Final Stats
CANCUN, Mexico – Despite overcoming a double-digit halftime deficit to tie the game early in the second half, the Illinois State men's basketball team ultimately fell to TCU, 71-60, in the Riviera Division third place game at the Cancun Challenge Wednesday evening.
The Redbirds (2-4) earned a 1-3 record in the Cancun Challenge, including ISU's two on-campus games followed by the two contests in Cancun, Mexico. Junior point guard Paris Lee was named to the Cancun Challenge all-tournament team after scoring 15 points with five rebounds against No. 2 Maryland Tuesday and finishing with a team-best 16 points and two rebounds versus TCU (3-2) Wednesday.
DeVaughn Akoon-Purcell and Roland Griffin joined Lee in double figures with 14 and 11 points, respectively. The Horned Frogs were led by Malique Trent's 19 points. Illinois State shot 36.4 percent from the field compared to TCU's 50.9 percent shooting average.
After TCU won the opening tip, Illinois State forced the Horned Frogs to turn the ball over on their first two possessions. A free throw and layup by Lee on the other end of the floor established an early 3-0 Redbird advantage. When TCU's Karviar Shepherd tied the game with a 3-pointer, MiKyle McIntosh responded by netting a jumper to give ISU a 5-3 advantage at the 18:35 mark. However, TCU then went on an 11-0 run to take the lead permanently.
The Horned Frogs led by as many as 14 points in the first half, 30-16, at the 3:52 mark. Illinois State ended the half on a 7-2 run to pull within 32-23 at halftime. A Deontae Hawkins jumper 30 seconds into the second half cut ISU's deficit to seven, which proved to be as close as ISU could get. A free throw by Lee with 16:23 remaining made the score, 36-29. But TCU answered with a 9-2 run to reestablish a double-digit advantage which ballooned to 19 points at the 6:41 mark.
ISU outscored TCU 17-7 to pull within 62-53 on an Akoon-Purcell three-point play with 3:02 left to play. However, five unanswered points by the Horned Frogs put the game out of reach, as TCU held off the Redbirds, 71-60.
With the Cancun Challenge complete, ISU will fly home Thursday in preparation for Friday's non-conference game against Quincy at 2 p.m. CT on Doug Collins Court at Redbird Arena.
GoRedbirds.com: Your online source for Illinois State Athletics, tickets, Weisbecker Scholarship Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more.
