TERRE HAUTE, IN. – The regular season has come to an end, and Illinois State women's basketball is on the top of the mountain, claiming a share of the regular season title with a 82-71 win over Indiana State Saturday.
The win crossed off multiple milestones for the Redbirds, as the focus for the Redbirds now shifts to Moline next week for Hoops in the Heartland.
For the first time since the 2009-10 season, Illinois State can call themselves Missouri Valley Conference regular season champions. The Redbirds now stand at 17-3 in MVC play, which is the most conference wins in a season for the 'Birds since the 1984-85 campaign, when ISU went 17-1 in conference play.
The next pair of milestones of the afternoon came for senior DeAnna Wilson. First, with a free throw at 7:53 in the third quarter, Wilson eclipsed the 1,000-point plateau in her career as she becomes the 31st Redbird (third under Kristen Gillespie) to achieve the milestone.
In 37 minutes of action, Wilson would finish with 26 points, a new ISU career-high as she would surpasses her previous career high of 25. Finally, the St. Louis native also grabbed eight rebounds, bringing her career total to 602, which is good enough for 15th all-time in ISU program history.
ISU would be led on the afternoon by Wilson, who finished with her 26 points to go along with eight rebounds, two blocks, and a steal. The Redbirds also saw Paige Robinson and Maya Wong go for double figures, as they would chip in 20 (Robinson) and 14 (Wong), respectively.
For the Sycamores, Anna McKendree led the charge with 22 points including 5-of-7 from three-point range. Del'Janae Williams chipped in 16 points of her own as the other Sycamore in double figures. Indiana State saw Mya Glanton and Hattie Westerfield grab a team-high six rebounds.
With the win, Illinois State moves to 23-7 overall and 17-3 in Valley play while Indiana State is now 11-18 overall and 6-14 in Valley play.
TURNING POINT
4:56 on the clock as the second quarter winds down. Indiana State up 10 after causing yet another Redbird turnover and a timeout from the Redbird bench. However, the tide would shift as Paige Robinson got going with five straight points, cutting the deficit in half. The Bethany native would add two more points, adding up to seven straight, as the lead stood at 35-32 for the Sycamores.
The home team rebuilt their lead to six before Maya Wong inserted herself into the picture. The Normal native got a tough layup to fall with 1:35 remaining, before Jada Stinson stole the ensuing inbounds pass and found Wong for an open three as the Redbirds trailed 38-37 with 1:26 on the clock.
The Sycamores responded with an Anna McKendree free throw, but it was once again Stinson stepping up as she ended the half with a contested layup, knotting the score at 39-39.
The second half would see both teams battle to gain full control, but it was the visitors outscoring the home team 43-32 to take home their 17th MVC win of the year, the regular season sweep of the Sycamores, and claim their spot at the no. 1 seed heading into Moline next weekend. Â
IN THE BOX SCORE:
- Illinois State went 18-of-19 from the free-throw line Saturday.
- Indiana State saw 17 bench points, as ISU held 4 bench points of their own.
- ILS saw 7 blocks on the afternoon, their most since versus UIC on Feb. 23.
- Illinois State had 12 assists on 28 made field goals Saturday.
INDIVIDUAL NOTES
- Mary Crompton
- Sits tied for second all-time in MVC history for career three-pointers with 294.
- DeAnna Wilson
- 20th time scoring in double figures this season.
- 5th game this season with 20+ points
- Kate Bullman
- Moves her ISU blocks total to 122, continuing to sit in fourth all-time.
- Paige Robinson
- 25th time scoring in double figures this season.
- 16th game with 20+ points
UPÂ NEXT
The 'Birds get ready for the 2023 Hoops in the Heartland Tournament as they get their time in Moline started Friday against the winner of Murray State/Evansville. Hoops in the Heartland takes place March 9-12 from Vibrant Arena in Moline.
For all 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.
