NORMAL, Ill. – The Illinois State Redbirds put four players in double-digit scoring, led by a game-high 16 from Jack Daugherty, as the hosts out-distanced their NCAA Division III opponent Rockford by a 93-48 final score on Thursday evening.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The teams each took a lead in the first minute, and with the Redbirds leading 11-8 following a pair of Regent free throws, the Birds ran off 21 consecutive points, turning the three-point advantage into a 24-point lead in a five-minute span. From there, the Redbirds cruised into the locker room with a 27-point, 48-21 lead at the break.
In the second half the margin was as large as 47, as all 11 Redbirds in uniform reached the scoring column in the 45-point victory.
KEY STATISTICS
- The Redbirds opened with the starting lineup of 10 Ty'Reek Coleman, 11 Johnny Kinziger, 12 Brandon Lieb, 14 Boden Skunberg, and 22 Ty Pence
- This is ISU's first game with this lineup
- ISU wore its white home uniforms for the first time this season
- Illinois State won the opening tip
- ISU's first points of the game came from Ty Pence on a jumper in the lane with 19:40 on the first-half clock
- Illinois State's first sub were Jack Daugherty and Landon Wolf with 14:05 to play in the first half
- Illinois State led 48-21 at halftime
- Daugherty scored a season-high 16 points for ISU, while setting a new career-high with eight rebounds
- Cameron Barnes scored a career-high 13 points, while also grabbing a career-high eight rebounds.
- Barnes also set a career-high with three blocked shots, and tied his career-high with two assists
- Brandon Lieb recorded his first collegiate double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds
- The 10 points are a career-high, while his 10 rebounds tie a season-high, and are his third game with 10+ rebounds in his collegiate career
- Johnny Kinziger reached double-digit scoring for the fifth time in five games this season, and he has an active streak of 10 consecutive games scoring at least 10 points
- Ty'Reek Coleman narrowly missed the double-figure plateau, scoring nine points, as his five-game scoring total of 71 is the third-best five-game start to an ISU career by a freshman in school history
- Mason Klabo scored a career-high eight points, as he added two assists and three rebounds, as the assists tie his career-high, and rebounds set a career-best
- Landon Wolf flirted with a double-double with seven points and nine rebounds, as he has had 5+ rebounds in each of the last four games
- Ty Blake made his first collegiate three-point shot
- The Redbirds out-rebounded Rockford 48-to-26, while shooting 59.4 percent from the field, and 46.2 percent from beyond the arc
- ISU held the Regents to 27.9 percent shooting in the game, and 21.9 percent from long range
- The Birds held Rockford without a double-digit scorer, the first time that ISU has done that since December 7, 2019 when the Redbirds topped Morehead State
NEXT UP
The Redbirds remain at home for their next game, hosting the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers on Sunday, September 23 in a 4 p.m. tip-off inside CEFCU Arena.
