Drake was projected to finish fourth in the Missouri Valley Conference Preseason Poll, as compiled by league coaches, media and sports information directors. The Bulldogs had two players selected to the 2008 Preseason Missouri Valley All-Conference Team, including senior Jonathan Cox and junior Josh Young.
DOWN TO THE WIRE
That's how Illinois State games have been lately and each of the last two games have come down to a last-second shot. Two of the last three Redbird games have gone into overtime and each of the last five ISU games have been decided by four points or less.
VALLEY CHAMPS?
In the history of the conference, 17 teams have started a season 13-0 or better, including ISU's 14-0 start this season, and 14 of those teams went on to win the Valley championship. ISU has four league games left and a three-game deficit to overcome to not become the third to do so. Prior to this season, only Bradley in 1951 and Indiana State in 1978 did not win the championship after starting the season with 13-plus wins.
IN-SEASON MEDIA CONFERENCES
ISU Athletics Media Relations will host seven in-season media conferences during the 2008-09 season. Each conference will feature head coach Tim Jankovich and a member of the ISU basketball team. The media conferences will start at 1 p.m., and be held in the Redbird Arena Media Room, which is just off the southwest loading dock. The remaining scheduled dates are: Feb. 23 and March 3.
VALLEY TELECONFERENCES
Teleconferences with The Valley head coaches will be conducted each Tuesday throughout the season. The first teleconference is slated for Dec. 16, followed by every Tuesday from Jan. 6 to March 3. The conferences begin at 10 a.m. CT. To participate in the conference calls, call 913.981.5517. Illinois State head coach Tim Jankovich will participate at 10:30 a.m.
OSIRIS 12
Junior Osiris Eldridge's 1,200-career point will be a memorable one, as it served as Wednesday's game-winner at Evansville. Eldridge drove the lane and laid the ball off the backboard with one second remaining. Surprisingly, that served as Eldridge's first-ever career game-winning field goal at any basketball level. With 1,200 career points, exactly, Eldridge became the 24th player in Illinois State history to score 1,200 points.
HOLLOWED GROUND
The last five games have been critical for Illinois State in its run for the conference title, that's why it's not really surprising that senior Emmanuel Holloway has stepped up his game. Holloway has been the top performing Redbird guard in the last five games, while shooting 40.9 percent from the field and 38.9 percent on three-point field goals. He is also a perfect 12-for-12 from the line during the last five games and ranks fourth on the team with 4.8 rebounds per contest during that span.
A 30-YEAR ITCH
Through 25 games, Illinois State has three players averaging close to six rebounds per game - Dinma Odiakosa (7.2), Osiris Eldridge (6.0) and Champ Oguchi (5.9). The last time the Redbirds had three players average six boards or more in a season was during the 1977-78 season. That year, Billy Lewis (8.6), Joe Galvin (7.9) and Del Yarbrough (7.3) each averaged six or more rebounds for the season.
ANYTHING BUT BUSTERS
For the fourth time in the seven-year history of the event, Illinois State has been selected to participate in the ESPNU BracketBusters Series. The Redbirds will travel to Niagara Feb. 20, and face the Purple Eagles on one of the ESPN family of networks. ISU is 3-0 in BracketBuster games, which are officially a part of the series when selected for the television package. The Redbirds also boast an 11-1 record in games established by the BracketBusters concept, which includes the return games. The 11 victories are the most by any team that has participated in the made-for-TV event.
CINCO DE MAKO
Illinois State has made five or more three-point field goals in 24 of the 25 games this season, including the first 22 games of the season. The streak was broken at Southern Illinois Feb. 4, when the Redbirds made only three treys at Carbondale, Ill.
NEEDING EXTRA TIME
Illinois State's 75-73 overtime loss against Indiana State marked the fourth overtime game for the Redbirds this season. Illinois State has not played four overtime games in the same season since the 1984-85 campaign, when the Redbirds played six overtime games, including four-straight.
