Watch | Listen | Live Stats
Game Notes | Twitter Updates @Redbirdwbb
NORMAL, Ill. – The Illinois State women's basketball team is set to play its 46th season opener Friday evening when the Redbirds travel to Tempe, Arizona, to take on No. 18/16 Arizona State in the 2016-17 season opener inside Wells Fargo Arena at 5 p.m. CT.
THE SERIES:
Illinois State and Arizona State are meeting for the seventh time in program history and the first time since Dec. 16, 2014 (in Normal). ASU leads the series, 5-1, which dates back to Dec. 21, 1984 (ASU won 91-70). The Redbirds won their only game, 72-66, Nov. 27, 1996 at home.
THE COACHES:
Illinois State: Barb Smith (Ohio State, 1986) enters her fourth season as the head coach at Illinois State. Smith is looking to continue to build the program, after quadrupling the team's win total one year ago.
Arizona State: Charli Turner Thorne (Stanford, 1988) enters her 20th season as the head coach at Arizona State (380-220) and has led the Sun Devils to the postseason 16 out of the last 17 years, including 11 NCAA trips.
ILLINOIS STATE:
The Redbirds were picked to finish eighth in the Missouri Valley Conference. ISU returns five student-athletes, including two starters, and welcomes seven newcomers, including six freshmen, with three from the state of Illinois.
ARIZONA STATE:
Picked to finish fourth in the Pac-12, the Sun Devils are No. 18 in the AP preseason poll and No. 16 in the USA Today preseason coaches poll. ASU returns three senior starters (Sophie Brunner, Quinn Dornstauder and Kelsey Moos) from the 2015-16 squad that captured a share of the Pac-12 regular season title, won 26 games (tied for third-highest win total in program history) and went on to earn a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament, the highest placement in program history.
46TH SEASON OPENER
Illinois State is preparing to play its 46th season opener in program history, and the Redbirds are 21-24 in those contests since the first game in program history, Jan. 8, 1972, a 60-38 loss at Northern Illinois. The 2016-17 season opener will be the fourth straight one away from Redbird Arena, and ISU is searching for its first 1-0 start since Nov. 9, 2012 when the Redbirds defeated Morehead State, 62-45, on Doug Collins Court at Redbird Arena in the 2012 Preseason WNIT. ISU last won a season opener on the road the season before, Nov. 11, when the Redbirds won Ball State, 63-52.
REDBIRDS & SUN DEVILS IN NOVEMBER
Friday's contest will be the fourth time in series history the two schools will play in the 11th month. Arizona State won, 80-59, in the second-ever meeting in the series Nov. 30, 1986 inside Horton Field House, and almost eight years to the day in the third matchup, a 71-68 Sun Devil victory in Tempe, Nov. 29, 1994. Two years later, ISU won its only meeting over ASU, 72-66, inside Redbird Arena, Nov. 27, 1996.
STEWART STEADY LAST TIME VS ARIZONA STATE
When the Redbirds last played the Sun Devils, Taylor Stewart was a sophomore and is the only current member of the team to play in that game. She finished with six points, two rebounds, three assists and two steals over 25 minutes of action.
VERSUS THE PAC-12
Illinois State holds a 11-18 record against current members of the Pac-12 Conference. The Redbirds last win over a Pac-12 opponent was Nov. 14, 2009 when ISU defeated UCLA, 61-55, at Iowa's Hawkeye Challenge in Iowa City, Iowa, in the season opener.
ALL-TIME IN ARIZONA
Illinois State is set to play its fifth game in program history in the Grand Canyon State, and the Redbirds have dropped their last three, after winning their first-ever contest, 69-55, at Arizona, Dec. 22, 1984, one day after playing Arizona State for the first time in program history (L, 90-71).
LONGEST ROAD TRIP
The season-opening trip to Tempe, Arizona, then to Chicago, Illinois, will be Illinois State longest road trip of the season in terms of days (5) and miles (3,652) roundtrip. The Redbirds play at UIC in Chicago Monday, Nov. 14, before returning home.
