Dec. 29, 2010
The marathon of games continues for Illinois State with its first Missouri Valley Conference matchups of the year. The Redbirds host Bradley Thursday at 7:05 p.m. and Northern Iowa Saturday at 2:05 p.m.
Illinois State is 17-10 all-time in Missouri Valley Conference openers and has won four-straight. Illinois State and Bradley have not met in the first Valley game of the season in 10 years, but Illinois State has won the last three Valley openers between the schools. Overall, ISU is on a 10-game winning streak over Bradley and has not lost to the Braves at home since 2003.
The Redbirds are looking to avenge their loss to UNI in last year’s MVC Tournament semifinals and extend their regular-season winning streak over the Panthers to three games.
REDBIRDS-BRAVES SERIES
Illinois State leads the all-time series with Bradley, 39-17. The two teams have met at least twice each year since 1984. While Bradley has never won more than two-consecutive games over ISU, the Redbirds have four winning streaks of at least four games. ISU is currently on a 10-game winning streak dating back to 2006, with eight of those wins coming by double-digits. Last season, the Redbirds won both meetings by an average of 14 points and won both meetings in 2008 by 33 points each. Illinois State has won seven-straight games over Bradley at Redbird Arena, dating back to 2003.
REDBIRDS-PANTHERS SERIES
Illinois State leads the all-time series with Northern Iowa, 36-23. The series began in 1976 and is the fourth-longest in program history. ISU started the series with a 28-3 record, which included a 22-game winning streak. Since then, UNI holds a 20-8 advantage in the series. The Redbirds have won consecutive games just once during that stretch, winning both regular-season meetings last year. UNI upset ISU in the State Farm MVC Tournament Semifinals last season, 61-59, en route to winning the tournament title. ISU is 5-8 against UNI in the last 13 meetings at Redbird Arena.
LAST TIME OUT
Illinois State returned to action with a 76-69 victory over UW-Milwaukee Tuesday night. Emily Hanley notched her third double-double of the season with 22 points and 11 rebounds to lead the Redbirds. ISU shot 60 percent from the field and knocked down four three-pointers to take a 41-33 halftime lead. A 13-2 run pulled the Panthers within five, 57-52, midway through the second half, but that was as close as they would come.
REDBIRDS OPEN VALLEY PLAY
Illinois State is 17-10 all-time in Missouri Valley Conference openers. The Redbirds have won four-straight Valley openers, with their last loss coming at home to Southern Illinois (12/30/05). ISU is 3-1 against Bradley in the first Valley game of the season, winning the last three-consecutive matchups.
IT’S A MARATHON AND A SPRINT
After playing just three games in 25 days, Illinois State is set to play four games in a seven-day span. The Redbirds host UW-Milwaukee (Dec. 28), Bradley (Dec. 30), and Northern Iowa (Jan. 1), and visit Northern Illinois (Jan. 3) in the next week. Last season, Illinois State had a similar run with four games in an eight-day span, which included its first conference games.
HOME, SWEET HOME
Illinois State is glad to be back in Redbird Arena for the first time in nearly three weeks. ISU is 54-12 in Redbird Arena over the last four seasons, including five wins this year. The Redbirds are 28-8 against Valley teams during that span.
TAKING CARE OF THE ROCK
So far this season, Illinois State has struggled taking care of the basketball, averaging 15.6 turnovers per game. The Redbirds have committed double-digit turnovers in every game except the win over UAB, when they had nine. Redbird opponents are taking full advantage of the miscues, averaging 16.1 points off turnovers per game.