A 20-GAUGE
By recording 20 victories on the season with a 70-68 win at Evansville, Illinois State posted back-to-back 20-win seasons for the first time since the 1996-97 and 1997-98 seasons. It also marked the 15th season in the NCAA Division I-era (1970-present), in which ISU won 20 games in a single season.
A CLOSER LOOK
Sure, Illinois State is 6-5 in its last 11 games after beginning the season 14-0, but is 20-5 really all that bad? Especially when the largest margin of defeat was six points, four of the losses have occurred on the road and two in overtime. In the combined losses, the Redbirds were defeated by a total of 21 points.
MAKING THE MOST OF IT
Champ Oguchi transferred to Illinois State with only one year of eligibility remaining. The senior from Houston has been making the most of his final year. Oguchi has scored 372 points this season in 25 games, which is his career-best for points in a season. Oguchi's best scoring season at Oregon was the 2005-06 season, when he scored 306 points in 32 games played.
FOUR SCORE AND ...
The Redbirds win. With four players scoring double-digits in the win at Evansville it marked the 15th time this season that the Redbirds have had four players score in double-figures. In those 15 games, the Redbirds boast a 14-1 record. In addition, ISU has had at least three players score in double-digits in 21-straight games.
THE TRADITION CONTINUES
With at least six games remaining in the season, Illinois State has secured itself another winning season in men's basketball. In the 38 years of being an NCAA Division I program, the Redbirds have had 31 winning seasons.
LORDY, LORDY LOOKS WHO'S GOT 40
With the win over Drake earlier in the season, Illinois State head coach Tim Jankovich captured his 40th victory with the Redbirds. As a result, Jankovich became the fastest ISU men's basketball coach to win 40 games for the Redbirds. Jankovich won his 40th game in 52 contests, while former head coach Gene Smithson won his 40th game at ISU in his 53rd try. Jankovich now boasts a 45-15 record at ISU.
BOARDED UP
At Evansville, Illinois State grabbed 12 offensive rebounds. It marked the 17th game this season where the Redbirds have pulled down double-digit offensive rebounds and the fourth-straight. On the season, ISU is averaging 11.2 offensive rebounds per game. Junior Dinma Odiakosa leads the team with 76 offensive boards.
AN ALL-AROUND GAME
With 13 more rebounds, Osiris Eldridge will eclipse a trio of milestones with 1,000 career points, 500 career rebounds and 100 career steals. In doing so, Eldridge would became the sixth Redbird all-time to accomplish the feat, joining Tony Holifield, Rick Lamb, Dan Muller, Mike VandeGarde and LeRoy Watkins.
20/20
For the first time since joining the Missouri Valley Conference in 1982, Illinois State posted back-to-back 20-plus-point wins over league foes. ISU downed Evansville, 80-50, before topping Creighton, 86-64.
291-STRAIGHT GAMES WITH A TREY
After sinking seven treys at Evansville, Illinois State enters tonight's game at Drake with at least one made three in 290-straight games. The last time ISU didn't sink a trey was an 82-43 loss at Creighton Dec. 12, 1999.
LET THE RECORD SHOW
Illinois State began the season with a 14-0 record, the best start in school history. The previous mark was set in 1977-78, when the Redbirds won their first 12 games to open the campaign. Prior to ISU's first loss, the Redbirds were one of only four teams in all of NCAA Division I basketball to be unbeaten.
CREATING THE SECOND CHANCE
Junior Dinma Odiakosa is all about giving his teammates a second chance, and as a result, is leading the team with 76 offensive rebounds. Odiakosa has accumulated 167 offensive rebounds in his three seasons at Illinois State and his offensive boards have accounted for 40.7 percent of his total rebounds. This year, Odiakosa leads the Redbirds in total rebounding with 7.2 boards per game.
RARE COMPANY
After being named the Valley's Preseason Player of the Year, junior Osiris Eldridge appears to have an inside track to join a select group. Eldridge won the conference's freshman of the year award in 2007. If he ends his Illinois State career with the Larry Bird MVC Player of the Year Award, which he finished runner-up for last season, Eldridge would become only the second player in league history to win both the freshman of the year and player of the year award, joining Southern Illinois' Ashraf Amaya.
