Dec. 18, 2013
Final Stats
PRINCETON, N.J. -
Despite tough defense that held Princeton (7-4) to its second-lowest point total of the season, the Illinois State (1-7) women's basketball team dropped its fourth-straight game to the Tigers, 65-39, at Jadwin Gym Wednesday. The last time ISU lost four-straight games was during the 2005-06 season.
The Redbirds were led by Stekara Hall and Chloe Nelson, who both scored nine points. Alison Seberger netted a career-high eight points, all coming in the second half. Only six Redbirds scored in the game, while Seberger pulled down six boards, and Hall grabbed five.
As a team, Illinois State shot 20 percent from the field, while Princeton connected on 55 percent of its shot attempts. The Tigers had three players in double digits. Princeton dominated the boards, pulling down 21 more rebounds than ISU. Despite 28 turnovers by the Tigers, Princeton had 19 points off of turnovers compared to ISU's 14. Princeton had 42 points in the paint and 13 second chance points.
"The effort was there, but we couldn't finish," head coach Barb Smith said. "When we got down, we battled back and didn't stay there like we did against Fordham. That was a positive, and the team did a great job defensively, but we gave up to many rebounds and couldn't score."
The two teams traded baskets early in the game until the Redbirds used a 5-0 run to take three-point lead, 9-6, with 11:49 to play. Hall had seven of ISU's first nine points. Octavia Crump had nice move in the post to add another basket during the run, while Princeton was scoreless for over four minutes. Princeton had 10 turnovers in the first eight minutes, as Illinois State scored five points off of the Tiger mistakes.
Momentum quickly shifted in favor of the Tigers, as Princeton scored 15-straight points, while ISU was scoreless for over six minutes until Nelson hit a jumper in the lane, 21-11, with 5:18 remaining in the first half. Nelson's jumper couldn't swing the momentum, as the Tigers ended the half with an 11-2 run. ISU went to the locker room trailing by 15 points, 32-13.
At the half, Hall led all scorers with seven points, while Crump, Nelson and Katy Winge each added two points. The Redbirds shot 14 percent from the field, while the Tigers connected on 56 percent of their shot attempts and had 22 points in the paint. Princeton controlled the boards in the first half, pulling down 12 more boards than Illinois State. Despite 16 turnovers by the Tigers, they still had seven points off of turnovers, while the Redbirds tallied five.
Hall netted a jumper in the lane to end a 6-0 run by Princeton with 16:22 remaining in the game, 38-17. The Redbirds scored four-straight points, 38-19, while the Tigers struggled offensively, going scoreless for over four minutes. Then, Seberger gave life back to ISU scoring eight-straight points, 47-31, including back-to-back threes with 7:26 left to play. Princeton had four short runs over the final six minutes of the game, while ISU only scored eight points after the 7:26 mark of the second half to drop the game, 65-39.
The Redbirds play their third-straight road game Sunday at 1 p.m., as they travel to take on Milwaukee.
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