ST. LOUISÂ - The Illinois State men's basketball team heads to Arch Madness riding a two-game win streak, as the Redbirds will face off against either Northern Iowa or Evansville on Friday night..
QUICK HITTERS
• The Redbirds recorded back-to-back 20-win seasons for the first time since 2008-09 and 2009-10, and Ryan Pedon became just the fifth coach in program history to accomplish the feat
• Johnny Kinziger has the eighth-most made career three-point baskets in program history
• Illinois State is 12-2 in its last 14 games in Nationally televised games
• Chase Walker has been named to the All-MVC First Team, as he became just the fourth player in program history to earn two or more MVC First Team Honors in their career
• Illinois State has won the last two tournaments it has played in: the 2024-25 season-ending Purple CBI, and the Terry's Chocolate ESPN Events Invitational over Thanksgiving weekend
• This season Illinois State has an offensive rebounding percentage allowed rate of 25.1, 11th-best in the country. Offensive rebounding percentage is a measure of the possible rebounds that are gathered by the offense
• The Redbirds have been stellar inside CEFCU Arena this season, and have out-scored their opponents by 286 points, the largest margin since at least 1992-93, while the team's 19.1 point average margin of victory is also best among that time frame
• Illinois State has had nine different student-athletes lead the team in scoring in at least one game, tied for the most in the NCAA, alongside Creighton, George Washington, Tarleton STate, USC, and VCU
• ISU has out-scored its MVC opponents by 27 points in the first half (fifth-best) and 64 in the second half (third-best) in conference games this season, as the Birds are one of five schools to have a positive scoring margin in both halves
• Ty'Reek Coleman's 315 points this season are the sixth-most by a freshman in program history, and trail fifth placy by eight points
• Illinois State junior Johnny Kinziger became ISU's 47th member of the 1,000-point club on January 14 at Indiana State. He ranks 36th in school history in career scoring with 1,144 points
• Against Valparaiso on February 12, Illinois State was a perfect 17-of-17 at the free throw line, the fourth-best single-game shooting percentage in school history, and the 13th-best in the NCAA this season
• With two players from North Dakota, Illinois State has the second-highest number of Division I basketball student-athletes from the state. In all, seven schools have student-athletes from the Roughrider state, trailing just the University of North Dakota, who has five
• The Redbirds have 11 players that have scored in double-digits, tied for the most in the MVC
THRIVING UNDER THE BRIGHT LIGHTS
In Illinois State's most recent 14 Nationally Televised Games (ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, CBS, CBS Sports Network, Peacock), the Redbirds are 12-2, including ISU's most recent two games against Northern Iowa (ESPNU) and Belmont (CBS Sports Network). The current 12-2 streak directly ended a 10-game losing streak in those games, and the Redbirds were 12-18 in the 30 games prior to their current run.
2X FIRST TEAM ALL-MVC
Illinois State junior forward Chase Walker was named to the Missouri Valley Conference First Team, the second consecutive season he has earned this honor. He's one of just four players in program history to have been named First Team All-Conference twice in their careers with the Redbirds, alongside Osiris Eldridge, Tarise Bryson, and Rico Hill.
TOURNAMENT TY
In ISU's last two tournaments - the Purple CBI to end the year last year and the Terry's Chocolate ESPN Events Invitatonal over Thanksgiving weekend this season - the Redbirds are 2-0. In those tournaments, the team was led by Ty Pence, who was named to the Purple CBI All-Tournament Team and the MVP of the Terry's Chocolate ESPN Events Invitatonal. Pence averaged 14.3 points and 6.3 rebounds per game at the Purple CBI, including making 16-of-26 shots from the field. In the Thanksgiving weekend tournament he averaged 13 points and seven rebounds per game, while hitting 10-of-19 shots from the field and 3-of-6 from beyond the arc.
HOME COURT ADVANTAGE
During the 2025-26 season, the Redbirds out-scored opponents by 286 points at home, which is the highest total in school history, and the team's average margin of victory at home - 19.1 points per game - is also a CEFCU Arena record.
