Redbirds to Tip-Up Season on Monday Evening

NORMAL, Ill. -  The Illinois State Redbirds tip-off the 2024-25 season at home on Monday night, as ISU plays host to the UT Martin Skyhawks.

QUICK HITTERS

• Illinois State is 82-44 all-time in season-openers
• Last season Johnny Kinziger was one of two freshmen in NCAA Division I basketball who had a field goal percentage of at least .460, a three-point percentage of .390 or higher, a free throw percentage of .855 or higher while scoring at least 250 points, and now-sophomore Johnny Kinziger and current Philadelphia 76ers guard Jared McCain were the only members. He was also one of four freshman in the MVC since 1992-93 to put up similar numbers.
• Since 1980-81 there have been 253 freshmen - including Kinziger - to put up those shooting percentage sin a season, and one of just three of the 253 to do it while being 5-11 or shorter.
• On October 13, Redbird basketball legend Doug Collins was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame, the highest honor for anyone associated with the game of basketball. Collins had played and worked in basketball at almost every level including being an All-American at Illinois State, an NBA top overall draft pick, an Olympian in 1972, playing for the Philadelphia 76ers, coaching the Chicago Bulls, Detroit Pistons, Philadelphia 76ers, and Washington Wizards, and an NBA and Olympic broadcaster for ABC/ESPN, CBS, NBC, TNT, and TBS.
• When Illinois State and UT Martin meet, it will be the only time this season that ISU will face off against another team with a bird mascot.
• Johnny Kinziger was recently named to the Bracketeer.org All-America Watch List.
• When Brandon Lieb joined the squad for the 2023-24 season, the incoming transfer became the tallest player in program history. At 7-0 without shoes, and 7-1 with, he is one of just seven players in program history who have been 7-0 (or taller). 
• On November 7 when the Redbirds face off against North Dakota State in Fargo, North Dakota, it will be the first time that a men's basketball team has ever played in the state of North Dakota.
• The Illinois State men's basketball team was picked to finish fourth in the preseason poll, with voters in the poll consisting of school's media, SIDs, and head coaches. Johnny Kinziger was named to the First Team, while Malachi Poindexter was picked on the second team.
• This season there are five different Redbirds from the state of Wisconsin, which is tied for the third-most Cheese-state basketballers for a Division I school this season. Only Milwaukee and Green Bay have more Wisconsin natives on their team.
• Illinois State is 171-92 all-time against schools currently in the Ohio Valley Conference, including a 4-1 record under head coach Ryan Pedon.
• The Redbirds are 15-11 all-time against schools from the state of Tennessee, while head coach Ryan Pedon is 2-2.
• Dalton Banks' 285 career assists ended last season with the 241st-most career assists among active players in the NCAA. Boden Skunberg's 1,142 career points ranked 384th at the end of last season among active players.

SCOUTING UT MARTIN

UT Martin enters the 2024-25 season opener with a new coaching staff and a virtually new roster compared to what the Skyhawks had last season. Only David Kamwanga returns from last season's team, which is led by new head coach Jeremy Shulman. The Skyhawks bring in 16 new players on the 17 players on the roster. 

Newcomers Vladimr Salaridze and Josue Grullon were named in the Ohio Valley Conference "Players to Watch" heading into the season. A dozen players from UTM are international student-athletes, while five on the team played for first-year head coach Jerey Shulman while at Eastern Florida State College. Andrija Bukumirovic, Afan Trnka, Matja Zuzic, and Carlos Cortijo played for Shulman last season, while Saladze played two seasons for Shulman before moving to UC Riverside.
 

YOUNG PERCENTAGES

Last season there were just two freshman across NCAA Division I basketball who had a field goal percentage of at least .460, a three-point percentage of .390 or higher, a free throw percentage of .855 or higher while scoring at least 250 points, and now-sophomore Johnny Kinziger and current Philadelphia 76ers guard Jared McCain were the only members. He was also one of four freshman in the MVC since 1992-93 to put up similar numbers.