REDBIRDS PICKED EIGHTH IN MISSOURI VALLEY CONFERENCE
Illinois State was selected to finish eighth in the 2016-17 Missouri Valley Conference Preseason Poll, announced Tuesday, Oct. 25 by the league prior to the start of the league's Media Day at the St. Louis City Center Hotel. The poll is compiled from votes by the conference's sports information directors, media and coaches. The Redbirds received 123 points in the poll, after finishing seventh last season when they were predicted to finish last.Drake is the favorite to win the league, as the Bulldogs collected 392 points and 34 out of a possible 40 first-place votes. Northern Iowa is predicted to finish second with 317 points and four first-place votes, while Missouri State was picked right behind the Panthers in third place with 313 points and the final two first-place votes. Southern Illinois (306), Wichita State (248), Indiana State (199) and Bradley (141) fill out slots four through seven. Completing the final two spots in the poll after ISU is Evansville (109) and Loyola Chicago (52).
NEEDS REPLACING
Illinois State lost its top-three scorers from a year ago, who combined to average 30.5 points per game, which was 52.4 percent of the team's scoring.
RETURNING REDBIRDS
Sophomores Katrina Beck and Viria Livingston are the squad's top-two returning scorers, with Beck averaging 5.9 points and Livingston 5.5 points per game last season. Livingston led the Redbirds on the glass during her freshman campaign with 6.1 rebounds per game, and she is the top-returning distributor from a year ago with 36 assists, and steals leader with 33. She also set the program record for most offensive rebounds by a freshman with 78, which was good enough for the eighth-best tally in single-season history. Beck, meanwhile, looks to improve upon her team-leading 31 triples from a year ago. The duo also returns with the most starting experience from last season, combining for 47 starts. Each student-athlete played in 28 game, with Livingston starting 25 and averaging 29.1 minutes per game, while Beck started 22 contests and averaged 23.6 minutes per game. Senior Taylor Stewart is the most experienced student-athlete in the program, having played in 88 out of a possible 90 games, including 30 career starts, with four coming last season. She averaged 5.1 points, 2.8 rebounds and 21.2 minutes per game to go along with 35 assists, 27 steals and 26 made three's. Sophomore Millie Stevens (3.2 points, 2.8 rebounds) and senior Brechelle Beachum (3.0 points, 1.6 rebounds, 31 steals) also return and add much-needed depth. Both student-athletes made six starts, while Stevens played in 29 games and Beachum all 30.
NEW FACES
Out of the six incoming freshmen, three hail from the state of Illinois: Frannie Corrigan (LaGrange Park, Ill./Lyons Township), Morgan VanHyfte (Annawan, Ill./Annawan) and Megan Talbot (Barrington, Ill./Barrington). Zakiya Beckles (Middlesex, N.J./Middlesex), Deja Turner (Tampa, Fla./Plant) and Amaria Allen (Cincinnati, Ohio/Colerain) are the other incoming freshmen. Junior Hannah Green (Santa Clarita, Calif./West Ranch (College of the Canyons)) is a junior college transfer from the state of California. Green will be a junior and averaged 13.9 points, 13.7 rebounds and 6.5 blocks per game, as she led the California Community College Athletic Association (CCCAA) in blocks per game and ranked third in caroms per game.
ONE OF THE YOUNGEST IN THE NATION
With its roster consisting of six freshmen, three sophomores, one junior and only two seniors, the 2016-17 edition of the Redbirds will be one of the youngest teams in the nation.
REST OF THE NONCONFERENCE
The Redbirds will not have to travel far during the nonconference portion of their schedule, after starting the season at Arizona State. ISU plays its next 10 games in their home state, with six taking place inside Redbird Arena against the likes of Valparaiso, Yale, Eastern Illinois, Wisconsin, Milwaukee and George Mason. The Redbirds will have the luxury of only having to travel to UIC, Northern Illinois, Western Illinois and SIUE.
UP NEXT
The Redbirds continue their road trip when they travel to Chicago, Illinois, to take on UIC in nonconference action Monday, Nov. 14 at 7 p.m. inside the UIC Pavilion.
GoRedbirds.com: Your online source for Illinois State Athletics tickets, Weisbecker Scholarship Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more.
