NORMAL, Ill. – Led by senior Lexi Wallen, the Illinois State women's basketball team overcame Indiana State, 62-55, on Saturday afternoon at the Hulman Center in Terre Haute, Indiana. The Redbirds finish the regular season with a 19-10 (11-7 MVC) record and will head into the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament next week on a four-game winning streak.
Wallen had a game-high 18 points, shooting 50 percent (7-of-14) from the field and 4-of-4 from the free throw line. The senior was just one rebound shy of back-to-back double-doubles, pulling down nine rebounds and recording a career-high three steals.
Also finishing in double figures was junior Juliunn Redmond (14 points, six rebounds, three steals) and senior TeTe Maggett (13 points, seven rebounds, five assists).
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Redbirds and Sycamores battled back and forth throughout the first quarter, with neither team establishing a real lead until a jumper by Maggett in the paint put the 'Birds up by three with under a minute left in the period. Redmond and redshirt freshman Mary Crompton each had a team-high five points at the end of the period, also both recording first quarter triples.
Illinois State held the lead for the remainder of the half, entering the locker rooms at halftime with a five-point, 31-26 lead. Wallen recorded eight of her 18 points and all three of her career-high steals in the first half.
The Sycamores mounted a comeback in the third quarter, tying the game at 33 at the 7:23 mark off a field goal by junior guard Marie Hunter. The knotted scoreline did not last long, as the 'Birds would rattle off a 7-0 run and lead for the rest of the game. The Redbirds capitalized on Indiana State's turnovers, converting 10 points off of turnovers in the second half.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- Crompton drained two triples, finishing with eight points in the win. The redshirt freshman holds ISU's freshman three-point record with 68 made this season and has now recorded at least two made three-pointers in six-straight games.
- The Redbirds outrebounded their opponent for the 18th time this season in today's win. The 'Birds are 15-3 when they have the advantage in rebounds.
- Illinois State has now had at least 19 wins in back-to-back years for the first time since the 2011-12 and 2012-13 seasons. Picked to finish sixth in the MVC Preseason Poll, the 'Birds have improved how they finished in all three years under head coach Kristen Gillespie.
QUOTES FROM HEAD COACH KRISTEN GILLESPIE
On the win: "We were a bit out of sync today, but we did enough down the stretch. I thought TeTe made some big shots and free throws towards the end and of course Wallen and JuJu came up big for us. At the end of the day we got the job done and we'll take the win."
UP NEXT
The fourth-seeded Redbirds will take on No. 5 UNI at 2:30 p.m. on Friday in the quarterfinals of the MVC Hoops in the Heartland Tournament. For more information on the MVC Tournament, click here.
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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