Jan. 18, 2012
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Postgame Interview with Tim Jankovich
NORMAL, Ill. -
Illinois State (12-7, 4-4 MVC) used a 15-0 run late in the second half which included nine points from Tyler Brown, to pull away from Indiana State (11-8, 2-6 MVC) and secure a 67-54 victory Wednesday night on Doug Collin's Court in Redbird Arena.
Indiana State jumped out to a 2-0 lead, but the Redbirds answered back with a 7-0 run to take a 7-2 lead at the 16:38 mark, after five-straight points from John Ekey and a layup by Jackie Carmichael. Illinois State extended its lead to 11-7 with 14:46 left in the first half, but a three-pointer from Indiana's Jordan Printy cut the lead to 11-10 seconds later.
After a three-pointer extended the Redbird lead to 14-10, Indiana State went on a 7-0 run over the next two and a half minutes to retake the lead at 17-14 at the second media timeout. Illinois State responded with a 8-3 run over the next two and a half minutes to take a 22-20 lead, after a dunk by John Wilkins with 8:41 left in the half.
The Sycamores took the lead once again at 25-22, after a three-pointer by Carl Richard, and then extended the lead to 28-24 after Jake Odum converted a three-point play after being fouled on a fast-break layup.
Illinois State answered with a 7-0 run to take a 31-28 lead after a jumper by Brown with 1:33 left in the first half. The Sycamores cut the lead to one at 31-30, but a bucket by Carmichael gave the Redbirds a 33-30 lead at the half.
After shooting a combined 28.9 percent from three-point range in the previous three games, Illinois Sate finished the first half shooting 40 percent from long distance (4-10).
The Redbirds took their largest lead of the game at the time, two minutes into the second half at 40-33, after a layup by Carmichael at the 18:05 mark. The basket was the last for the Redbirds until Brown made a runner in the lane at the 13:47 mark, to end the Illinois State scoring drought of over four minutes. Meanwhile, the Sycamores went on a 7-2 run over the next four-plus minutes to cut the Redbird lead to 42-40 after a three-pointer by Printy with 11:15 left in the game.
Indiana State would eventually tie the game for the fifth time and regain the lead, 47-46, for the first time since late in the first half, after a jumper by Lucas Eitel and three points from Dwayne Lathan. The lead was short-lived, as Brown gave the Redbirds the lead back at 48-47 with a jumper at the 6:27 mark. The Sycamores took the lead right back with five minutes left after a tip-in from RJ Mahurin and a fast-break layup from Lathan.
After the Sycamores took a three-point lead, the Redbirds fought back with a 15-0 run spanning 3:41 of play to take a 63-51 lead thanks to nine points during the run by Brown. Indiana State was forced to foul down the stretch and the Redbirds converted free-throws to come away with a 67-54 victory.
The Redbirds return to action Sunday, Jan. 21, as they travel to Evansville, Ind., to take on Missouri Valley Conference rival Evansville. Tip-off is set for 7:05 p.m. CST.
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