
Illinois State had seven team dunks against Missouri-St. Louis Sunday, including three-consecutive thundering dunks that capped off a 11-4 run mid-way through the first half, giving the Redbirds their first double-digit lead (16-6) of the game.
FINDING HIS GROOVE
Illinois State junior guard Brandon Holtz converted both of his three-point field goal attempts against UMSL Sunday, keeping his flawless three-point shooting streak intact in ISU's two contests this season. In Wednesday's exhibition game against Quincy, Holtz was also 2-for-2 from beyond the arc. Holtz also played 19 minutes against the Tritons, his most playing time since seeing a season-high 20 minutes of action against Evansville Jan. 30, 2007.
VANDELLO NAMED SCHOLAR-ATHLETE OF THE YEAR
Junior Mike Vandello was the recipient of the Doug Collins Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year award at the State Farm Student-Athlete Academic Excellence banquet in Redbird Arena on Oct. 21. Vandello was a member of the AFNI Honor Roll and the Dean's List both semesters last year with identical 4.0 GPAs. He appeared in 27 games during his sophomore season and recorded career-highs of eight points and eight rebounds against Sacramento State. The junior from Bettendorf, Iowa, has a 4.0 cumulative GPA in biological sciences.
HOME SWEET HOME
If Illinois State's won-loss record in recent years translates over to this season, the Redbirds could be in for some early success in the 2007-08 campaign. ISU has a combined 31-13 record at Redbird Arena over the past three seasons. The `Birds have five of their first seven games at home.
STARTING ANEW
Despite having just one freshman on the roster, Illinois State will welcome four newcomers to the mix this season, as first-year head coach Tim Jankovich signed junior college transfers Emmanuel Holloway and Brandon Sampay to the program; sophomore transfer Sead Odzic will be eligible in mid-December and freshman guard Alex Rubin was the lone member of ISU's 2007 recruiting class.
SITTING IT OUT
Along with Holloway, Sampay, Odzic and Rubin, two other Division I transfers joined the Redbird basketball program during the offseason, as 6-foot-5 Oregon guard Chamberlain Oguchi and six-foot Austin Peay State guard Landon Shipley both transferred to ISU. Each sit out the 2007-08 season, and begin their eligibility at Illinois State in the 2008-09 campaign. Both Oguchi and Shipley are currently practicing with the Redbirds.
THE NEW STAFF
Jankovich hired three assistant coaches that boast a combined 40 years of college coaching experience. He hired 18-year state of Illinois coaching veteran Rob Judson, who had spent the past six years as the head coach at Northern Illinois. Prior to his stint with the Huskies, Judson spent the previous 12 years as an assistant coach at Northern Illinois (1989-91), Bradley (1991-96) and his alma mater, Illinois (1996-2001). Anthony Beane, who was an assistant coach under former Redbird head coach Tom Richardson (2000-02) was also hired after a four-year stint at Saint Louis. Jankovich bolstered his Chicago recruiting ties with the hiring of Paris Parham, a well-respected high school coach in Chicago's Public League. Parham, who was ISU sophomore Osiris Eldridge's high school coach at Morgan Park, also boasts 10 years of college coaching experience.
GIVING THANKS -- FOR THE WINS
During its 109-year history Illinois State has compiled a 52-31 (.627) record in the month of November. The Redbirds have played just two games against ISU's six scheduled November opponents this season. Indiana defeated Illinois State in the first-round of the 1988 preseason NIT, and the `Birds tallied an 88-46 win over Chicago State in the 2000-01 season opener at Redbird Arena.
POINT N' SHOOT
Shooting percentage was a key factor for ISU in terms of wins and losses last season. When ISU shot better than its opponent, the `Birds were 14-7. But when they were outshot, the Redbirds were 1-9.
WHAT'S BACK?
