NORMAL, Ill. – On the earliest MVC opening day in conference history, the Illinois State Redbirds rallied from nine down with 4:14 to play in the game to force overtime and then out-score Missouri State 15-10 in the extra period to go to 1-0 in the MVC behind a 75-70 win.
Antonio Reeves scored a team-high 22 points, including seven in the overtime period, as he made 7-of-16 shots from the field and 4-of-5 from beyond the arc. Josiah Strong tied his career-high with 21 points, making 5-of-8 shots from long range. Two other Redbirds – Sy Chatman and Mark Freeman – each scored 10 points in the five-point victory.
The Redbirds return to action on Saturday, December 4, when the squad hosts Jackson State in a 3 p.m. tip-off at Redbird Arena. The next MVC game for ISU is on January 2, when the team takes on the Valparaiso Beacons in a 1 p.m. tip-off in northwest Indiana.
The teams went back and forth early in the game; however, Missouri State put in a gap towards the middle of the opening half, leading by as many as 10 with 12:02 to play in the first period. The Margin remained 10 with 3:17 to play in the first half before ISU ran off 11 consecutive points, including three pointers – one each from Strong, Fleming, and Reeves – over a four-possession span, and the team took its first lead since early in the game when Lewis made a fast break lay-in; however, a three-pointer from Missouri State with seven seconds left in the half sent the visitors into the locker room with a 34-32 lead.
The lead changed hands six times in the second half; however, a Jaylen Minnett three-pointer with 4:14 to play in the game put the visiting Bears ahead by nine at 62-53. After a timeout, ISU got a lay-in from Ryan Schmitt, before forcing a turnover on the next possession. Kendall Lewis drained a three-pointer the next time down the floor, before ISU forced a shot clock violation, and a lay-in from Antonio Reeves put ISU within one two minutes later. The lead was pushed back to three before Reeves passed up a fast break three-pointer to find teammate Strong, who buried his long-range try to tie the game at 64. The Redbirds forced a shot clock violation the next time down the floor, as Strong's floater from just inside of the arc rimmed in and out, second ISU to its third overtime game this season.
The Redbirds won the overtime toss and scored first with a Reeves three-pointer, and ISU never trailed in the extra period, as Reeves followed the made three with mid-lane floaters over the next two possessions to push the margin to five. After a defensive stop on the other end, Chatman threw down a dunk to put ISU ahead 73-66. Illinois State iced the game down the stretch by making six of seven free throws in the 79-74 win.
Illinois State made 45.6 percent of its shots in the game (26-of-47), while converting on 13-of-23 three-point tries (56.5%) and a near-perfect 14-of-15 from the charity stripe. Missouri State had an identical shooting percentage as ISU, making 31-of-68 shots for a 45.6 percentage, while making 7-of-25 from long range and 5-of-6 from the free throw line.
Missouri State's Gaige Prim scored a game-high 27 points, making 13-of-15 shots from the field, while Isiaih Mosley scored 12 and Lu'cye Patterson 10.
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