NORMAL, Ill. - The Illinois State Redbirds will recognize two student-athletes - Josiah Strong and Abdou Ndiaye - both of whom will graduate in May, in addition to celebrating the career of Redbird broadcasting legend Dick Luedke, who will be broadcasting his final home game at Redbird Arena.
QUICK HITTERS
• On Sunday, February 13, former Illinois State head coach Dan Muller was notified that he would not return as head coach following this current season but elected to continue to coach the team through the remainder of the 2021-22 season. One day later, he stepped down and handed the reigns of the team over to former Associate Head Coach Brian Jones.
• Interim head coach Brian Jones is a graduate of Northern Iowa (1994) and spent 14 seasons as head coach at the University of North Dakota.
• Illinois State broadcaster Dick Luedke has announced that the 2021-22 season will be his last as a broadcaster, and he has had the call for Redbird basketball for 36 seasons and over 1,000 games. He will be recognized for his time at ISU during Saturday's game.
• The game will be a preview of the opening game of 2022 Arch Madness, the second consecutive season that the Redbirds will have faced the same opponent to end the regular season and to open the MVC Tournament.
• Antonio Reeves is one point away from becoming the program's eighth member of the 600-point club, and the first since Tarise Bryson joined the group during the 2000-01 season.
• Illinois State has 143 blocked shots as a team this season, which is tied for the fifth-most in a season in program history.
• ISU junior forward Kendall Lewis this season has 34 steals, 32 blocked shots and 31 assists, becoming one of just 30 players in the MVC since 1993-94, and one of just four players in ISU basketball history to have a season of at least 30 in those three categories.
• The Illinois State duo of Josiah Strong and Antonio Reeves have combined to make 150 three-point baskets this season, which is the third-highest two-person total in program history.
• Josiah Strong's three-point percentage this season of 42.7 is the best in the MVC and the 11th-best in NCAA Division I this season.
• Antonio Reeves has 16 20+-point scoring games this season, which is the eighth-most in the country and the eighth-most in Illinois State history.
• According to the stat analytics website KenPom has Illinois State with two of the top-11 most exciting games during the season, including the top spot on the list with ISU's overtime win over Bucknell on Nov. 20.
• Illinois State has played in six overtime games this season, the second-most in a season in program history, and tied for the most in the country along with Valparaiso and UT Arlington.
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SCOUTING THE SYCAMORES
Indiana State enters the regular-season finale looking to snap out of its four-game losing skid, including an 88-82 loss against Northern Iowa in the most recent game.
Against the Panthers, Cameron Henry scored a game-high 23 points with seven assists, while Kailex Stephens scored 14 points and Julian Larry and Micah Thomas each scored 11. The Sycamores out-rebounded UNI 25-24, and made 13-of-31 three-point attempts in the loss.
Cooper Neese leads Indiana State in scoring, averaging 15.9 points per game, while Henry averages 14.9 and Thomas 10.2. Two other players, Kailex Stephens (9.6) and Xavier Bledson (9.5) are near the double-figure scoring average mark.
Henry leads the team with 151 rebounds, with Stephens just behind with 149, while Bledson's 90 assists lead the team, as Henry is second on the squad with 76 while also leading the team with 15 blocked shots. Larry's 35 steals in 28 games lead the team.
600-POINT CLUB
With his next point, Illinois State guard Antonio Reeves will become Illinois State's eighth member of the 600-point club for a season. Of that grouup, Doug Collins has three seasons in that club, and the last person to join the club was Tarise Bryson in the 2000-01 season.
SEASON BLOCKS RECORD
With 143 blocked shots this season and at least three more games to play on the year, this season's Redbird squad is on pace to etch its name into the school record books for the most blocked shots in a season in program history. The school record was set during the 2016-17 season with 171 blocked shots.Â
RARE 30-30-30
This season Illinois State junior forward Kendall Lewis has 34 steals, 32 blocked shots, and 31 assists. Since 1993-94, only 30 players in the MVC have put up at least 30 points, 30 steals, and 30 assists in a single season, and he is one of just two players - along with Cameron Krutwig - to do it since 2017-18. He is the first Redbird since 2007-08 to be a part of the 30-30-30 club, and one of four players in school history to be a part of the group. Additionally, including Lewis, there are just 17 players in the country a part of the club.
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LEADING THE MVC
Heading into the final game of the 2021-22 regular season, Illinois State junior guard Antonio Reeves and Missouri State's Isiaih Mosley each have 599 points in 30 games, tied for the highest scoring average in the MVC. If Reeves ends the season on top of the conference in scoring, he will be just the third Redbird in program history to be in the top spot in the category, joining Osiris Eldridge (2009-10) and Tarise Bryson (2000-01).
PAIRING UP FROM DISTANCE
In the history of the collegiate three-point basket (starting in the 1985-86 season), there have been 72 pair of Redbird student-athletes to team up to make a combined 100 three-point baskets in a single season. One of those pairs is ISU guards Josiah Strong (79) and Antonio Reeves (71) who have combined 150 three-point baskets, third-most by a pair for a single season in program history. The two-person school record is 162 from Champ Oguchi (90) and Osiris Eldridge (72) from the 2008-09 season.
