NORMAL, Ill. – A third-quarter surge by Illinois State, highlighted by 16 points in the period by Doneelah Washington, propelled the Redbirds (16-10, 10-5 MVC) to a second-half comeback against Belmont (16-10, 12-3 MVC) and eventually sent the game into overtime. In the extra period, Washington, fellow post player Addison Martin and Grace Nelson would each make key free throws to give ISU a big 83-78 overtime win over the Bruins on Doug Collins Court at Redbird Arena.
HOW IT HAPPENEDÂ
•   The Bruins jumped out to an 8-2 lead four minutes into the contest, before Nelson continued her hot shooting with a three-pointer from the left elbow to cut the Belmont lead to three at 8-5.
•   Belmont would snap a three-plus minute scoring drought to go up 13-5 with under two minutes to play, before Kya Hurt drilled a three-pointer with 49 seconds left to cut it to 13-8. A bucket by the Bruins would extend their lead back to seven at 15-8 as the first quarter ended.
•   Six-straight points by Martin would trim the Belmont lead to 19-14 with 6:51 on the clock in the second quarter, but the Bruins would answer with a 7-0 run to widen their advantage to 26-14. A bucket by Bella Finnegan cut the Belmont lead to 10 shortly after and a jumper by Martin would trim it back to single digits at 26-18, but a three by the Bruins would force ISU head coach Kristen Gillespie to call a time out with 3:20 left before halftime and the score at 29-18.
•   A 6-0 run by the Redbirds, four of which were scored by Washington, trimmed the Belmont lead to 29-23 with 1:14 left in the half and two more free throws by Washington cut into the Bruins' lead at 31-25 but a late basket would give Belmont a 33-25 lead at halftime.
•   Belmont would go up by 10 points at 37-27, but Washington scored on a three-point play and then followed that with a three-pointer from long distance on the next time down the floor to make the score 40-33 three minutes into the third quarter. Another three-point play on a second-chance opportunity for the Redbirds by Washington would cut the Belmont lead to 42-36 with 5:25 left.
•   The Redbirds went on a run, making 7-of-7 field goals as a three-pointer at the top of the key by Madison Austin to cut the Belmont lead to four at 51-47 with under two minutes left in the third quarter. A three-pointer by Washington would then make a two-point game at 52-50 thirty seconds later and a fastbreak layup by Trista Fayta would tie the game at 52-52 with 36 seconds left. A late free throw would give Belmont a one-point at 53-52 headed to the fourth quarter.
•   ISU wasted little time taking its first lead of the contest, as Washington converted a three-point play on a second-chance opportunity to go up 55-53 just 17 seconds into the quarter. The Birds would hold the lead until back-to-back three-pointers by the Bruins put them back on top at 59-57 with 6:42 left in regulation.
•   Once again, ISU would answer with two free throws by Martin and a huge three-pointer from the corner from Nelson to regain the lead at 62-59 a minute later. Belmont cut the Illinois State lead back to one on a steal and layup, before Washington was strong with a layup to put the lead back at three for ISU at 64-61 with under four minutes to play.
•   A three-point by the Bruins would give them the lead back at 65-64 with 1:53 left, but two free throws by Fayta with 40 seconds left put the Birds up by one at 66-65 as Belmont called a time out. The Bruins would then take the lead, as Jailyn Banks was fouled on a three-point attempt and proceeded to make all three shots from the line to make the score 68-66 in favor of Belmont.
•   The Redbirds got the ball back with 21.4 seconds and Martin drained a pair of free throws after she was fouled driving to the bucket to knot the game at 68-68 with 16.5 left on the clock. A last-second three-point attempt by the Bruins was long off the rim and the game headed to overtime.
•   Nelson opened the overtime period with a three-pointer, her third of the game, to put the Birds up early but a quick answer by the Bruins would tie the game again at 71-71. Back-to-back layups by Martin and Washington would then give ISU a four-point advantage and it was a one-point game at 77-76 with under two minutes left, before four-straight made free throws by Washington and Martin would extend the lead to five at 81-76 with four seconds left.Â
•   Two late free throws by Nelson would then ice the game for the Redbirds at 83-78 to keep ISU undefeated at home at 13-0.
HIGHLIGHTSÂ
•   With the win, the Redbirds improved to 13-0 at home this season on Doug Collins Court marking the best start at home since the 2010-11 season, when ISU started 17-0 before losing its final game of the season at home in the WNIT.
•   It marks the second-straight season for the Redbirds with 13 or more wins at home and is just one shy of the most for a team led by Kristen Gillespie, which was set last year (14-4).
•   The win for the Redbirds evens the all-time series with the Bruins at 3-3.
•   Redbirds outscored 27-20 in third quarter to get back into the contest, sparked by 16 points by Washington.
•   Washington would record her ninth double-double of the year, with a career-high 31 points to go along with 12 rebounds against the Bruins. It marked the first 30 plus point, 10 plus rebound double-double for a Redbird since 2012, when Jamie Russell scored 30 and grabbed 12 boards at Iowa.
•   Washington was also a perfect 9-for-9 from the free throw line, as the Redbirds shot 88.9 percent from the charity stripe during the contest.
•   Martin finished with 24 points, one point shy of her career high of 25 set in 2023 while playing at Abilene Christian. She added four rebounds and was also a perfect 8-for-8 from the free throw line in the game.
•   Nelson, who made five three-pointers in the game at Belmont on January 4, finished with three this time against the Bruins and thanks to two late free throws finished in double figures with 11.Â
•   Fayta was one assist shy of tying her career-high set in the previous game at Evansville, as she finished with 11 total to mark her fourth double-digit assist effort of the season.
UP NEXTÂ
Illinois State will host league-leading Murray State (23-3, 14-1 MVC) on Sunday for Senior Day, with tipoff set for 2 p.m. on Doug Collins Court at CEFCU Arena.
GoRedbirds.com and the Illinois State Redbirds App: Â Your sources for Illinois State tickets, Weisbecker Athletic Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more.
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