Since 1980-81, there have been 253 freshmen - including Kinziger - to put up those numbers during a season, and just three to do it while being 5-11 or shorter.

BIG POINTS

With his 31-point game against Indiana State last season, Illinois State now-sophomore Johnny Kinziger scored the second-most points in a game by a freshman in program history. Below are the times in which an Illinois State freshman has scored 30 or more points in a single game. In the last five years, there have been only eight freshman student-athletes to score more points in a game against an AP Nationally-ranked opponent than Kinziger, with six of those eight currently on an NBA roster. 

HALL OF FAMER DOUG COLLINS

On October 13, Redbird basketball legend Doug Collins was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame, the highest honor for anyone associated with the game of basketball. Collins had played and worked in basketball at almost every level including being an All-American at Illinois State, an NBA top overall draft pick, an Olympian in 1972, playing for the Philadelphia 76ers, coaching the Chicago Bulls, Detroit Pistons, Philadelphia 76ers, and Washington Wizards, and an NBA and Olympic broadcaster for ABC/ESPN, CBS, NBC, TNT, and TBS. He was joined in the 2024 Hall of Fame class by 12 others including: Chauncey Billups, Vince Carter, Seimone Augustus, Bo Ryan, Michael Cooper, Walter Davis, Charles Smith, Dick Barnett, Harley Redin, Michele Timms, Jerry West, and Herb Simon.

BIRDS OF A FEATHER

When Illinois State hosts the UT Martin Skyhawks on Monday for the season opener, it will mark the only time during the Redbirds' 2024-25 season where both teams will have mascots are fowl. This season ISU plays one bird (UT Martin Skyhawks), three large land animals (North Dakota State Bison, Belmont Bruins, Missouri State Bears), three from the feline family (Ohio Bobcats, Pacific Tigers, Northern Iowa Panthers), three canines (Northern Illinois Huskies, Southern Illinois Salukis, Drake Bulldogs), four people-based (McNeese Cowboys, Murray State Racers, Evansville Aces, Bradley Braves), and six more from who knows what category they fall into (Trinity Christian Trolls, Saint Louis Billikins, Cornell Big Red, UIC Flames, Indiana State Sycamores, Valparaiso Beacons), but no other aviary creatures.

ALL-AMERICA WATCH LIST

On Thursday, October 31, Illinois State sophomore guard Johnny Kinziger was named to the Bracketeer.org All-American watch list. Eligible conferences for the first-year award include: America East, ASUN, Big Sky, Big South, Big West, CAA, Conference USA, Horizon League, Ivy League, MAAC, MAC, MEAC, MVC, NEC, OVC, Patriot League, SoCon, Southland, SWAC, Summit League, Sun Belt, WAC. The 2025 Bracketeer.Org Non-Power Conference Player of the Year will be announced in the final week of March, 2025. 

ONE OF A FEW SEVEN-FOOTERS

When Brandon Lieb joined the squad for the 2023-24 season, the incoming transfer became the tallest player in program history. At 7-0 without shoes, and 7-1 with, he is one of just seven players in program history who have been 7-0 (or taller). 

FIRST TIME IN THE STATE

On November 7, the Redbirds will play against North Dakota State in Fargo, North Dakota. The game will be the first-ever played in the state in program history. There are just nine other states where ISU has never played a men's basketball game, including Alaska, Arizona, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, and Vermont. Additionally, ISU has played in the Cayman Islands, Mexico, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.

PRESEASON POLL

The Illinois State men's basketball team was picked to finish fourth in the preseason poll, with voters in the poll consisting of school's media, SIDs, and head coaches. Johnny Kinziger was named to the First Team, while Malachi Poindexter was picked on the second team.

CHEESE STATE OVERFLOW

This season there are five different Redbirds from the state of Wisconsin - Jack Daugherty, Dalton Banks, Jordan Davis, Johnny Kinziger, and Caden Boser, which is tied for the third-most Cheese-state basketballers for a Division I school this season. Only Milwaukee and Green Bay - who each have six student-athletes from Wisconsin - have more Wisconsin natives on their team. Below are the five schools with five or more student-athletes from the state.