Feb. 12, 2007
Final Stats
WICHITA, Kan. - Sophomore point guard Kristi Cirone recorded her eighth 20-plus scoring outing in Missouri Valley Conference play, but Wichita State's Antionette Wells countered with a dominating, 27 point, 17 rebound effort to lift the host Shockers to a 75-69 win over Illinois State at Charles Koch Arena Monday night. The loss was ISU's third in the past four Valley contests, and moves them into a second-place position in the league standings.
Illinois State moves to 17-7 overall with a 10-3 MVC slate. Wichita State improves to 9-13 and 4-8.
Cirone was joined by two other Redbirds in double figures, as sophomore center Nicolle Lewis scored 12 points and collected a team-high seven rebounds, and junior guard Tiffany Hudson chipped in 10 points on a 5-for-10 shooting effort off the bench. The Shockers' Daria Frazier and Lexee McDonnell tallied 14 and 13 points, respectively.
Both teams recorded 10-point leads in the first half, as Wichita State went up 14-4 in the first six minutes, before Illinois State stormed back with a 30-10 surge to claim a 34-24 advantage with less than two minutes to play in the opening stanza. But after seeing its lead slip to just four points at halftime, the Redbirds lost the lead for good with more than 10 minutes remaining, and couldn't regain the advantage in the game's final two minutes.
"You're not going to win a lot of ball games shooting 37 percent from the floor," said head coach Robin Pingeton. "We were dominated on the boards, and Antionette Wells really hurt us. We let her catch the ball deep in the post, and she took it up strong and finished her shots.
"The bottom line is that we have to knock down shots, and control the glass. One of our strengths this year has been our ability to dominate the boards and not give up second shot opportunities. We didn't do those things tonight, and we need to compete better."
Illinois State hit just one of its first six shots from the field, and fell behind 6-2 at the initial media timeout (15:35) of the first half. Frazier had two field goals in the stretch to pace the Shockers. Wichita State extended their lead to ten points, 14-4, with 14 minutes left, before ISU went on an 8-0 spree to pull within two, 14-12. Hudson had two quick field goals to lead the Redbird charge.
The Redbirds claimed their first lead of the game (17-16) with 8:55 remaining in the first stanza when Cirone converted her third field goal. ISU built a 24-18 lead two and a half minutes later after completing what turned out to be a 20-2 run. After the Shockers pulled back within four, 26-22, ISU stretched its advantage to ten points (34-24) with 1:30 remaining after an 8-2 spurt. Lewis and Hudson each had field goals in the stretch. But Wichita State ended the frame on a 6-0 run capped off by a last-second transition jumper by Whitney Rice, cutting the Redbird lead to 34-30 heading into the locker room at halftime.
Illinois State began the second half on a 5-2 run, and claimed a 39-32 advantage with 18:40 remaining after a three-pointer by Cirone. But the Shockers responded with a 6-0 run, and eventually took a 44-43 lead at the first media timeout (15:47) of the second stanza. The `Birds led just one more time in the game, after Tamara Butler's three-pointer at the 13:06 mark put ISU ahead, 48-46.
Wichita State stretched their advantage to eight points twice in the ensuing ten minutes, but the Redbirds stayed within striking distance, and found themselves trailing by just two, 69-67, with 1:07 left. But Lewis' potential game-tying lay-up circled the rim and missed, and McDonnell and Wells combined for four free throws in the final nine seconds to seal the win.
The Redbird basketball team will return home to host Valley foe Indiana State Sunday (Feb. 18) in the second game of the season series. The Redbirds upended the Sycamores, 89-81, on Jan. 19, 2006, in Terre Haute, Ind.
