NORMAL, Ill.  – The Illinois State women's basketball team returns to Redbird Arena for the second-straight weekend, as the Redbirds welcome Northern Iowa, Friday, at 7:05 p.m., before hosting Drake, Sunday, at 2:05 p.m., for the fifth-annual Play4Kay game.
Mary Sims led Illinois State to its first victory of the season, as the Redbirds defeated Loyola by a score of 72-56. Sims finished with a game- and career-high 22 points on 7-of-12 shooting from the field, and a perfect 7-for-7 showing from the line. She also had a career-high eight rebounds. Katy Winge, Octavia Crump and Lindsay Smith joined Sims in double figures, scoring 14, 12 and 10 points, respectively. ISU shot 42.9 percent (21-for-49) from the field and 83.3 percent (25-for-30) from the free-throw line, which matches a season high for free throws made. The Redbirds outrebounded Loyola, 37-30.
ILLINOIS STATE-NORTHERN IOWA SERIES
Illinois State leads the all-time series with Northern Iowa, 41-28. The series began in 1976 and is the fourth-longest in program history. ISU started the series with a 28-3 record, which included a 22-game winning streak. Since then, UNI holds a 25-19 advantage in the series. ISU holds a convincing 24-10 record in games played in Normal, Illinois.
FLASHBACK: NORTHERN IOWA 71, ILLINOIS STATE 43 (JAN 11)
Northern Iowa poured in 14 3-pointers against Illinois State, while the Redbirds struggled from the field at the McLeod Center. ISU couldn't slow down UNI and fell, 71-43, as the Panthers shot 47 percent from three-point range in the game. Katy Winge led the Redbirds with 12 points, with 10 coming in the second half, while Octavia Crump and Taylor Stewart both added six points. Northern Iowa had three players in double figures. Colleene Smith grabbed a team-high seven rebounds followed by Mackenzie Freeman with five. UNI had a slight advantage on the boards, pulling down 36, while ISU grabbed 31, including 11 offensive rebounds. The Redbirds shot 34 percent from the field, while the Panthers connected on 47 percent of their shot attempts.
ILLINOIS STATE-DRAKE SERIES
Illinois State and Drake are tied in the all-time series with a 35-35 record. The series began in 1981 and the two teams have met at least twice annually since 1984. ISU posted a 14-10 record against Drake through 1994. From 1995-2004, the Bulldogs went 18-3 against ISU, including a 14-game winning streak. ISU is 16-6 against Drake since 2005, winning six-straight matchups before falling to Drake on Feb. 17, 2011, in Des Moines, Iowa. ISU leads the series 21-12 in games played in Normal, Illinois.
FLASHBACK: DRAKE 86, ILLINOIS STATE 51 (JAN 9)
Illinois State couldn't slow down a hot-shooting Drake team that shot 57 percent from the field and fell, 86-51, at the Knapp Center. In the Redbird loss, the Bulldogs scored 52 points in the paint and drained 68 percent of their shot attempts in the second half. The Redbirds were led by Octavia Crump, who netted 12 points, including a perfect 6-of-6 performance from the free throw line. Mary Sims and Taylor Stewart both added 11 points. Colleene Smith led the team with eight rebounds, while Crump and Zenobia Bess each grabbed five. Drake had five players in double figures. ISU struggled from the field in the game, as it shot 26 percent, but the team connected on 87 percent from the charity stripe. The Bulldogs dominated the boards, pulling down 47 compared to the Redbirds' 31.
