QUICK HITS ABOUT #REDBIRDHOOPS
- Creighton enters the game tied with two other teams for first place in the Missouri Valley Conference and ranked No. 21 in the country.
- Illinois State has not beaten a ranked opponent since downing No. 14 Iowa, 89-88, on Dec. 29, 1987. The last Redbird victory over a ranked foe in Normal, Ill., was a 91-81 win over No. 9 Tulsa on March 3, 1984.
- The Redbirds have lost 21-straight games against ranked opponents and are 0-5 against ranked teams all-time in Redbird Arena.
- Freshman Nic Moore is coming off a career-best 23 points, including a 20-point second-half effort, in Tuesday's 65-62 loss at Wichita State.
- Illinois State's Tyler Brown has posted four-straight double-digit games. Over the last four games, Brown leads the Redbirds with 14.5 points per game, while averaging 4.8 rebounds per contest.
- The Redbirds are 8-1 on Doug Collins Court at Redbird Arena this season and have won four-straight games at home.
- When the Redbirds score 60 or more points they are 11-2 this season. When scoring less than 60 points, ISU is 0-3.
- Tim Jankovich owns a 47-39 record (.547) against members of the Missouri Valley Conference during his time with the Redbirds, including a 42-35 (.545) mark in the regular season.
- Illinois State is in its 42nd season as a NCAA Division I program, and during that time, the Redbirds have only had eight losing seasons.
- Jankovich is the first coach in league history to lead his team to back-to-back Valley (@MVCSports) Tournament title games in his first two seasons.
- The Redbirds have made 17 postseason appearances, including NIT berths in three of the last four seasons.
ABOUT THE CREIGHTON BLUEJAYS
- Creighton is located in Omaha, Neb., and has an enrollment of 7,730. The Bluejays are members of the Missouri Valley Conference. The Bluejays were projected to finish first in the Valley, according to the league's preseason poll, and received 29 first-place votes.
- The Bluejays return three starters from its College Basketball Invitational runner-up team which finished 23-16 last season
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- Sophomore Doug McDermott was selected to the 2011 MVC Preseason First-Team. McDermott ranks second nationally in scoring, eighth in field goal percentage.
- Gregory Echenique and Antoine Young were also named the MVC Preseason Honorable Mention team.
- Creighton ranks No. 7 nationally in points per game and the Bluejays lead the nation in field goal percentage, including second in three-point field goal percentage
Last Meeting
Feb. 16, 2011
OMAHA, Neb.
Creighton Outlasts Illinois State, 75-59
Creighton used a 7-0 run to end the first half and a 5-0 run to open the second to down Illinois State, 75-59, despite
Austin Hill's second-straight 20-point scoring game, in a Missouri Valley Conference contest at the Qwest Center Omaha Wednesday night in front of a crowd of 14,702.
FRIDAY THE 13TH SERIES
Illinois State faces Creighton on Friday the 13th and surprisingly this is only the third time since becoming an NCAA Division I program prior to the 1970-71 season that the Redbirds have played on a Friday the 13th. The Redbirds are 1-1 when playing on the superstitious date.
WITH MOORE ON THE LINE
During the non-conference portion of the schedule, Illinois State freshman Nic Moore averaged 8.1 points per contest, while shooting 39.1 percent from the floor. In league games, Moore has picked up his game and is posting 11.8 points per contest, while shooting 48.7 percent from the field.
MOORE THAN ENOUGH
Freshman Nic Moore tossed in a career-best 23 points Tuesday at Wichita State and became the first Illinois State freshman to score 20-plus points in a Missouri Valley Conference game since current teammate Jackie Carmichael dropped in 20 points at Evansville on Jan. 6, 2010.
TWENTY SOMETHING
After Nic Moore's career-high 23 points at Wichita State, ISU now has seven players on the roster who have scored at least 20 points in an NCAA Division I game. Jackie Carmichael has six 20-point efforts in his career, including two this season, while Anthony Cousin, John Wilkins, Tyler Brown and Jon Ekey have each posted one 20-point game. Trey Blue had a 20-point effort while playing at Fordham.
GOOD TIME FOR A THREE
Entering the game against Evansville, Jackie Carmichael was 0-for-3 from three during his career. But, with 2.8 seconds remaining, Carmichael banked home his first-career triple from the left side at the buzzer to lift the Redbirds to a 75-73 win over the Purple Aces.
D-FENCE, D-FENCE
Illinois State has held eight opponents this season to under 40 percent shooting, including four of the last seven, and three teams to under 30 percent.
HOME SWEET HOME
Illinois State enters its 24th season of basketball action on Doug Collins Court at Redbird Arena. Under head coach Tim Jankovich, the Redbirds are 62-15 (.805) when playing at home. ISU owns a 246-91 (.732) all-time record on Doug Collins Court at Redbird Arena.
WHAT BROWN CAN DO FOR YOU
Junior college transfer Tyler Brown has made at least one three-pointer in 13 of his last 14 games and is leading the team with 38 made threes and a 46.9 shooting percentage from beyond the arc. Brown is leading the Valley with 2.5 made three-point field goals per contest. He has also posted double-digit scoring totals in each of the last four games.
