Men's Basketball Takes to the Road to Battle Panthers

NORMAL, Ill. - Illinois State will look for its second straight win, and a season sweep of UNI, as the Redbirds travel to Cedar Falls to take on the Panthers on Wednesday, February 12.

GAME INFORMATION
Illinois State Redbirds (8-16, 3-9 MVC) vs. UNI Panthers (21-3, 10-2 MVC)
When: Wednesday, February 12
Tip-Off: 7 p.m.
Location: Cedar Falls, Iowa
Arena: McLeod Center
TV: ESPN+
    Eric Braley, play-by-play
    Adam DeJoode, analyst
Radio: WJBC 93.7 & 1230 AM
    Dick Luedke, play-by-play
    Mike Matthews, analyst

QUICK HITTERS

• DJ Horne and Abdou Ndiaye rank inside of the top-10 in school history among freshmen in three-point field goal percentage (Horne), three-pointers made (Horne), and blocked shots (Ndiaye).
• Illinois State has twice had a +12 assist/turnover margin in a game this season, which is tied for the sixth-most in a game over the last 20 seasons.
• With his 32-point, 7-assist, 8-three-point field goals, 0-turnover game against Drake, Illinois State senior Zach Copeland became one of just three NCAA Division I student-athletes since 2010-11 to have similar numbers. His three-point makes tied a school record, and is one of just three players this season with games of 30-points, 7-assists, and 0-turnovers.
• Illinois State's defense has forced opponents to use 191 seconds per possession, which is the highest total in the country this season. Additionally, it is the third-highest in Division I basketball since the 2015-16 season.
• This season Illinois State has had eight different players lead the team in scoring, which is the second-highest such total in the MVC this season.
• Dan Muller is one of 38 head coaches in the country this season that are coaching at their alma maters, and on that list he has the eighth-most victories. Leading that list include Jim Boeheim (Syracuse), Roy Williams (North Carolina), Matt Painter (Purdue), and Bob Huggins (West Virginia).
• Illinois State has used 10 different starting lineup combinations this season.
• Illinois State has won its last seven overtime games, the second-longest overtime win streak in the country, behind only Florida State's nine-game overtime win streak.
• Illinois State freshmen DJ Horne and Antonio Reeves have combined to account for six of the top 11 single-game scoring efforts by a freshman in the Dan Muller era.
• Against Indiana State, Illinois State made 26 free throws (on 33 attempts), which is a new season-high and a season high among two MVC teams. The last time a Redbird team had more free throw makes was on Nov. 16 when the team beat South Carolina and the Redbirds made 28-of-39 free throws.
• Zach Copeland and Jaycee Hillsman each hit the 20-point plateau against Indiana State, the first time since Dec. 16, 2018 that ISU had two players reach the 20-point scoring mark. The Redbirds have five players - Copeland, Hillsman, Dedric Boyd, Keith Fisher and DJ Horne - who have scored at least 20 points, which is tied for the top-such mark in the conference this season.
• Zach Copeland ranks 32nd in the country in three-point field goal percentage, while his 2.7 three-pointers made per game ranks 54th among all Division I student-athletes.

SCOUTING THE PANTHERS

Northern Iowa comes into the mid-week game as the re-match game for the opening game of the 2019-20 MVC season in which Illinois State topped the Panthers 76-70.

In the Panthers' last game, an 83-73 win over Drake, AJ Green scored a game-high 34 points en route to his being named the MVC Player of the Week. Green made 12-of-21 shots in the win, while going 6-of-9 from long range and also leading the team with three assists. Trae Berhow scored 18 points, while Spencer Haldeman scored 12. Justin Dahl pulled down a team-high six rebounds while also adding a pair of blocked shots.

This season Green leads the conference in scoring, averaging 20.0 points per game, including hitting on 74-of-182 shots from long range (40.7 percent). Berhow averages 14.0 points per game for second on the team, as Austin Phyfe averages 10.7 tallies per contest. Haldeman (9.0) and Isaiah Brown (8.5) are just off of the double-figure pace.

Phyfe leads the team in rebounding, pulling down 7.4 boards per game, while Green's 72 assists are the highest on the squad. Phyfe has 16 blocked shots to lead the team, while Brown's 23 steals are the highest mark on the team.

YOUNG STATS

This season, Illinois State freshmen DJ Horne and Abdou Ndiaye have climbed into the top-10 in program history in a trio of categories, as Horne currently is tied for the best single-season three-point percentage by a freshman, most three-point field goals by a freshman, and most blocked shots by a freshman.

BIG RATIO

Against Evansville on Jan. 29, Illinois State has a +12 assist-to-turnover ratio, which is tied - along with its +12 margin against Drake earlier this season - for the sixth-best such ratio in the last 20 years. 

LOW TURNOVERS

For a second time this season, Illinois State committed just six turnovers in a game, the second time on Wednesday, Jan. 29 against Evansville. The two games are tied for the third-fewest turnovers in a game under head coach Dan Muller. The Muller-era-low for turnovers in a game is four against Drake on Jan. 3, 2016.

RARE AIR

When Zach Copeland had his big game against Drake (32 points, seven assists, eight three-point field goals, and no turnovers), he became one of just three NCAA Division I student-athletes since 2010-11 to have similar numbers.

LOW HALF SCORING

When Illinois State held Southern Illinois to just 17 first-half points, it was tied for the third-lowest scoring half for an MVC opponent this season. Only Missouri State has given up fewer points in a half when they held both Arkansas State and Valparaiso to 16 points in games this season.

Over the last 20 seasons, there have been 48 instances in which the Redbirds held an opponent to fewer than 20 points in a half, including 11 points in the first half against Indiana State during the 2003-04 season. Below are the 15 lowest single-half scores since the turn of the century.

SCHOOL RECORD FROM DISTANCE

With his eight three-point baskets against Drake, Illinois State senior Zach Copeland made eight three-point baskets, which ties the Illinois State single-game record, and is tied for the 10th-most in a game in MVC history. 

BIG PRODUCTION

On the road at Drake, Illinois State senior Zach Copeland put up quite the stats line in which he scored 32 points, dished out seven assists, and had zero turnovers. This season there have been just 17 players in NCAA Division I that have scored at least 30 points with seven assists in a game, and just three of those did it with no turnovers.

GETTING DEFENSIVE AT LENGTH

This season Illinois State opponents average an offensive possession length of 19.3 seconds. That time is the longest defensive possession length in the country. The Redbirds trail just Washington (19.3). Below are the 10 longest defensive possession lengths in the country according to the basketball stat analysis site KenPom.