COLUMBIA, Mo. – Illinois State women's basketball (24-9) concluded its season Thursday night with a 61-51 loss at Missouri (18-13).
The Tigers got off to a fiery start offensively in their home gym, as they got out to an early 11-4 lead before the Redbirds worked their way back to trim the lead. However, after getting the margin to as close as two with 2:50 remaining in the first quarter, the Redbirds would be held scoreless as Missouri gathered two more points to lead 15-11 after 10 minutes.
Illinois State responded in the second quarter as they got the score to 17-16 off a DeAnna Wilson jumper with 6:14 remaining. The Tigers would get another point off a free throw before the media timeout came and went. The offense continued to be hot for the Tigers as they would score eight straight points, stretching the lead to 26-16 and forcing another Redbirds timeout with 2:44 on the clock.
With 1:18 on the clock, Wilson got a 5-0 run kickstarted for the 'Birds with a jumper before adding a pair of free throws soon after. Freshman Abbie Aalsma would cap off the scoring run with a three-pointer, but it was the home team getting the final blow of the half off a last second jumper to hold a 28-23 halftime advantage.
Out of the half, Maya Wong got the Redbirds on the board first with a contested layup to trim the deficit to three. Then, Wilson added a pair of free throws to make it a two-point game with 7:49 remaining. The lead would be cut to one by ISU with 5:18 on the clock, but once again, the media timeout came and went which played in the favor of the Tigers. The home team would explode offensively once more, expanding the lead from three at the break to up to 10 at the end of the quarter (44-34).
The Redbirds once more fought tooth-and-nail to make it a close game, cutting the fourth quarter margin from 10 at the beginning to only three with 7:19 remaining. The game shifted from three to five back to three, but after a Smith jumper with 5:34 on the clock, Missouri held as big of a lead as seven as ISU struggled to find a strong grasp and shut down the Tigers offense. The lead never got below the seven-point differential as ISU fell short, ultimately seeing the Tigers knock down late game free throws and make it the final 10-point margin.
Wilson led the way for Illinois State with a 19-point, 11-rebound double-double. Mary Crompton followed suit with 12 points and two steals.
Meanwhile, for Missouri, Hayley Frank led the way with 15 points, as teammates Sara-Rose Smith and Haley Troup chipped in 13 and 11 points, respectively. Smith also led the way with 11 rebounds for the Tigers as they now await their second round WNIT opponent.
This season, Illinois State secured its first 20-win season under Kristen Gillespie and made a postseason tournament for the third-straight season.
