NORMAL, Ill. – The Illinois State Redbirds got a stellar 51 points from its bench, including a game-high 22 points from Dedric Boyd; however, UCF out-scored ISU 42-31 in the second half to secure a 67-65 Knights win.
How it Happened
Both teams struggled from the field out of the gate, with the teams sharing a 3-3 tie score through the first four minutes of the game before the Redbirds went on a 13-2 run over a three-minute stretch to turn a two-point deficit into a nine-point advantage following a Boyd old-fashioned three-point play. The visitors fought back and took a one-point, 21-20 lead with just under eight minutes to play in the half. The Redbirds closed the half strong, out-scoring the Knights 14-4 over the final 7:50 of the half to take a nine-point, 34-25 lead into the locker room at halftime.
UCF fought back and scored the first eight points of the second half to climb to within 1, as the lead continued to yo-yo for most of the half between one and nine points. UCF took its first lead since late in the first half with a three-pointer from Darin Green Jr. with 1:08 to play in the game. The Redbirds re-took the lead on a lay-in from Rey Idowu; however, a lay-in with 25 seconds left and a free throw with four seconds on the clock sealed the fate for the Redbirds in the loss.
Key Moment
After Matt Chastain drained a three-pointer with 3:15 to play, the Redbird offense went quiet as UCF ran off a 7-0 run, capped by the Green three-pointer, giving the visitors their first lead of the half.
Inside the Box Score
- The Illinois State bench scored 51 of the team's 65 points in the game, and all three of the double-digit scorers were non-starters.
- Boyd made 10-of-15 shots from the field and 1-of-4 from long range, scoring a season-high 22 points.
- In his first action of the season, Chastain scored a dozen points – one off a career-high – while stuffing the box score with six rebounds, four assists, three steals and two blocked shots.
- Antonio Reeves scored a career-high 11 points, making 5-of-8 shots from the field and 1-of-3 from beyond the arc while adding three rebounds, an assist and a steal.
- Idowu pulled down a team-best eight rebounds while scoring two points.
- Illinois State dished out 16 assists which ties a season-high, while the team's eight steals are a new season-high through three games of the season.
Stat of the Game
Illinois State's 51 bench points is more than the team scored over the first two games of the season, combined, and are the most in the Dan Muller era (the previous high for bench points in a game was 46 during the 2014-15 season.
What's Next
Illinois State travels to Saint Thomas, in the U.S. Virgin Islands for a three-game tournament, in which the Redbirds will face off against Cincinnati in the opener on Friday.
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