WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – A Johnny Kinziger three-point basket with two seconds on the clock gave the Illinois State an exciting 78-75 win over the Wake Forest Demon Deacons on Sunday afternoon, as the Redbirds trailed by nine in both the first and second halves, picking up the program's first win over an ACC opponent since winning against the Miami Hurricanes on December 5, 2006. Kinziger and Ty Pence each scored 17 points in the second half – Pence's en route to a career-high 23 points, and the win was the first time ISU has had at least two wins in the NIT since the 1995-96 season when the Redbirds topped Mount Saint Mary's and Wisconsin.
HOW IT HAPPENED
In a game of runs, after ISU scored the first points on a three-pointer from Landon Wolf, Wake Forest came back with 10 straight to lead 10-3. The Redbirds rebounded by scoring six of the next eight points, before the Demon Deacons answered right back with six straight. With ISU trailing 18-9, the visitors scored 15 of the next 19 points – Including a stretch of nine in a row – as the Birds pushed ahead to a 24-22 lead with 5:13 to play in the opening half. The game was tightly contested over the final minute-plus, as the teams went into the locker room tied at 32.
The Redbirds trailed by one at 38-37 before the hosts ran off six straight points to stretch to a seven-point, 44-37 lead. The Wake Forest lead grew to as many as nine points with 9:21 to play in the game, before ISU answered with five consecutive points, capped by a Johnny Kinziger three-pointer, to close the gap to four. ISU took its first lead of the second half amid an 8-0 run, as ISU stretched ahead to a 63-60 lead following a Ty Pence three-pointer. From there the lead changed hands four times and was tied five times, capped by Kinziger's clutch long-range, game-winning shot.
KEY STATISTICS / NOTES
- The Redbirds opened with the starting lineup of 3 Mason Klabo, 4 Landon Wolf, 11 Johnny Kinziger, 14 Boden Skunberg, and 35 Chase Walker
- This is ISU's eighth game with this starting lineup
- The Redbirds played in their first NIT road game since March 23, 2015
- ISU wore its throwback red uniform
- Illinois State won the opening tip
- ISU's first points of the game came from Landon Wolf on a three-pointer at 19:20 on the first half clock
- This game was the fourth time that he scored the Redbirds' first points this season
- The Redbirds and Demon Deacons were tied at 32-32 after the completion of the first half
- It was the fourth time this season that ISU and their opponent were tied at the break
- Illinois State improved to 2-0 all-time against Wake Forest, after topping the Demon Deacons during the 1975-76 season
- The win is ISU's fifth consecutive postseason tournament win, after sweeping through the three-game Purple CBI en route to that tournament title last March
- With the team's 22 wins, it marks the first time since Kevin Stallings' first four seasons that under a new head coach has matched or bettered the win total every season from the first year to the fourth
- The game was ISU's second consecutive, and the 13th this season committing single-digit turnovers in a game
- Scoring 19 points, Johnny Kinziger climbed three spots in the school career scoring record book
- With his 19 points, he has now scored 1,182 career points, moving past Richard Thomas (1,170, 1990-93), John Cruser (1,174, 1962-65), and Trey Guidry (1,180, 2003-05)
- He dished out five assists, his 21st game with 3+ assists, and his 10th of 5+ assists
- With 23 points, Ty Pence recorded a career-high scoring total, reaching double-figure scoring for the 14th time this season, and 20+ points for the fourth time this year
- He set a career-high with three three-point field goals
- Chase Walker scored 15 points, and reached double-digit scoring for the 22nd time this season and 49th time in his college career
- He is two points away from 1,000 for his career, now with 998 career collegiate points
- Boden Skunberg pulled down a game-high nine rebounds, his second-highest rebounding total of the season, and the eighth time this season he has led ISU in rebounds in a game
NEXT UP
The Redbirds advance after beating the region's top seed and will travel to face off against the Dayton Flyers on Wednesday, March 25 with the game time and broadcast network to be announced later.
