GEORGE TOWN, Grand Cayman  – The Illinois State Redbirds cut a 25-point Georgia advantage to just 11 points; however, the Redbird rally ran out of time, as ISU fell to the Bulldogs 80-68.
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How It Happened
Illinois State came out of the gate with a driving lay-in from Milik Yarbrough; however, on Georgia's first possession of the game the Bulldogs came away with seven points on a made three-pointer, two free throws on a flagrant 1 hooking foul call, and a jumper to put the Bulldogs ahead 7-2. Georgia scored 16 straight over the next four minutes to push ahead by 14 points, and the Redbirds trailed by as many as 23 in the period. A 5-0 run on a three-point basket by Matt Hein and another lay-in by Yarbrough cut the deficit to 18, and ISU went into the locker room trailing 47-26.
ISU used back-to-back three-pointers from William Tinsley to climb within 13 with 16:11 to play, but Georgia fought back and pushed ahead to a 25-point lead – its largest lead of the game. After trailing by the widest margin, ISU started an immediate 9-0 run on a lay-in by Tinsley, three-pointer by Keyshawn Evans, a dunk by Yarbrough, and a lay-in by Evans to get back to within 16 at 67-51. ISU continued to chip away at the deficit, and got to within 11 points with 2:23 to play in the contest; however, could not get any closer in the 80-68 loss to the SEC opponent.
Key Moment
After Illinois State got a driving lay-in from Yarbrough, the Redbirds saw Georgia score seven points before ISU got another chance on offense.
Inside the Box Score
- Yarbrough scored a team-high 20 points – his second 20-point effort of the season – as he made 8-of-19 shots from the field while also pulling down a team-high eight rebounds and dished out four assists.
- Tinsley scored 14 points – all in the second half – making 4-of-7 shots from long range and 5-of-8 overall. He also pulled down six rebounds and had two blocked shots.
- Evans added a dozen points, making 3-of-9 shots from the field, 2-of-5 from three-point range, and 4-of-4 from the free throw line.
- Phil Fayne blocked a game-high four shots while adding a steal.
- Zach Copeland scored nine points with five rebounds and a steal.
Stat of the Game
7-of-14: After making just 2-of-13 tries from long distance in the first half, Illinois State converted on half of its 14 three-point tries in the second half.
What's Next
Illinois State returns to action at the Cayman Islands Classic at 10 a.m. (CT) against the Akron Zips.
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