Feb. 12, 2009
Final Stats |
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NORMAL, Ill. - Nicolle Lewis pulled down a career-high 15 rebounds and Maggie Krick led all scorers with 15 points as Illinois State cruised to a 70-59 win over Missouri State on Doug Collins Court at Redbird Arena Thursday. The Redbirds have now won 17 of their last 18 games.
Lewis scored eight points and posted a new career mark in rebounds thanks to a season-high 76 shot attempts by Illinois State (19-4, 10-1 MVC). Lewis grabbed four of the Redbirds' 21 rebounds on the offensive end. Krick scored the first seven points for Illinois State out of the break and tallied nine points total in the second half en route to leading the Redbirds in scoring for the second-consecutive game.
Missouri State (6-17, 2-10 MVC) hit a pair of free throws to open the game, but the Redbirds scored the next nine points and never looked back. Illinois State led by as many as 15 in the first half before entering the break with a 39-26 lead. Kristi Cirone led the `Birds with 10 points in the opening period and finished with 14.
Missouri State again opened the scoring in the second half, this time on a jumper from Casey Garrison, but Krick's seven-point outburst pushed the Illinois State lead to 16. The Redbirds got better as the game went along, moving their shooting percentage from 34.1 in the first half to 40 percent in the second half. Illinois State's largest lead of the game was 25 with 8:51 remaining in the game.
Missouri State out-shot the Redbirds 37.9-36.8 percent, but Illinois State had a 50-36 edge on rebounds and scored 23 points off turnovers. Illinois State out-scored Missouri State 34-26 in the paint and had 22 second chance points.
Lacey Boshe (15), Casey Garrison (12) and Jasmine Malone (11) all reached double figures for Missouri State. Garrison added eight rebounds, all on the defensive end.
Illinois State concludes its current three-game home stand when the Redbirds play host to Wichita State in Redbird Arena Saturday at 4:05 p.m. Illinois State Athletics, in conjunction with the Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA), will present "Pink Zone," Saturday with the intention of helping to raise awareness about the fight against breast cancer. The game is also being dubbed "Dollar Days." Tickets to the game will cost just $1, and $1 hot dogs, $1 pink lemonade and $1 pink Dippin' Dots will be for sale.
