Feb. 23, 2007
Final Stats
PEORIA, Ill. - Sophomore center Nicolle Lewis led a balanced Illinois State attack with 18 points on 8-of-10 shooting to lift the Redbirds to a 75-66 win over host Bradley at Robertson Memorial Field House Friday night. The win snapped ISU's six-game losing skid in Peoria, and sealed the Redbirds' first season sweep over the Braves since the 1999-2000 campaign.
Illinois State improves to 18-8 overall with an 11-4 Missouri Valley Conference mark. Bradley drops to 11-16 and 7-9.
Lewis led a group of five Redbirds in double figures: Freshman Kenyatta Shelton and sophomore Kristi Cirone each recorded 10-point efforts, Megan McCracken scored 12 points, and Tiffany Hudson chipped in 11 points off the bench. Bradley was led by Erika Nelson's 22 points.
Illinois State took the lead for good with 11:15 remaining in the first half, but had to fight off an early second half Bradley surge that saw the game tied at 42-42 with just under 18 minutes left. ISU extended its lead to double-digits with 6:23 remaining in the game, and never let the Braves get any closer than six points the rest of the way.
Both teams came out firing, hitting four of their first six shots in the opening 2:45. After ISU jumped out a 5-2 lead, Bradley answered with a 6-2 spurt to claim an 8-5 advantage at the 17:50 mark. The Braves owned a 10-9 lead at the first media timeout (15:44). Cirone had two field goals in the spurt to pace the ISU attack, while Nelson, Devyn Flanagan and Amy Peters each converted field goals to contribute to the early Brave scoring output.
The Redbirds went on an 11-7 run over the ensuing four minutes, and claimed a 20-17 lead with 10:56 left. Lewis had three field goals in the stretch, and McCracken contributed a transition three-pointer. ISU held the lead for the remainder of the half, and took its biggest lead of seven points (40-33) with 38 seconds remaining in the stanza after a turnaround jumper by Lashawn Johnson.
Lewis finished the half with 12 points on a 6-for-7 shooting effort, and McCracken chipped in seven points on a 3-for-3 tally. Nelson also had a near perfect shooting frame, scoring a game-high 14 points on 5-for-6 shooting, including a 2-for-2 output from beyond the three-point arc. The Redbirds shot 53 percent from the field, while Bradley countered with a 50 percent (14-for-28) effort. Both teams collected 15 first-half rebounds.
Bradley went on a 6-2 run to begin the second half, and forced head coach Robin Pingeton into her first timeout (16:24) trailing by just three, 42-39. The Braves tied the game at 42-42 just one minute later after a three-pointer by Amy Peters, but Illinois State answered with an 11-2 surge to take a 53-44 lead, their largest of the game, with 13:31 remaining. Shelton had two field goals and two steals in the spree.
The Braves cut the Redbird lead to six, 58-52, with just over 10 minutes remaining, but could draw no closer for the remainder of the game. ISU took its largest lead of 11 points, 66-55, with 6:45 left after completing an 8-3 run. Hudson collected her second three-pointer of the game in the stretch, and Lewis added her eighth field goal.
ISU seniors Cat Graham, Sara Stevenson and Lori Trumblee entered the game with less than a minute remaining, making their final appearance at Robertson Memorial Field House.
Illinois State will return home for a 2:05 p.m. match-up against Northern Iowa Sunday. The 2007 senior class will be honored following the game, which will be televised as part of the MVC Wildcard Weekend.
