CARBONDALE, Ill. – The Illinois State women's basketball team never gave up despite frigid shooting in the second half, tying Saturday's contest with 3:29 remaining in the game before ultimately falling to Southern Illinois, 43-41, at the Banterra Center.
The Redbirds drop to 10-4 (7-4 MVC) with the loss while the Salukis improve to 6-8 (3-6 MVC).
Junior Lexy Koudelka led the team in scoring for the first time this year, finishing with season-highs in points (13) and rebounds (8), while shooting an efficient 5-of-6 (83.3%) from the floor. Junior Terrion Moore added eight points, four rebounds, two assists and a game-high four steals.
Senior Makenzie Silvey finished with 13 points, five rebounds and a game-high seven assists in the Saluki win.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Illinois State rattled off eight-straight points to start the game, behind a pair of field goals each from Koudelka and Juliunn Redmond. The Redbirds maintained that lead, extending it to as much as 15 points midway through the second quarter before ending the half with a 10-point, 27-17 advantage.
The 'Birds shot 46.7% (10-of-27) in the first half and went 7-of-8 (87.5%) from the charity stripe.
Illinois State's cold spell hit after halftime, as the Redbirds only recorded two field goals and four points in the third quarter, shooting 20% (2-of-10) in the period. The Salukis surged for 18 points in the same span, converting on 8-of-17 (47.1%) attempts.
ISU made up for lost ground, starting the fourth quarter on a 6-2 run and knotting the score up at 37-37 after a Paige Saylor layup, but were unable to ever take the lead.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- Nine of Koudelka's 13 points came in the first quarter.
- Moore scored six of her eight points in the second half, including four on back-to-back buckets with under 1:30 left to keep the 'Birds within one point.
- The Redbirds did not make a three-pointer in Saturday's game. The last time ISU was held to no triples was during a Nov. 26, 2017 win over Kansas City.
QUOTE FROM HEAD COACH KRISTEN GILLESPIE
On the second half: "You're not going to beat anyone scoring 14 points in a half. I thought we were decent defensively in the first half, but let up a little in the third. It was the perfect storm. I throught we had some good looks down the stretch and they just didn't go in."
On difficulty of playing back-to-back games: "We were just too tired to crash [the boards] and I need to do a better job demanding that. I know these are back-to-back games, but they played as many minutes as we did. Everyone's in the same boat."
UP NEXT
The Redbirds host nationally-ranked Missouri State at Redbird Arena on Friday, Feb. 12 and Saturday, Feb. 13. Tip-off for both games is set for 4 p.m. CT.
For all the latest on Illinois State women's basketball, stay tuned at GoRedbirds.com and follow the team at @RedbirdWBB (Twitter, Facebook, Instagram).
GoRedbirds.com and the Illinois State Redbirds App: Your sources for Illinois State tickets, Weisbecker Scholarship Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more.
