EVANSVILLE, Ind. – A season-best 25-point first quarter scoring barrage gave Illinois State an early lead on the road at Evansville, and the Redbirds (5-14, 3-5 MVC) never trailed the Purple Aces (2-17, 1-7 MVC) the rest of the way in a 64-57 road win at the Ford Center.
Senior Colleene Smith led the Redbirds with a career-high 20 points and added seven points and four steals in a strong effort on the night. Freshman Shakeela Fowler added 15 points and controlled the offensive attack with a career-best eight assists and freshman Katrina Beck finished game with 13 points, 12 of which were scored from three-point range in the first half.
"I have to credit Katrina Beck for getting us started early on," ISU head coach Barb Smith said. "She was hot and didn't miss and she really got us going out there. We shared the ball well in that first quarter and did a great job against the Evansville zone, which we have struggled against most of the season."
The two teams traded baskets early to a 7-7 tie, with Smith scoring all of those points for the Redbirds. ISU then put together a quick 7-0 run to make the lead 14-7, with baskets by Fowler and Smith before a three-pointer by Beck forced Evansville to call an early time out with 6:06 left on the clock in the first quarter. Beck continued her hot shooting and connected three more times from three-point range to widen the ISU lead to 23-11 with 43 seconds to play. Brechelle Beachum rounded out the tremendous first-quarter effort with a layup to extend the ISU run to 8-0 and stake ISU to a 25-13 lead at the end of the first quarter.
The lead remained at 14 points when Fowler connected on a transition jumper to make the score 29-15, before the Purple Aces connected from three-point range to trim the lead to 29-18 early in the second quarter. A layup by Viria Livingston kept the lead at 14 points at 32-18 with just over five minutes left before the break, however the Aces scored five-straight points to cut the ISU lead to single digits at 32-23 just two minutes later. Evansville added one last basket before the buzzer and the Redbirds took a 32-25 lead into the locker room at the half.
Evansville cut the ISU lead to six points at 35-29 three minutes into the third quarter, before Fowler connected on a three-point play to put the Redbirds back up by nine points at 38-29. Four-straight points from Sara Dickey cut the ISU lead back to six points at 40-34, before Fowler connected from just inside the arc to widen the lead back to eight points at 42-34 with 3:28 left in the quarter.
The Purple Aces cut the lead to four points at 42-38, but two-straight baskets by Smith widened the lead back out to eight points for the Redbirds at 46-38 with 1:49 left in the third quarter. The back-and-forth continued and a quick four points for the Aces made the score 46-42 with under a minute to play and three points from the Redbirds gave them a seven point lead headed to the fourth quarter.
Camary Williams scored five-straight points to start the fourth quarter for the Aces to trim the Redbird lead to just two points at 49-47 a minute into the fourth quarter. Fowler scored the first points for the Redbirds in the fourth quarter with a running jumper in the lane with 6:14 to play. Both teams were cold over the next several possessions, until the Aces cut the lead back to two points at 51-49. Crump connected on a three-point play for the Redbirds to widen the lead back to five points at 54-49, before Dickey nailed a three-pointer from the corner to trim it back to a bucket at 54-52 with 3:31 to play.
Back-to-back baskets by Smith and Crump widened the Redbird lead back to six points at 58-52 with 1:26 to play, before Dickey connected on a layup 20 seconds later to make it 58-54. A fast break layup by Smith off a steal Livingston then made the score 60-54, but a layup from Williams on the next possession made the score 60-56 with 13 seconds to play. Fowler made four key free throws down the stretch for ISU, as they secured the 64-57 win.
The Redbirds return to action Sunday, Jan. 31, when they travel to Carbondale, Illinois, to face in-state rival Southern Illinois at SIU Arena with tipoff at 2 p.m.
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