DES MOINES, Iowa - ISU travels to Des Moines for a Wednesday evening battle with Drake on senior day for the Bulldogs.
QUICK HITTERS
• Illinois State is the only school in the MVC to have four players averaging in double-figure scoring, as Darius Burford, Seneca Knight, Kendall Lewis, and Malachi Poindexter each average 10.0 points per game or higher.
• There are 48 current NCAA student-athletes who have had at least 20 assists, 20 blocks, and 20 steals in both 2021-22 and 2022-23. Two of them - Illinois State's Kendall Lewis, Missouri State's Donovan Clay, and Bradley's Malevy Leons - are the only ones in the MVC to have done it in each the last two seasons.
• Illinois State's Kendall Lewis and Drake's Garrett Sturtz each have seven double-doubles this season, which is tied for the second-most in the MVC, behind only UNI's Tytan Anderson's 11.
• The Redbirds are fifth in NCAA Division I in free throw percentage, making 79.7 percent of their free tries during the season.
• Darius Burford and Roman Penn stand in the top-10 in the country in field goal percentage by players 6-2 or shorter, as Burford ranks seventh in that grouping and Penn eighth.
• Illinois State senior forward Kendall Lewis is one of seven players in NCAA Division I with at least 22 blocks, 39 assists, 42 steals and 310 points this season.
• Redbird guard Malachi Poindexter has made 52-of-55 free throws this season and is one of just five players in the country to have made 94 percent of their free throws with at least 40 makes.
• Illinois State seventh leading scorer (Liam McChesney) averages 6.7 points per game, which is the second-highest seventh-leading scorer in the MVC this season.
• This season the Redbirds have seven different players who have led the team in scoring, including a seven-game span in which ISU had seven different leading scorers.
• There are 10 NCAA Division I student-athletes who have made 92.5 percent of their free throws in conference play (a minimum of 40 makes. Malachi Poindexter, at 42-of-45 in MVC play, has the sixth-highest percentage among the qualifiers.Â
• This season the Illinois State Redbirds and Drake have each played in four overtime games, which is tied for the eighth-most by a program during the season, trailing only Manhattan, Oakland, Texas Southern, UCF, and Wisconsin who have five overtime games this season, and Idaho State, who has six.
• Illinois State forward Kendall Lewis is 45 points away from scoring 1,000 for his collegiate career, while guard Darius Burford is 47 points away from the career milestone.
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SCOUTING THE BULLDOGS
Drake comes into the game riding a season-long nine-game win streak, including a 70-56 win over Belmont on Sunday.
In the win over the Bruins, Roman Penn scored a game-high 22 points, making 9-of-16 from the field while adding six rebounds and a game-high four assists. Tucker DeVries scored 13 points, with Sardaar Calhoun and Nate Ferguson each scoring eight points off the bench.
Over the 29 games of the season, DeVries leads the team by averaging 19.2 points per game, with Penn second on the squad at 12.6. Garrett Sturtz averages 9.3 points per game with two others - Darnell Brodie (8.7) and D.J. Wilkins (8.2) - average over eight points per game.
Brodie holds a narrow lead in total rebounds during the season with 208, while the program's all-time leading rebounder - Sturtz - has 200 this season. Penn leads the MVC in assists, having dished out 150 while DeVries and Sturtz each have 30 steals.
BIG MAKES FROM THE SMALL
During the 2022-23 season, Illinois State guard Darius Burford has made 49.6 percent of his shots during the season, which is the seventh-highest percentage in the country among players 6-2 or shorter. Just behind Burford on the percentage list is Drake graduate guard Roman Penn who is a fraction of a percentage point behind Burford for eighth on the list.
PUTTING THE FREE IN FREE THROWS
This season, having made 393 of 493 free throws, Illinois State ranks fifth in NCAA Division I in the category. There have been just 21 schools in NCAA Division I history to finish a season with a free throw percentage at .800 or better. The school record for season free throw percentage is .775 from the 2001-02 season and the MVC record is .797 set by Missouri State in 2021-22.
STRONG OVERALL NUMBERS
Later in the notes we talk about how last season ISU forward Kendall Lewis had one of just four total seasons in program history with 30+ blocks, steals, and assists. Lewis is back to his same tricks this season, as he is one of 140 players in the country with at least 20 assists, steals and blocks. Additionally, he is one of just seven players in NCAA Division I with at least 22 blocks, 42 steals, and 39 assists this season, while scoring at least 310 points.
EXTRA TIME
This season across NCAA Division I basketball there have been 291 games that have needed at least one extra period. Illinois State has taken part in four of those games, tied the eighth-most in the country trailing just Manhattan, Oakland, Texas Southern, UCF, UTEP, and Wisconsin who have five overtime games this season, and Idaho State, who has six. (as of games played on Feb. 19).
NEAR PERFECTION
This season Illinois State guard Malachi Poindexter has made 52-of-55 tries from the charity stripe. That gives him a percentage of .945, which is the third-highest in the country for student-athletes with at least 40 made free throws.
CLIMBING NEAR MILESTONES
Earlier this season Illinois State fifth-year guard Seneca Knight scored the 1,000th point of his collegiate career. Two other Redbirds - Kendall Lewis and Darius Burford - are climbing towards the milestone during their college careers - each of which have included time at other schools - Lewis at Appalachian State and Burford at Elon.
SEVENTH HEAVEN
This season Illinois State has seven different student-athletes averaging near seven points per game and the Redbirds' Liam McChesney has the second-highest scoring average of all the seventh scorers in the conference with a season scoring average of 6.7 points per game (of those who have played in at least half of their team's games).
CONFERENCE PLAY NEAR PERFECTION
There are 10 NCAA Division I student-athletes this season who have made at least 92.5 percent of their free throws (with a minimum of 40 makes) within conference play. Illinois State's Malachi Poindexter has the sixth-highest percentage in the country in conference games and with at least 40 makes, and the highest in the MVC this season.
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