Feb. 24, 2010
Final Stats | Notes | Photo Gallery 
NORMAL, Ill. - Illinois State seniors Osiris Eldridge, Dinma Odiakosa and Lloyd Phillips helped the Redbirds secure their sixth-consecutive win Wednesday night against Indiana State, 75-58, on Doug Collins Court. On "Senior Night" at Redbird Arena, Odiakosa lead all scorers with 21 points and grabbed 11 rebounds, Eldridge added 14 points and seven boards, and Phillips finished with a career-high tying five steals and dished out four assists.
Wednesday's win guarantees at least a No. 3 seed for the Redbirds (21-8, 11-6 MVC) in next week's State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Tournament. Illinois State snapped a four-game losing streak against the Sycamores (16-13, 8-9 MVC) and captured its 21st win of the season.
Odiakosa finished his last game at Redbird Arena with another 20-plus-point performance, his fourth of the season, and collected his fourteenth career double-double. Junior forward Tony Lewis poured in a career-high 19 points and Jackie Carmichael finished with a career-high five blocks establishing a new school record for most blocked shots by a freshman with 37 in his debut season. The Redbirds shot 44.6 percent (25-for-56) from the field and held Indiana State to just 35.3 percent (18-for-51) shooting.
After Indiana State scored the first two points of the game, the Redbirds went on a 14-4 run, courtesy of solid inside play from Odiakosa and Lewis who shot a combined 5-of-5 to open the game. Indiana State then went on a 10-4 run, capped off with an easy layup by Dwayne Lathan, to cut the `Birds lead to just two. Illinois State responded by scoring the next nine points, four of them coming from Eldridge, including an alley-oop dunk from Phillips to push the lead back to 11 with 4:42 remaining in the half. Each time the Sycamores were able to chip into the lead, the Redbirds answered with a balanced attack and took a 33-24 lead into the locker room.
The Redbirds increased their lead to 14 in the second half after Lewis and Austin Hill hit mid-range jumpers, and Odiakosa had an easy dunk. Illinois State maintained a large advantage until the Sycamores went on a 9-2 run over a 3:43 span to cut the lead to three with just over six minutes remaining. It was all `Birds in the last five minutes; however, as Odiakosa sparked a 19-5 run by Illinois State with a short jumper in the lane. Hill hit a three-pointer with 22 seconds remaining to give the Redbirds a game-best 17-point lead and the 75-58 win.
Indiana State's Carl Richard led the Sycamores with 14 points and seven rebounds. Harry Marshall, who returned to the lineup after sitting out five games due to injury, led Indiana State with eight points in the first half but was held to just two in the game's final 20 minutes.
The Redbirds will wrap up the regular season Saturday, Feb. 27, on the road against Missouri Valley Conference regular-season champion Northern Iowa. The game will be televised live on ESPN2 and tipoff is scheduled for a 7:05 p.m., at the McLeod Center in Cedar Falls, Iowa.