SIMS EARNS WEEKLY HONOR
Junior transfer Mary Sims was named the Missouri Valley Conference Newcomer of the Week, as announced by the league office Monday. It is the first weekly honor for the Redbirds this season. Over the weekend, Sims led the Redbirds in points per game (17.5) and rebounds per game (7.0). Through the first half of the Valley season, Sims is averaging 7.1 points per game and 4.0 rebounds per game, which is the third best in both categories. Sims had a career night against Bradley, Friday, netting 13 points. Her career high in points didn't last long, as Sims netted 22 points two days later against Loyola. Sims was 7-of-12 from the field in the game, but her unstoppable performance came in the first half, when she was nearly perfect in all shooting categories. In the first half, Sims was 7-of-8 from the field and a perfect 1-of-1 from three-point range and the free throw line for 16 first-half points. Sims ended the game with a perfect 7-of-7 showing from the free throw line, and pulled down a career-high eight rebounds.
A NEW STREAK
The Illinois State women's basketball team dropped 19-straight games to open the 2014-15 season, but finally got its first win against Loyola, 72-56 (Feb. 1). Prior to its win over Loyola, ISU's last win came against Northern Iowa on March 14, 2014, by two points in the 2014 Missouri Valley Conference Tournament. The losing streak was the longest in ISU women's basketball history. The previous longest losing streak was 13 games, which happened during the 1998-99 season, when the Redbirds were winless from Dec. 30 through Feb. 13. With a tally in the win column, ISU looks to keep the momentum heading into the second half of Valley play.
BALANCED ATTACK
For the first time this season, the Redbirds had four players in double figures in its first win of the season. Against Loyola, Mary Sims scored a career-high 22 points, with 16 coming in the first half. Katy Winge added 14 points, netting five field goals with three coming from three-point range. Lindsay Smith added 10 points in her third game this season, setting a season high for the junior, while Octavia Crump scored 12 points, with eight coming at the free throw line. In addition to four Redbirds netting double figures, every Redbird that played scored in the game. For the well-balanced offensive attack, ISU sank 43 percent of its field goals, setting a season high, and scored its first win of the season.
AT THE CHARITY STRIPE
Illinois State netted 25 free throws in its 72-56 win over Loyola Sunday (Feb. 1). Octavia Crump and Mary Sims were both perfect from the free throw line, as Crump was 8-of-8 followed by Sims who sank 7-of-7. The duo combined for 15 of the 25 made field goals. It was the second time this season that ISU found the bottom of the net 25 times from the charity stripe. The last time was against in-state rival DePaul on Dec. 28, when ISU went 25-of-27 from the free throw line.
CAREER NIGHTS
After struggling to connect from the field over recent games, Octavia Crump found a rhythm and scored a career-high 22 points against Bradley (Jan. 30). Crump netted eight field goals and was a perfect 6-of-6 from the charity stripe in 29 minutes. Crump's previous career high was 21 points, which she accomplished twice. Crump was consistent throughout the game, as she netted 10 points in the first half and 12 in the second. Mary Sims had a solid night against Bradley (Jan. 30), netting 13 points. Sims made five field goals and a three 3-pointer. Sims also pulled down six rebounds against the Braves, one shy of tying a career-high to go along with two assists and a steal in the contest. Her career high in points didn't last long, as Sims netted 22 points two days later against Loyola (Feb. 1) for a new career high. Sims was 7-of-12 from the field in the game, but her unstoppable performance came in the first half, when she was nearly perfect in all shooting categories. In the first half, Sims was 7-of-8 from the field and a perfect 1-of-1 from three-point range and the free throw line for 16 first half points. The seven made field goals were a career high. Sims ended the game with a perfect 7-of-7 showing from the free throw line, and pulled down a career-high eight rebounds.
BETTER NUMBERS
In the 58-55 loss against Bradley (Jan. 30), the Redbirds dished out 13 assists, tying a season high in the category. The last time ISU dished out 13 assists was in its home opener against Northern Kentucky (Nov. 19). ISU has only had four games with double-digit assists with the last time coming against Evansville (Jan. 16). Not only did the Redbirds increase their assists, but they also had fewer turnovers. The 12 turnovers against the Braves were the third fewest by the Redbirds in a game this season. ISU also committed just eight turnovers at Wisconsin (Nov. 16) and 11 miscues against Bowling Green (Dec. 19).
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