Redbirds on the Road For Two Valley Games This Weekend

Jan. 16, 2009

 

 

PLAYERS TO WATCH
Kristi Cirone - G - ILLINOIS STATE
Cirone continues to lead ISU in scoring (18.6 ppg), assists (89) and steals (39). Even though her string of 20-point games was snapped at six at Indiana State, she has scored in double-figures in the last seven games. Cirone dominated Wichita State last season, averaging 15 points, seven steals and 5.5 assists in two games.

MARCY SUDBECK -F- WICHITA STATE
Sudbeck is Wichita's leading scorer (13.1 ppg) and rebounder (8.9). She also has 26 blocks on the season, ranking her in the top-10 in the conference in all three categories. Sudbeck had 10 points, six rebounds and three blocks in Wichita State's loss to Indiana State Thursday night.

CASEY GARRISON -G- MISSOURI STATE
Garrison is making quite an impact in her freshman season at Missouri State, leading the team in scoring (16.0 ppg), rebounding (5.4 rpg), assists (55) and steals (31). She is even more productive at home, averaging 18.6 ppg at JQH Arena and producing 76.8 percent of Missouri State's offense in the seven home games.

FASTBREAK POINTS
Illinois State's nine-game winning streak was snapped last game at Indiana State ... ISU has lost consecutive games only once this year, the first two games of the season ... ISU is 2-1 after a loss this season ... Wichita State has lost its last three Valley games.

REDBIRDS-SHOCKERS SERIES
Illinois State leads the all-time series with Wichita State, 34-18. The Redbirds hold a 15-11 edge in games played in Wichita. The series began in 1980 and the two teams have played at least twice since 1984, when they both joined the Gateway Conference. ISU won 16 of the first 18 meetings before Wichita State won consecutive games over the Redbirds. Robin Pingeton is 7-3 all-time against Wichita State.

LAST YEAR VS. WICHITA STATE
Illinois State swept the season series with Wichita State last season, winning both games by an average of 19 points. Kristi Cirone averaged 15 points, seven steals and 5.5 assists against the Shockers last season. She tied her career-high with eight steals in the home win over Wichita State Feb. 21. Nicolle Lewis averaged 13.5 points and 8.5 rebounds in the two wins over the Shockers.

REDBIRDS-LADY BEARS SERIES
Missouri State leads the all-time series with Illinois State, 30-24. The series began in 1984 and the two teams have played at least twice every season since then. The Redbirds dominated the series early on, winning 12 of the first 15 match-ups. After that, Missouri State posted a 26-6 record, including 11-straight wins at one point. ISU has won six of the last seven meetings, sweeping the last two season series. Robin Pingeton is 6-6 all-time against Missouri State.

LAST YEAR VS. MISSOURI STATE
Illinois State swept the season series with Missouri State last season, winning the game by an average of 24 points per game and shooting better than 50 percent. Maggie Krick and Kristi Cirone both averaged better than 20 points per game against the Lady Bears in 2008. Krick scored 25 points and tied the ISU single-game record with seven three-pointers in ISU's final game at the Hammons Student Center last year. Cirone posted 21 points, four assists and four steals when the Lady Bears came to Redbird Arena. Krick also averaged six rebounds per game against Missouri State last season, outdone slightly by Kenyatta Shelton (7.0 rpg) and Shala Jackson (8.0 rpg).

CIRONE APPROACHES ISU SCORING TITLE
Let the countdown begin. Senior Kristi Cirone moved into second place in career scoring at ISU with her six first-half points against Eastern Illinois and now is poised to make a run at Cathy Boswell at the top of the list. Cirone currently has 1,761 points, putting her 244 behind Boswell's 2,005. With at least 16 games left on the schedule, Cirone would have to average 15.3 points per game to become ISU's new scoring queen.