Illinois State welcomes nine returning letterwinners to the fold in 2007-08, including five of its top-six scorers. Senior center Levi Dyer, an honorable mention All-Missouri Valley Conference selection last season, returns after averaging a team-best 12.1 points-per-game, including a sizzling .480 three-point field goal percentage. Senior guard Boo Richardson, who was named to the Valley All-Newcomer team, was the 2006-07 team leader in minutes played (1,035), and assists (153). Senior Anthony Slack joined Richardson on the MVC All-Newcomer squad, and is the Redbirds' top-returning rebounder. He averaged 5.7 caroms-per-contest last season to go along with 9.4 points-per-game. Reigning Valley Freshman of the Year Osiris Eldridge returns for his sophomore campaign in 2007-08. Eldridge averaged a team third-best 9.5 points-per-game, and scored in double figures in six of the final 10 games last season.
PRESEASON PROGNOSTICATIONS
With nine returning lettermen, including four starters, and nearly 80 percent of its scoring and 63 percent of its rebounding returning from last season, the Illinois State men's basketball team enters the 2007-08 campaign as one of the league's most experienced teams. As a result, the Redbirds were picked to finish fifth in the Missouri Valley Conference Preseason Poll, conducted by the league coaches, media and sports information directors. ISU's fifth-place tally is its highest preseason prognostication since the 2002-03 season, when the Redbirds were picked fourth overall.
DYER, ELDRIDGE NAB PRESEASON HONORABLE MENTION PLAUDITS
In the 2007-08 MVC Preseason Poll, senior center Levi Dyer (12.1 ppg) and sophomore guard Osiris Eldridge (9.5 ppg) were each named honorable mention All-Valley selections. The league appointed five preseason all-MVC players, and recognized five honorable mention players. Dyer was voted captain of the Valley's "Most Improved Team" last season, and Eldridge earned the league's Freshman of the Year honor.
LEADING THE CLASSES
Last season, Illinois State's junior class (now seniors) was a key figure in the team's statistical success. The Redbirds' contingent of Levi Dyer, Boo Richardson, Anthony Slack, Dom Johnson and Julius Moor scored 1,227 of ISU's 2,068 total points (39.5 points-per-game) and accounted for nearly 60 percent (.593) of its scoring. The five players averaged 14.0 rebounds per game (434 total caroms) and 9.8 assists-per-contest (268 assists), making up 59 percent of the team assist total. In addition, the fivesome shot a combined 42 percent from the floor.
NARROWING DOWN A ROTATION
Head coach Tim Jankovich said at ISU's annual media day that he would like to narrow his regular rotation down to eight or nine players, assuming he has a full healthy team. Narrowing down that total may be easier said than done, as ISU returns seven players that logged at least 8.0 minutes-per-game, and welcomes three newcomers to the mix that are all expected to make significant contributions early in their respective careers. In the opener, head coach Tim Jankovich fully utilized his bench, as all 12 available players saw action; ten players saw at least 14 minutes of action.
DEFENSIVE SPEAKING
When Illinois State won games last season, it was generally a close-game, and a stellar defensive effort by the Redbirds. In ISU's 15 wins, it held the opposition to 59.6 points-per-game. In the Redbirds' 16 losses, they allowed 68.8 points-per-game for the opposition.
AN UNFAMILIAR TREND
After being eliminated by Indiana State in the first-round of the State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Tournament last March, the Redbirds missed out on a bid to secure a .500 or better overall record that would have ended a string of losing campaigns in four of the previous five years. In the previous 36 years of being a Division I program, ISU has had just seven losing seasons.
FROM A DISTANCE
Illinois State ranked second in the Valley in three-point field goals made (7.52 pg) last season. The Redbirds connected on eight or more three-point field goals in 15 games, including a season-best 14 treys against Texas-Arlington on Dec. 2. Illinois State's 233 three-point field goals set a single-season record, and were the most since the 1997-98 squad recorded 220 threes. The Redbirds hit seven threes against UMSL in the opener Sunday, their 231st-consecutive game with a three-pointer.