STEPPING UP FOR CHARITY
Illinois State set a school standard at Southern Illinois. The five Redbird starters combined to shoot 19-for-19 from the free throw line, accounting for the entire team's attempts. As a result, ISU shot 1.000 percent from the line and broke the old mark of 16-for-16 at Utah State March 16, 1995, in a first-round National Invitation Tournament game.
CRASHING THE BOARDS
Despite starting a four-guard lineup in 24-of-25 games, Illinois State has won the rebounding battle in 19 games this season and tied in one. On the year, the Redbirds own a +5.2 rebounding margin.
SHAKING THE FUNK?
Osiris Eldridge has made so many improvements in his all-around game this season that it's hard to single out just his offensive numbers. However, even though he fired in 18 points at Evansville, his statistics over his last five games are anything but Eldridge-like. Over the last five games, Eldridge has made 4-of-21 three-point field goal attempts for 19 percent. He has also committed a team high 14 turnovers.
PROTECTING THE BALL
One of the keys to Wednesday's victory at Evansville was Illinois State's lack of turnovers. The Redbirds only committed nine turnovers over 40 minutes, which was a vast improvement since ISU committed a combined 38 turnovers in the previous two games, including double-digit turnover totals in the first half of each of those two games.
RAINING THREES
Last Sunday against Indiana State, Illinois State connected on 11 three-point baskets and has collected double-digit made threes nine times this season, which is four more than the entire season last year.
JOINING THE CLUB
With his 18 points at Central Michigan, Osiris Eldridge became the 39th member of ISU's 1,000-point club. Eldridge, who is the first addition to the 1,000-point club since 2005, currently has 1,200 career points.
STATUE OF ASPIRATIONS
During halftime of Illinois State's game against Southern Illinois (Jan. 24), the Redbird Athletics Department unveiled plans to have a statue erected to honor the nation's first African-American NCAA Division I head basketball coach, Will Robinson, and his most famous player, Doug Collins, a three-time All-American at Illinois State. The piece, which will be installed at the north entrance of Redbird Arena sometime in the summer 2009, is being sculpted by Lou Cella, a 1985 graduate of ISU. Robinson was named the Redbirds' head coach Feb. 27, 1970, and posted a 78-51 seasons in five seasons. He passed away at the age of 96, April 28, 2008.
JANKOVICH'S ENCORE
Head coach Tim Jankovich's first season at Illinois State was a memorable one, not only for him, but for the program. With a 25-10 record, Jankovich guided the Redbirds to a school-record-tying 25 wins and he posted the most single-season wins for a first-year coach in program history. Currently he holds a 75 percent winning percentage (45-15) at Illinois State, which ranks fourth on the all-time coaching ledger in ISU's 111-year history.
SIXTH CENTURY
In the history of the world, the sixth century was deemed as the start of the dark ages. However in Redbird basketball, players who score their 100th point of the season through the first six games has been anything but dark. ISU's Champ Oguchi scored 104 points through the first six games for the Redbirds. The last player at ISU to surpass the 100-point plateau through six games was Lorenzo Gordon in the 2004-05 season. The 2005 Missouri Valley Conference Newcomer of the Year had 107 points after six games.
WHAT'S A UTE?
Illinois State will find out first hand next season, when the Redbirds travel to Utah for the first-ever meeting between the two schools, Dec. 19, 2009, as part of the inaugural Missouri Valley-Mountain West Challenge Series. The game between ISU and Utah will be one of nine matchups between the two leagues.
FOUR SIGN FOR 2009 CLASS
Illinois State head coach Tim Jankovich announced the signing of four incoming freshmen during the early signing period. The Redbirds added Justin Clark (guard, 6-4, 176) and Jon Ekey (forward, 6-7, 190), teammates from Chrisman High School in Independence, Mo. ISU also added a pair of Chicago natives with Terrance Johnson (guard, 6-0, 170) from North Lawndale College Prep and Zeke Upshaw (guard, 6-6, 195) of University High School.
