NORMAL, Ill. – Illinois State closed the first half on a 25-6 run and opened the first half by scoring seven of the first nine points – a total run of 32-8 over a 14-minute span – in an 82-74 win over Augustana.
Phil Fayne scored 23 points – making 11-of-13 shots from the field – with eight rebounds and two steals, while Zach Copeland scored 17 points with five rebounds, and Milik Yarbrough 16 points with five assists and four rebounds.
The win was the second of the exhibition season for ISU, which opens the regular season at home on Tuesday, November 6 against Florida Gulf Coast. Augustana, which returned four starters from a team that advanced to the NCAA Division III quarterfinals last season and is the No. 3 preseason ranked team in Division III, opens its season on November 16 at Alma (Mich.).
How It Happened
Illinois State started strong, with a Fayne dunk, before the visitors ran off five straight points to take a three-point lead on the first of five Nolan Ebel three-point baskets. Augustana pushed its lead to as many as six at 22-16 with 11:08 to play in the first half. Following a timeout by head coach Dan Muller, the Redbirds got a lay-in from Keyshawn Evans to kick-start a 12-0 ISU run, giving the hosts a lead they would not give up for the remainder of the game. After the advantage was cut to four with 2:44 to play, the Redbirds closed the half on a 9-0 run to take a 13-point, 41-18 lead into the locker room at halftime.
A 7-2 run to start the second half put Illinois State ahead by 18 points – the high-margin of the game – before Augustana started to chip away at the deficit. The Vikings were able to close to within as few as four points late in the game, before ISU iced the game with four made free throws, two each from Copeland and Evans, to close out the eight-point win.
Key Moment
An Illinois State 12-0 run that started with 10:51 to play in the first half turned a six-point deficit into a six-point lead – an advantage that ISU would not give up for the remainder of the contest.
Inside the Box Score
- Fayne scored 23 points, making 11-of-13 from the field, and 1-of-2 from the free throw line. He also grabbed eight rebounds, two steals, and blocked a shot.
- Copeland scored 17 points, including going 5-of-6 from the charity stripe, while adding five rebounds.
- Yarbrough scored 16 points, making 6-of-8 from the field, while dishing out a game-high-tying five assists with four rebounds.
- William Tinsley was a point shy of reaching a double-double with nine points and a game-high 11 rebounds and dished out four assists in 26 minutes of action.
- Evans scored six points off of the bench
- Illinois State out-rebounded Augustana 42-32 in the game and made 59.6 percent of its shots (31-of-52) against a team that ranked 23rd in the country in blocked shots a season earlier.
Stat of the Game
.542: In its two exhibition games this season, ISU made 52.2 percent (58-of-107) of its shots from the field, led by Fayne who made 17-of-23 (.739) during the two exhibitions.
What's Next
Illinois State tips off its 2018-19 regular season on Tuesday, Nov. 6, when the Redbirds host the Florida Gulf Coast Eagles in a 6 p.m. tip-off at Doug Collins Court in Redbird Arena.
Season and single-game tickets are on sale now at GoRedbirds.com/tickets, or by calling the Redbird ticket office at 309-438-8000.
GoRedbirds.com and the Illinois State Redbirds App: Your sources for Illinois State tickets, Weisbecker Scholarship Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos, and more