LET'S GET FR-EKEY
Redbird sophomore Jon Ekey collected two double-digit scoring games during his first season at Illinois State, but this season he already has posted nine double-figure games. He also added a string of three-straight double-digit rebound games, but has been slowed the last two contests with an ankle sprain.
THE STARTING SIX
Following the 68-36 win over Norfolk State, head coach Tim Jankovich announced in his postgame media conference that the team will start having a rotation for the starting five among six players. Those six players - Tyler Brown, Jackie Carmichael, Anthony Cousin, Jon Ekey, Nic Moore and John Wilkins - have accounted for all the starts this season and a combination of five will be selected each game.
DON'T LET THE NAME FOOL YOU
ISU has had six different players account for this season's starting lineup, yet none of them are from the state of Illinois. The 'Birds have started players from Kansas (Jackie Carmichael), Missouri (Jon Ekey), Alaska (Anthony Cousin), Indiana (Nic Moore), Kentucky (Tyler Brown) and France (John Wilkins).
ALLENTOWN
Sophomore Bryant Allen was scoreless after his first three games in a Redbird uniform, but in his last four he has totaled 39 points, or 9.8 points per game. In two of the games, Allen scored in double-figures, including a career-best 14 points at Missouri State.
MOORE TO COME
Freshman Nic Moore has dished out at least three assists in 12 games this season. He leads the team with 60 dimes and boasts a 1.62 assist-to-turnover ratio. Moore has dished out five or more assists in a game five different times this season, each a Redbird victory.
LETHAL WEAPON 3
Illinois State is averaging 8.6 made three-pointers per game this season, which is second-best in the Missouri Valley Conference. The Redbirds are also tied for No. 14 nationally in treys per game. In the Tim Jankovich-era, the Redbirds have made 1,036 threes, or 6.9 treys per game.
JUST THE HALF OF IT
The fate of Illinois State's basketball team can pretty much be decided by only 20 minutes of play. In the Tim Jankovich-era, the Redbirds boast a 69-10 (.873) mark when leading at the half. In addition, ISU owns a 84-7 mark (.923) under Jankovich when leading with five minutes remaining in regulation.
COUSIN CIRCLES
Heading into the Illinois game, junior Anthony Cousin had totaled nine assists and 14 turnovers on the season for a 0.64 assist-to-turnover ratio. However, after an eight assist effort against the Fighting Illini without a single turnover, Cousin has come full circle and has 36 assists over the last 12 games with only 12 turnovers, for a 3.00 assist-to-turnover ratio during that span.
ARC MADNESS
Tyler Brown has been sinking treys this season at a mad clip. He's shooting 46.9 percent from beyond the arc, while sinking 38-for-81 on threes. As a result, Brown ranks No. 18 nationally in three-point field goal percentage, among players who are averaging at least 2.5 made threes per game.
THE GREAT WHITE NORTH
Illinois State got a jump on the 2011-12 season with a four-game tour to Canada in August. The Redbirds posted a 2-2 mark, while facing off against collegiate programs in Canada, as well as professional all-star teams. In addition to the four games, the Redbirds were also granted, per NCAA rules, 10 days of practice leading up to the trip.
THE SWAT TEAM
Last season, Illinois State's Jon Ekey and Jackie Carmichael became the first set of Missouri Valley Conference teammates to finish the regular-season ranked No. 1 and No. 2 in blocked shots since the 1986-87 season. Ekey finished the year with 52 swats (1.7 bpg.), while Carmichael added 36 rejections (1.2 bpg.). The duo has combined for 32 blocked shots this season, with Carmichael posting a team-best 23 rejections.
THE NEXT BEST THING
Illinois State has a pair of players this season who were runner-up for Mr. Basketball in their respective home state. Junior Anthony Cousin was runner-up for Mr. Basketball in Alaska in 2008, while in 2011, Nic Moore was runner-up for Mr. Basketball in Indiana.
THAT 70's SHOW
ISU's success during the Tim Jankovich-era has been pretty much based on 70 points. When the Redbirds score 70 or more points, Illinois State owns a 53-11 record (.828) in his five seasons. When ISU opponent's score less than 70 points, the Redbirds are 79-29 (.731) during that span.
380-STRAIGHT GAMES WITH A TREY
Illinois State enters the Creighton game with at least one made three in 380-straight games. The last time ISU didn't sink a trey was an 82-43 loss at Creighton, Dec. 12, 1999.
TWO GUARDS SIGN FOR 2012-13 SEASON
North Chicago High School point guard Aaron Simpson and Anthony Beane Jr., a product of Normal Community High School and the son of Illinois State assistant basketball coach Anthony Beane Sr., will continue their collegiate and basketball careers at Illinois State, after each signed National Letters of Intent (NLI) during the NCAA early signing period. Last season, Simpson averaged 22.2 points, 5.4 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game, while sinking 71 three-point field goals. The 5-foot-11, 175-pound senior also led North Chicago to a fourth-place finish at the Illinois High School Association (IHSA) Class 3A State Tournament. Beane, who was named the 2011 Big 12 Conference Player of the Year, started the last two seasons at NCHS and averaged 14.3 points, 3.6 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game last year. He led the Ironmen to a fourth-place finish at the IHSA Class 4A State Tournament.
