NORMAL, Ill. – Senior guard TeTe Maggett scored 21 points in 28 minutes on the court to guide Illinois State to its first win of the year, defeating Truman State, 87-60, in the season opener at Redbird Arena on Tuesday night.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Bulldogs kept the Redbirds off their game in the first quarter, converting six points off of second-chance shots and three points off of turnovers to maintain a 16-14 lead at the end of the period.
Illinois State exploded offensively to start the second quarter, going on a 24-4 run to begin the period and eventually taking a 40-27 lead into halftime. Maggett was a large part of the momentum swing, scoring 12 of her 21 points in the second quarter alone. The Bulldogs did not come within single-digits of the Redbirds for the remainder of the game.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- Maggett led all scorers with 21 points and added five rebounds. This was the fifth 20+ point performance of her career.
- Lexi Wallen added 13 points of her own, shooting 6-of-7 from the field.
- Junior guard Juliunn Redmond went 5-of-7 to total 12 points in her debut for the Redbirds, also grabbing five boards.
- Illinois State recorded 62 of their points in the paint, almost tripling Truman State's 22.
- Sophomore Lexy Koudelka pulled down nine boards on the night, six of them coming in the first half.
- Redmond, McKenna Sims, Cameron Call and Hannah Kelle all made their Illinois State debuts this evening. Call and Sims each made a three-pointer, the only triples of the game for the Redbirds.
- All 12 active players saw playing time in tonight's contest.
QUOTES FROM COACH KRISTEN GILLESPIE
On Truman State: "First and foremost, I want to give Truman State a ton of credit. I though Coach Dean has done a great job - getting that job so late and under some tough circumstances – he's got his team playing really well."
On the Great Lakes Valley Conference: "It's a tough league – one of the best in the country – and I knew they were going to play hard. That's just in their DNA."
On what needs improvement: "I think everyone that watched the game can tell we have some work to do on the defensive end and rebounding. I promise it's not a lack of focus on our staff or our program, but we just haven't gotten there yet. Thank goodness we can score the ball."
UP NEXT
ISU travels to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, this Sunday to take on Marquette. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m.
For all latest on Illinois State women's basketball, stay tuned at GoRedbirds.com and follow the team at @RedbirdWBB (Twitter, Facebook, Instagram).
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