Redbirds Travel to Chicago to Face Off Against Ramblers

CHICAGO - The Illinois State Redbirds take to the road for a Wednesday evening battle with in-state foe Loyola Chicago with a 7 p.m. tip-off at Gentile Arena.

GAME INFORMATION
Illinois State Redbirds (8-18, 3-11 MVC) vs. Loyola Chicago Ramblers (18-9, 10-4 MVC)
When: Wednesday, February 19
Tip-Off: 7 p.m.
Location: Chicago, Illinois
Arena: Gentile Arena
TV: NBC Sports Chicago+ / ESPN+
    Jordan Bernfield, play-by-play
    Jeff Dickerson, analyst
Radio: WJBC 93.7 & 1230 AM
    Dick Luedke, play-by-play
    Mike Matthews, analyst

QUICK HITTERS

• Illinois State senior Zach Copeland has made 70-of-175 three-point baskets this season, and is one of 17 players across NCAA Division I to have at least 70 makes with a three-point field goal percentage of .400.
• Copeland's 70 three-point field goals this season are nine away from moving into the top-10 for single-season three-pointers made, and is tied for the fifth-most by a senior in program history.
• This season Illinois State has held opposing offenses to a possession length of 19.1 seconds per possession, the longest-such total in the country. In fact, the program's percentage is the third-longest since the 2015-16 season.
• Against UNI, Illinois State finished the game without attempting a free throw, the fourth time this season in NCAA Division I that a team has had a game with no free throw attempts. 
• This season, freshman DJ Horne has made 39 three-point field goals for a percentage of .419, as the percentage is the third-best by a freshman in program history, and the makes are seventh. Additionally, Abdou Ndiaye's 27 blocked shots are the sixth-most by a freshman in program history.
• With a 32-point, 7-assist, 8-three pointers, 0-turnover effort against Drake on January 16, Zach Copeland tied a school three-pointer record, and is one of just three players this season with games of at least 30 points, 7 assists, and no turnovers.
• Illinois State has had eight different players lead the team in scoring, which is the second-highest total in the MVC this season. ISU also has had 10 different players lead the team in assists (second-most), and seven in rebounding (fourth-best).
• Dan Muller is one of 38 head coaches in NCAA Division I who are coaching at their alma mater, and his 147 wins is the eighth-most on the list. Topping the fraternity of coaching at their alma mater is Jim Boeheim (Syracuse), Roy Williams (North Carolina), Matt Painter (Purdue), and Bob Huggins (West Virginia).
• The Illinois State starting lineup combination of DJ Horne, Zach Copeland, Ricky Torres, Keith Fisher III, and Rey Idowu have a combined jersey total of 23, the lowest starting lineup jersey total in the Dan Muller era.
• Illinois State has won its last seven overtime games, which is tied for the second-longest active overtime win streak in the country, behind only Florida State's nine consecutive overtime wins.
• DJ Horne's 22 points against UNI on Dec. 31 is the highest single-game freshman total under Dan Muller. Horne currently has five of the top-12 single-game freshman scoring marks in program history, while Antonio Reeves holds two of the top-12 marks.

SCOUTING THE RAMBLERS

Loyola enters the mid-week game riding a three-game win streak with a two-point home win over Valparaiso, a seven-point road win at Evansville, and a nine-point overtime home win over Northern Iowa.

In the team's win over UNI, two players - Keith Clemons and Cameron Krutwig - each scored 20 points with 25 and 21 points, respectively. Tate Hall and Marquise Kennedy each scored 11 points, while Lucas Williamson was just off of the double-figure pace with eight points. Krutwig pulled down a team-high 11 rebounds, while Hall gave out six assists.

This season Krutwig leads the Ramblers in points (416), rebounds (219), assists (113), and blocked shots (18). Hall also averages in double figure scoring at 12.8 points per game with Clemons (9.8), Kennedy (9.1), and Williamson (9.0) averaging at least nine points per game. Hall is second on the team with 62 assists, while leading the team with 41 steals. 

LONG RANGE RECORDS

This season Zach Copeland has made 70 three-point field goals on 170 attempts. That makes total puts him nine away from climbinging into the program's single-season top-10 list, and is tied for the fifth-most in a senior season in program history.

DOUBLE DIPPING

This season, Zach Copeland has made 70-of-170 three-point attempts, which is a percentage of 40.0. The percentage ranks 32nd in the country and the makes per game ranks 52nd. He is one of 17 student-athletes in NCAA Division I to rank inside of the top-52 in each of the categories.

GETTING DEFENSIVE AT LENGTH

This season Illinois State opponents average an offensive possession length of 19.1 seconds. That time is the longest defensive possession length in the country. Below are the 10 longest defensive possession lengths in the country according to the basketball stat analysis site KenPom. The team's possession length is the third-longest in the NCAA since the 2015-16 season.

FREE OF THE CHARITY STRIPE

Against UNI on February 12, the Illinois State Redbirds did not make a trip to the free throw line for the entirety of the game. It was just the third time this season in NCAA Division I contest where a team did not attempt a free throw, and the 27th time since 2010-11. Of those 27, Illinois State appears twice on the list, including its March 4, 2017 win against Southern Illinois.

PLAYING NICE

When Illinois State faced off against Northern Iowa on Wednesday, Feb. 12, the Panthers committed just five fouls over the full 40 minutes of action in the game. It was tied for the eighth-fewest fouls in a game in Division I this season.