Jan. 10, 2014
Game 13: Illinois state at Indiana State |
Date: January 12 |
Time: 1:05 p.m. (CST) |
Location: Terre Haute, Ind. (Hulman Center) |
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Twitter: @ISUwbb |
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NORMAL, Ill. - After opening the Missouri Valley Conference season at home, Illinois State will travel to Indiana State for its first road game of the conference season. The Redbirds and the Sycamores will face off at 1:05 p.m. (CST), Sunday, at the Hulman Center. The game can be seen on Comcast SportsNet and ESPN3.
The Sycamores lead the series in games played in Terre Haute, Ind., 19-16, but the Redbirds lead the all-time series, 46-37.
Last weekend, ISU defeated Drake (Jan. 3), 80-71, for its first Valley win of the season and snapped a six-game losing streak, but a hot-shooting Northern Iowa (Jan. 5) team handed Illinois State its first loss in conference play, 83-63.
ILLINOIS STATE-INDIANA STATE SERIES
Illinois State leads the all-time series with Indiana State, 46-37. The series, which began in 1972, is the second-longest in Illinois State history. Illinois State started out with a 30-16 record against Indiana State, including a string of 12-straight wins from 1980-87. Indiana State then won 13 of the next 14 meetings and Illinois State is 14-8 in the last 22 matchups. The Sycamores lead the series in games played in Terre Haute, Ind., 19-16.
HERE WE GO
With the non-conference schedule wrapped up, the Illinois State women’s basketball team is ready to open the 2013-14 Missouri Valley Conference slate. The Redbirds opened the conference schedule with a win, like they have the last several seasons. ISU has opened Valley play with a win the last eight-consecutive seasons. The last time the ‘Birds opened the conference season with a loss was during the 2005-06 season, when they fell to Southern Illinois (Dec. 30), 87-65, in Redbird Arena.
OFFENSIVE MOMENTUM
For the first time this season, the Redbirds had four players record double-digit scoring performances in an 80-71 win over Drake (Jan. 3), as ISU snapped a six-game losing streak. Alexis Foley led the Redbirds with 20 points, 17 of which came in the first half, while Octavia Crump added a career-high 17 points. Chloe Nelson and Lindsay Smith both dropped 14 points for Illinois State, as Smith’s 14 points set a career-high for the transfer. As a team, ISU shot 43 percent from the field, as seven players scored in the contest.
HOLDING ONTO THE LEAD
Illinois State led by 23 points against Drake (Jan. 3) in the first half, but Drake made it a game in the second half and cut ISU’s lead to six points, but 14 late made free throws by the Redbirds secured the 80-71 victory. The free throws proved to be the difference in the game, as the Bulldogs made 49 percent of their shot attempts compared to the Redbirds’ 43 percent, but ISU was 27-of-35 from the free throw line, while DU was only 6-of-9. It was the most attempts for the Redbirds at the free throw line this season and the most made since ISU sank 23 free throws against Indiana State (Feb. 24, 2013) last season.
FINDING THE BOTTOM OF THE NET
The Redbirds had a strong showing as a team in the Junkanoo Jam in Grand Bahama Island, where they finished second to then-No. 14/13 Penn State, but once ISU got back into the States, they struggled on the offensive side of the ball. From Dec. 5 (Northern
Illinois) through the Dec. 22 game (Milwaukee), Illinois State shot 27 percent from the field as a team and just 10 percent from beyond the three-point line. However, since the holiday break, the Redbirds are shooting 40 percent from the field and 30 percent behind the arc. A much needed adjustment as conference season began this weekend.
POWERFUL POST
Through the non-conference season, sophomore forward Octavia Crump averaged 7.4 points per game, but through the first two Missouri Valley Conference games, Crump is leading the Redbirds with 15 points per game and is shooting 60 percent (12-of-20) from the field. She has also sank 86 percent of her free throw attempts through two conference contests. Against Drake, Crump scored a career-high 17 points, making 75 percent of her shot attempts. It was the first time in her career that Crump had back-to back double-digit scoring performances.
PLAYING IN THE PAINT
In ISU’s loss to Northern Iowa (Jan. 5), the Redbirds pulled down 17 offensive boards with Octavia Crump grabbing six of them. The 17 offensive boards are the second most by the Redbirds this season, which turned into 18 second-chance points and 34 points in the paint.
TURNOVER CITY
Though the Redbirds struggled holding onto the ball early in the season, against Northern Iowa (Jan. 5), ISU committed just 11 turnovers and forced 19 by the Panthers. It is the lowest turnovers by the Redbirds this season, as they changed the UNI miscues into 20 points off of turnovers.
GoRedbirds.com: Your online source for Illinois State Athletics, tickets, Weisbecker Scholarship Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more.
GoRedbirds.com: Your online source for Illinois State Athletics, tickets, Weisbecker Scholarship Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more.