PAIR OF 70'S
Illinois State, which has Josiah Strong with 79 made three-point baskets and Antonio Reeves with 71, is one of just five schools in the country (along with Jacksonville State, Liberty, Rice, and Syracuse) that has two players with at least 70 made three-point baskets this season (as of games played on February 23).
STRONG SHOOTING
This season, Illinois State guard Josiah Strong has made 42.7 percent of his long-range tries, which is the 11th-best mark in the MVC this season, and 11th-best in NCAA Division I.
MANY 20'S
This season in 30 games, Illinois State guard Antonio Reeves has scored 20+ points 16 times. That total is tied for the eighth-most such games in the country this season, and is the 14th-most in a season in school history.
EXCITING GAMES
The stat analysis website KenPom has a listing of the season's most exciting games based on categories including excitement, tension, and dominance, and have 100 games ranked this season. The Redbirds have two games inside of the top-13 in the metric, and three inside of the top-57. Illinois State's overtime win over Bucknell on November 20 is rated the top game in terms of excitement, while the team's recent overtime loss against Drake on January 26 is rated as the 11th-most exciting game in the country this season.
EXTRA TIME
This season across NCAA Division I basketball there have been 263 games that have needed at least one extra period. Illinois State has taken part in six of those games, tied the most in the country this season alongside Valparaiso and UT Arlington. Including ISU's double-overtime game against Eastern Michigan, the Redbirds have played in seven overtime periods, which is tied for the third-most this season, alongside Eastern Michigan and trailing only Valparaiso and UT Arlington's eight overtime periods. (as of games played on Feb. 23).
MILESTONE WATCH
Now 30 games into the 2021-22 season, Antonio Reeves is rising through the Illinois State career record book. On Feb. 2 against Southern Illinois, he became Illinois State's 46th member of the 1,000-point club, and four games later climbed to 35th all-time in scoring.
FUN TEAM COMBINATION
Against Drake on Wednesday, January 26, the Redbirds got 25 points from Antonio Reeves, 11 rebounds from Kendall Lewis, and 10 assists from Mark Freeman. ISU has had just seven games since the 1980-81 season where the Redbirds had three different individuals accumulate 25 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists. The last time that mark has been hit by ISU was on March 14, 2012 when Tyler Brown scored 26 points, Jackie Carmichael pulled down 10 rebounds, and Nic Moore dished out 10 assists against Ole Miss.
DIMES OFF THE BENCH
With his 10-assist effort coming off the bench against Drake, Mark Freeman is one of 14 players in NCAA Division I basketball this season to have double-digit assists in a non-starting role.
BACK-AND-FORTH HIGHS
Against Drake on January 26, the Bulldogs and Redbirds traded the lead 23 times in the 45 minutes of game play time, and had 22 tie scores. The 23 lead changes are tied for the most by an ISU team since 2003-04, and the 22 tie scores are the most during that same time frame.
DON'T CALL IT A COMEBACK
Or do call it a comeback, we're just taking the advice of LL Cool J from the 1990 song Mama Said Knock You Out. In Illinois State's I-74 rivalry win against Bradley the Redbirds found themselves trailing 35-15 with 6:24 to play in the first half. The team turned it around, running off a 42-14 run over the next 19:13 of gameplay time, turning the 20-point deficit into an eight-point lead. The recovery from a 20-point deficit was the second time in ISU history that a team has rallied from such a deficit, with the largest margin was a 21-point deficit against Butler on November 27, 1989. The Redbirds picked up their second top-10 comeback this season when ISU trailed by 16 in the second half before rallying for the overtime win over Valparaiso.
The comeback against Bradley was also the eighth time an MVC school rallied from 20+ points down, with three of those eight largest comebacks coming against the Braves.
HIGH PERCENTAGE
Against Evansville on Friday, January 21, Illinois State converted on 70.2 percent of its field goal tries, which is the second-highest single-game percentage in school history, behind only the NCAA-record 84.3 percent a season ago against NCAA Division III Greenville. It is the best mark in program history against a NCAA Division I opponent, and the first time since February 27 of last season that a NCAA Division I school made at least 70 percent of its field goals against another Division I school. Since 2010-11, 67 Division I schools have made at least 70 percent of its field goals in a game, just 41 of those coming against Division I schools.
CALLING FOWL IN THE NON-CONFERENCE
During the 2021-22 season, in 13 non-conference games, Illinois State will face off against five schools with bird mascots, and no two doubling up. So far, ISU has faced a Seahawk (UNCW), Eagle (Eastern Michigan), and Hawk (Quincy), with Ball State (Cardinal) and UTSA (Roadrunner) ahead on the schedule. The Redbirds also face off against three jungle cats (Pride of Purdue Northwest, Tigers of Jackson State, and Cougars of Chicago State), three forms of cattle (Racers of Murray State, Bison of Bucknell and Bulls of Buffalo) a Badger (Wisconsin) and whatever the heck a Billiken (Saint Louis) is.
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