Dec. 1, 2007
Final Stats
NORMAL, Ill. -
Backed by senior center Levi Dyer's torrid shooting spree in the second half, the Illinois State men's basketball team (5-2) routed Illinois-Chicago (3-4), 73-47, Saturday night on Doug Collins Court at Redbird Arena. Dyer's seven three-pointers ranks tied for fifth all-time for most three-point field goals made by an ISU player in one game.
The difference maker in the game was the hot shooting of the Redbirds in the second half. ISU shot 74 percent from the field in the second half, and a season-best 57 percent for the game, compared to UIC's 19 percent field goal percentage in the second period and just a 29 percent mark for the game.
Dyer scored a season-best 25 points on 9-of-11 shooting from the field, which included 15 points in the second half. Sophomore guard Osiris Eldridge was the only other Redbird in double-digits, as he recorded 13 points on 5-of-9 shooting, while senior forward Anthony Slack ended the game with nine points and two blocks.
Illinois State took its first lead of the game, 6-5, at the beginning of a 10-2 run in the first half that included sophomore guard Eldridge's 100th point of the season. Eldridge's 100 points came in ISU's seventh game, the fastest a Redbird player has reached the century mark for points in a season since Tarise Bryson recorded 100 points after five games to start the 2000-01 season.
Six different Redbirds scored in the first nine minutes of the game, led by Eldridge's four points on a perfect 2-of-2 shooting effort in that time span, as ISU went into the second media timeout (11:14) with a 14-10 advantage. UIC took its first lead of the game (20-19) at the 6:35 mark of the half off a three-point basket from Jovan Ignjatovic that was part of an 8-2 Flames run. A three-pointer by senior center Levi Dyer with just 49 seconds left in the half extended ISU's lead to two points (29-27), the final lead the Redbirds held in the half.
Dyer got the Redbirds off to a quick start in the second half, as the Eaton, Colo., native went a perfect 6-of-6 from the field in the period. The Redbirds extended their lead to 19 points early in the second half on a 23-4 run that was highlighted early on by a layup from Slack that put ISU up 36-29 and forced UIC into a timeout. A three-pointer by Dyer at the 15:54 mark in the half pushed the Redbird lead into double-digits (39-29). Dyer accounted for nine of ISU's 23 points through the first eight-and-a-half minutes of the period, with all nine points coming by way of a three-pointer.
The Flames were unable to score on their first nine field goal attempts in the second half. UIC finally got back into the points column with a two-point bucket at the 11:47 mark that capped off the 23-4 Redbird run. ISU's shooting spree was its second-largest of the season, eclipsed only by its 25-0 run in the first half of its game against Chicago State Tuesday, Nov. 27.
Illinois State will return to action Tuesday when it hits the road to take on Eastern Michigan in Ypsilanti, Mich. Tip-off is set for 6 p.m. from the Eagles' Convocation Center.
