FINAL STATS
DAN MULLER INTERVIEW | NICK BANYARD INTERVIEW
EVANSVILLE, Ind. – Nick Banyard scored a career-high 18 points and Paris Lee matched a career best with nine assists to help Illinois State secure a 70-60 Missouri Valley Conference victory at Evansville Thursday night at the Ford Center.
Now in sole possession of second place in the Missouri Valley Conference standings with five games remaining, ISU improved to 9-4 in league play for the first time since the 2007-08 season. The Redbirds have won six of their last seven games ahead of Sunday's I-74 Rivalry matchup with Bradley.
Banyard was joined in double-figure scoring by DeVaughn Akoon-Purcell (14 points), Lee (12 points) and MiKyle McIntosh (11). Deontae Hawkins collected a team-best nine rebounds, and McIntosh chipped in eight boards. D.J. Balentine led Evansville's offense with 19 points. Illinois State shot 24-for-59 (40.7 percent) from the field and 15-for-16 (93.8 percent) at the free throw line, while Evansville shot 19-for-50 (38.0 percent) from the field and 3-for-13 (23.1 percent) at the foul line. The Redbirds also outrebounded the Purple Aces, 39-35.
After Evansville built an early 8-3 lead, the Redbirds answered with a 6-0 run, including two Akoon-Purcell field goals, to take a 9-8 advantage at the 13:45 mark. UE's Egidijus Mockevicius answered with back-to-back dunks; however, a Banyard layup sparked a 10-3 Redbird run, as ISU took a 19-15 advantage on a Lee jumper with 8:27 to play in the first half.
With Illinois State ahead, 23-20, the Purple Aces manufactured a 10-3 run, capped by a Mockevicius dunk with 57 seconds remaining in the first half, to lead 30-26. McIntosh stopped ISU's two-and-a-half-minute scoring drought by draining a 3-pointer with three seconds to play, cutting Illinois State's halftime deficit to 30-29. Banyard led all first-half scorers with 10 points on 4-for-5 shooting.
In the second half, Tony Wills pushed the Redbirds ahead by burying a 3-pointer at the 19:23 mark, sparking a 10-2 run to start the period, as Illinois State established a 39-32 advantage with 16:14 remaining. After Evansville pulled within 39-37, the Redbirds scored five-unanswered points to lead, 44-37, at the 12:34 mark. The Purple Aces again cut their deficit to four points with 10:41 remaining before Illinois State manufactured an 8-1 run over 1:54, capped by a Banyard layup, to lead, 52-41, at the 8:38 mark.
A Banyard dunk with 6:36 remaining extended Illinois State's advantage to 56-43 – ISU's largest lead of the game – with 6:36 left. Evansville pulled to within 66-60 on an Adam Wing layup with 43 seconds to play. However, that was as close as the Purple Aces could get, as Illinois State went a perfect 12-for-12 at the free throw line in the final 3:34 to secure the MVC victory.
The Redbirds return to Doug Collins Court at Redbird Arena to host Bradley Sunday, Feb. 14 at 3 p.m. ISU is aiming to for its fourth-straight victory and a sweep in the I-74 Rivalry series versus the Braves. Tickets can be purchased by visiting or calling the ISU Athletics Ticket Office at (309) 438-8000, or by navigating to GoRedbirds.com/Tickets.
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