NORMAL, Ill. - The Illinois State Basketball Coaches Show, presented by The O'Brien Auto Team, featuring Illinois State head men's basketball coach Ryan Pedon and women's basketball head coach Kristen Gillespie will air tonight live from Rob Dob's in Bloomington.
Tonight, Rob Dob's will feature food specials during the Coaches Show including Classic Burger, Buffalo Chicken Sandwich, Lasagna, or any of their pizzas for just $12 each, with soft drink included.
Fans unable to attend the show can listen on WJBC 1230 AM, the Varsity Network, and on GoRedbirds.com., as Pedon and Gillespie recap their weekend games and preview their upcoming matchups.
Head women's basketball coach Kristen Gillespie's segment of the show, hosted by Greg Halbleib, starts at 6 p.m. Gillespie will be joined by ISU sophomore guard Shannon Dowell. The O'Fallon, Illinois, native, is the team scoring leader, averaging 15.8 points per game in 21 games this season. She has scored in double-figures 18 times in her 21 games and has scored 20+ points seven times. She scored a career-high 28 points on December 29 at Murray State and has pulled down double-digit rebounds three times this season – each time for a double-double.
Illinois State women's basketball (14-7) comes into the show having swept a pair of home games over the weekend, topping Southern Illinois 78-60 on Friday night, before coming back to topple Missouri State 66-55 in the weekend finale. In the win over the Bears that helped propel the Redbirds into a three-way tie for second place in the MVC standings, Dowell scored 22 points, making 10-of-15 shots from the field, while Nevaeh Thomas had a 16-point, 10-rebound double-double. With its three-game homestand completed, ISU travels to Iowa in the coming weekend for a Friday, February 7 battle against the Drake Bulldogs in Des Moines, before facing off against the Northern Iowa Panthers on Sunday, February 9 in a 2 p.m. start.
Head men's basketball coach Ryan Pedon's portion of the show follows at 6:45 p.m., hosted by John Fitzgerald and Mike Matthews. Pedon will be joined this week by redshirt freshman forward Cameron Barnes. The Duncanville, Texas, native has played in 13 games for ISU, and has scored 27 points with 17 rebounds during his first season of collegiate basketball. His season-high scoring effort of eight points came against North Dakota State in November, and he pulled down a career-high four rebounds against UIC in late December.
The men's basketball team (14-9) picked up a pair of wins at home during the week, topping Belmont 81-78 before picking up an 86-78 win over Valparaiso on Saturday. Against the Beacons, the Redbirds had a stellar 22-to-5 assist-to-turnover ratio and were led by Chase Walker's 24 points and seven assists. ISU is on the road for both of their games this week, opening at UIC on Wednesday evening at 7 p.m., before making the trek to Cedar Falls on for a Saturday late afternoon game against the Northern Iowa Panthers, to be broadcast on ESPNU at 5 p.m.
Fans are invited to watch Monday's show live at Rob Dob's, located at 801 N Hershey Road, Bloomington. However, for those unable to attend the show in person, it will be broadcast live on WJBC 1230 AM, the Varsity Network, and on the Illinois State Athletics Facebook page.
Occurring weekly (with a few exceptions because of game and travel schedules), the 2025 basketball coaches show schedule and location will be as follows:
Feb. 10 – Avanti's (407 S Main Street, Normal)
Feb. 17 – Rob Dob's (801 N Hershey Rd., Bloomington)
Mar. 3 – Avanti's
Mar. 10 – Rob Dob's
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