Redbirds Fall On The Road To UIC, 76-64

CHICAGO – Illinois State took a one-point lead into halftime on the road Thursday night against UIC in Chicago and held onto that lead midway through the third quarter, before the Flames (9-10, 4-4 MVC) gained the advantage over the Redbirds (10-9, 4-4 MVC) and never gave the lead back on way to 76-64 win over ISU at Credit Union 1 Arena.

HOW IT HAPPENED 
•    The two teams traded baskets to start the game, with Redbirds taking a 5-4 lead after a layup by Doneelah Washington four minutes into the contest.
•    UIC answered with a 5-0 run to take a 9-5 lead with under four minutes to play in the first quarter, before a three-pointer by Grace Nelson trimmed the deficit to one point at 9-8. The Flames would then go up by six at 14-8, before a jumper by Bella Finnegan and a trey by Washington trimmed the UIC lead to one at 14-13 with 1:20 left in the opening quarter. 
•    UIC would get a three-pointer with four seconds left to take a four-point advantage into the second quarter and widened the lead back out to five at 20-15, but once again the Redbirds answered with five-straight points to knot the game after a three-pointer by Finnegan and a fastbreak layup by Kya Hurt with 5:51 left before the break.
•    It was back-and-forth for the next four minutes with the two teams trading baskets before four-straight free throws by Jaeden Pratt but the Birds up by three at 28-25 with 45 seconds to play. A late bucket by the Flames would then cut the ISU lead to one at halftime at 28-27.
•    Coming out of the break, the Redbirds widened the lead to as many as four points after Washington connected on her second triple of the game, but the Flames answered with five-straight points to take a 34-33 lead with 6:50 left on the clock.
•    It would remain a one-score game, with the Redbirds getting the lead back momentarily 40-39 following a fastbreak layup by Pratt with just under five minutes left in the quarter, but UIC would finish on a 15-6 run the rest of the way to hold a nine point at 57-48 headed into the fourth quarter.
•    ISU scored the first six point of the fourth quarter, thanks to a pair of baskets by Trista Fayta, to trim the deficit to three points and a layup by Addison Martin with just over five minutes to play kept it at a one-score game at 61-58 in favor of the Flames.
•    UIC answered with a 9-2 run to extend the advantage to 70-60 with 2:53 left, before a layup by Hurt trimmed the deficit back to single digits at 70-62. The Flames then scored four-straight points to widen the advantage to 12 points at 74-62 with 2:16 left in the contest.
•    The Flames would hold on to the lead the rest of the way to come away with the win and even the season series with the Redbirds.

HIGHLIGHTS 
•    Washington led three Redbirds in double figures with 17 points to go along with eight rebounds, three steals, two assists and one blocked shot with a pair of makes from long range.
•    Martin finished with 10 points and has now scored in double digits in all but one game this season.
•    Fayta, coming off a triple-double her last time out, also scored 10 points, grabbed three rebounds and dished out two assists before fouling out.

UP NEXT 
The Redbirds continue the road trip on Sunday in Terre Haute, Indiana, when they take on the Sycamores at the Hulman Center with tipoff set for 1 p.m. CT.

GoRedbirds.com and the Illinois State Redbirds App:  Your sources for Illinois State tickets, Weisbecker Athletic Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more.