Redbirds Look for Road Win in Evansville

NORMAL, Ill. - The Illinois State Redbirds will look for their first road win of the season on Saturday afternoon, as ISU will take on the Evansville Aces in southwest Indiana.

GAME INFORMATION
Illinois State Redbirds (10-8, 3-2 MVC) vs. Evansville Aces (9-9, 3-2 MVC)
When: Saturday, Jan. 19
Tip-Off: 1 p.m.
Location: Evansville, Ind.
Arena: Ford Center
TV: The Valley on ESPN (ESPN+)
    Alex Gould, play-by-play
    Joe Downs, analyst
Radio: WJBC (AM 1230 / FM 93.7) / TuneIn Radio
    Dick Luedke, play-by-play
    Mike Matthews, analyst
Live Stats: Evansville Live Stats 

SETTING THE TABLE

•    Illinois State is 9-0 this season when going into halftime with a lead.
•    Phil Fayne's 1,044 career points put him 41st in school history, and with his next five points he will climb to 38th on the all-time list. 
•    Illinois State's 132-88 record since Dan Muller took over the program is the most wins and best win percentage in the state of Illinois.
•    Milik Yarbrough was named to the Lou Henson Award mid-season watch list. 
•    Illinois State's seven-game overtime win streak is the second-longest active overtime win streak in the country.
•    Milik Yarbrough is one of five student-athletes in the country to rank inside of his conference's top-5 in points, rebounds, and assists.
•    Dan Muller is one of 30 head coaches across the country who are coaching at their alma maters, and his 132 wins has him ninth on that list.
•    Illinois State has won its last seven games against Evansville. 
•    Over the last two seasons, Illinois State is 24-7 in games that are within five points at the end of regulation.
•    Four players: Milik Yarbrough (18.0), Phil Fayne (14.0), Keyshawn Evans (11.0), and Zach Copeland (11.0) average double-figure scoring over their careers against Evansville, while head coach Dan Muller averaged 12.6 points per game in his career against the Aces. 
•    Milik Yarbrough is one of 22 student-athletes in the NCAA since 1992-93 to average at least 16.6 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 3.7 assists per game.
•    Keyshawn Evans ranks seventh in school history in career three-pointers made (169) and attempted (450).
•    In the first meeting with Evansville this season, Illinois State had a 17-to-7 assist-to-turnover ratio, which is the sixth-largest such margin since Muller has taken over as head coach. 
•    Illinois State has 11 games this season in which they will face off against a team with a head coach in his first year with the program.
•    Illinois State has had five different players lead the team in scoring during a game.
•    Illinois State is 18-9 all-time on January 19.

SCOUTING THE ACES

Evansville comes into the game having evenly split its last eight games, going 4-4 since Dec. 18, and have a 3-2 mark in MVC play.

In the team's most recent game, a 70-64 win at Missouri State, the Aces saw nine players reach the scoring column and seven make a three-point basket in the victory. K.J. Riley scored a game-high 16 points to go with his team-high eight rebounds. John Hall was a perfect 4-for-4 from the field including  a 3-for-3 effort from beyond the arc, while Shea Feehan scored 10.

Four players average at least nine points per game for the Aces, led by Riley's 13.9 points per game. Feehan (11.8), Marty Hill (10.4), and Hall (9.3) all average at least nine points and have started all 18 games for Evansville. 

Hall leads the MVC in rebounding, averaging 8.1 boards per game, while Riley has dished out a team-best 57 assists while also grabbing a team-high 23 steals. Dainius Chatkevicius has blocked a team-high 13 shots, while Hall (11) and Riley (10) are both in double-digits in the category.
 

AT AND CLIMBING NEAR 1,000

Against Evansville on Jan. 5, ISU senior Phil Fayne became the 44th-member of the program's 1,000-point club, with two teammates - Milik Yarbrough and Keyshawn Evans - closing in on the milestone as well, as Yarbrough has 828 points and Evans 796.

BEST IN THE STATE

Over the last seven-plus seasons, there has been one NCAA Division I school in the state of Illinois to have a winning record six times - Illinois State. During current head coach Dan Muller's tenure, the Redbirds have experienced a level of success that is unrivaled among the other 13 Division I schools within the state. ISU is 132-88 over the last six-plus seasons, and the next best program's record - Loyola - is 126-95. (as of games on Jan. 16)

PLAYER OF THE YEAR WATCH LIST

Illinois State senior Milik Yarbrough has been named as one of 50 student-athletes announced to the mid-season Lou Henson Award watch list, announced on Jan. 10. The award is presented annually to the nation's top mid-major player in Division I College Basketball. The 2019 Lou Henson Award will be presented at the College Insider awards event in April at the site of the men's Division I National Championship in Minneapolis, Minnesota.