DES MOINES, Iowa – The Illinois State women's basketball team dropped a hard-fought 88-61 battle to No. 22 Drake Thursday night.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Bulldogs opened with back-to-back triples to pull an early lead in the first quarter. Kayel Newland stopped the streak as she went up for two. The Redbirds would only add six more in the quarter as the team faced difficulty from the field, and the Bulldogs skipped ahead 21-8 at the end of the first period.
ISU answered in the second quarter, closing the gap to six, as Lexi Wallen was fouled on a layup and sent the line for a 3-point play with 5:51 to play in the first half. The Redbirds fell just short of matching Drake's scoring in the second 15-13, resulting in a 36-21 halftime score.
The Redbirds could not overcome the deficit in the second half, falling to Drake in Des Moines, 88-61.
INSIDE THE BOX SCOREÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
- Maggett went 7-for-8 at the charity stripe and led the 'Birds with 16 points
- Goods followed with 15 points and led ISU on the boards, grabbing eight.
- Drake shot .538 from long range, netting 7-of-13.
- Sara Rhine added a double-double for Drake with 21 points and 11 rebounds.
- Becca Hittner led all scorers with 23 points.
QUOTES FROM COACH
"I've got to give Drake a ton of credit, what they do is really hard to guard and the pace they play is really tough to simulate."
"Our inability to finish, we weren't super aggressive offensively and that really hurt us."
"This is who we have to beat to become the best team, they're a great measuring stick. We have a ways to go, but I can promise you our staff and our team will work really hard to get back. We'll get there one day, I promise."
UP NEXT
The Illinois State women's basketball team will close out the weekend on Saturday, March 9 as the 'Birds take on UNI with a tip-off time set for 2 p.m.
GoRedbirds.com: Your online source for Illinois State Athletics tickets, Weisbecker Scholarship Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more.
