NORMAL, Ill. – Illinois State women's basketball hosts cross-town foe Illinois Wesleyan in a regular-season dress rehearsal Sunday inside CEFCU Arena at 2 p.m. Admission is free for all fans.
No video broadcast is available, but fans can listen live on the Varsity Network, WJBC AM 1230 and FM 102.1.
CROSSTOWN SHOOTOUT
Illinois State and Illinois Wesleyan meet for the third-consecutive preseason, after a 101-86 win for the Redbirds last season. The 94-56 win for the Redbirds prior to the 2023-24 campaign unofficially marked the first-ever meeting between the two sides.
ABOUT LAST YEAR
Illinois State advanced to the WNIT Semifinal for the fourth time in program history and for the first time since 2011. The Redbirds made three consecutive WNIT semifinal runs from 2009 to 2011, earning six wins over Power 5 foes across the three runs. The Redbirds made their 16th appearance all-time in the WNIT and their fourth trip to the WNIT in Kristen Gillespie's tenure.
The Redbirds were 24-13 overall last season, including a 14-6 mark in MVC play and a 14-4 record at home at CEFCU Arena. Illinois State secured a 20-win campaign for the third-straight season, a streak that leads all DI women's teams in the state of Illinois.
BIRD BITS
Illinois State returns seven players from last season's squad that advanced to the WNIT Fab 4, including MVC All-Freshman team selection Doneelah Washington and All-MVC Newcomer team member Addison Martin.
Martin and Nevaeh Thomas were listed among several Missouri Valley Conference women's basketball "Players to Watch" for the upcoming 2025-26 season. Martin started all 37 games for Illinois State and was one of six Redbirds to break the program's single-season record for games played. The Shreveport, Louisiana, native reached double figures in 18 games, including two 20+ point performances, with a season-high of 23 points scored against Southern Illinois.
Thomas averaged 12.1 points per game, a team-high 7.0 rebounds per game and 2.5 assists per game while ranking fifth in the MVC shooting 54.5 percent from the field. Thomas scored in double figures in 29 games, including the first 15 outings of the season, and tallied ten double-doubles, becoming just the sixth player in program history to tally 10+ double-doubles in a single season.
SCOUTING THE TITANS
Illinois Wesleyan enters the 2025-26 campaign under the leadership of veteran head coach Mia Smith. In 27 years leading the Titans, Smith has led IWU to 525 wins, 14 NCAA Tournament appearances, 11 College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin Tournament titles, and 11 CCIW Regular Season Championships. The Titans will turn to All-CCIW returners Sawyer White and Ava Bardic to lead the program, following the loss of four key players to graduation a year ago.
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