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A LOT OF LEADERS
This season Illinois State has nine different players (Johnny Kinziger, Boden Skunberg, Ty'Reek Coleman, Chase Walker, Jack Daugherty, Ty Pence, Mason Klabo, Landon Moore, and Landon Wolf) that have led the Redbirds in scoring at least once this season. That total is tied for the most in NCAA Division I basketball this season, alongside Creighton, George Washington, Tarleton State, USC, and VCU.
SKUNBERG NEWCOMER OF THE WEEK
For the first time in his career, Illinois State graduate student Boden Skunberg has been named the Missouri Valley Conference Newcomer of the Week after ISU's Nationally-televised wins over Northern Iowa and Belmont. Over the two games, Skunberg averaged 14.5 points and 6.0 rebounds per game, while making 59 percent of his shots from the field (10-of-17), and 55 percent (6-of-11) from long range.
FIERCE FRESHMAN NUMBERS
In his first season with ISU, freshman guard Ty'Reek Coleman has started etching his name into the school single-season freshman record books. He is inside of the top-25 in school history for freshman season totals in numerous statistics, including: three-point percentage (4th), points (6th), field goal percentage (6th), free throws made (7th), points per game (8th), free throw percentage (11th), field goals made (12th), three-point field goals (t-12th), steals (t-12th), and assists (t-20th).
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DEFENSIVELY REBOUNDING
In the KenPom statistic offensive rebounding percentage allowed, the Redbirds' percentage of 25.1 is the 11th-best in the NCAA. Last season the Redbirds finished 13th in the category at 25.2. Over the 30 years of the KenPom era, this season marks the second-lowest percentage by the Redbirds, and the second-best national ranking by the squad.
CLIMBING THE LONG RANGE LIST
With his 50 made three-point baskets this season, and 168 for his career, Illinois State junior Johnny Kinziger has climbed into eighth place in the school record books for career made three-point baskets.
NEAR THE TOP AMONG FRESHMEN
With at least one games remaining in the season, Illinois State freshman Ty'Reek Coleman has the sixth-most points by a Redbird freshman in program history, and within range to quickly climb the list by the end of the season.
NEW YEAR, NEW ME
Prior to the new year, Illinois State senior Landon Wolf was shooting 30-of-61 49.2%) from the field, and just 7-of-35 (20.0%) from long range (with over half of those long-range makes coming in the December finale at Drake where he was 4-of-5 from distance). Since the turn of the calendar, Wolf has been stellar, making 51-of-96 shots (53.1%) and 26-of-57 (45.6%) from three-point range.Â
SETTING UP FOR THE BIG FINISH
This season in MVC play, the Redbirds have out-scored their opponents by 27 points in the first half, the fifth-highest margin in the conference, and by 64 points in the second half, the third-highest margin. The Birds are one of just five schools in the MVC to have a positive scoring margin in both the first and second halves in conference games this season.
REACHING A MILESTONE
Johnny Kinziger ranks 36th in school history as he eclipsed the career 1,000-point plateau on January 14 on the road at Indiana State. Against UIC, Kinziger's 12 points saw him climb into sole possession of 36th place.
PUTTING THE FREE IN FREE THROW
Against Valparaiso on February 12, the Redbirds made all 17 of their free throw tries in the 22-point win. That 17-for-17 performance is the fourth-best in school history, and is tied for the 13th-best in the NCAA this season.
REPRESENTATION FROM THE ROUGHRIDER STATE
There are just seven schools in the NCAA with a current student-athlete that claims a city in North Dakota as their hometown. Of those six, only two have multiple players from the Roughrider State. Only North Dakota - who has five - has more North Dakota natives than Illinois State. Four other schools - Northwestern, Notre Dame, Weber State, Davidson, and West Virginia - have student-athletes from the state.
AROUND THE COUNTRY
This year, when the Redbirds competed inside the Delta Center in Salt Lake City (mountain time zone), ISU had played in each of the four time zones in the contiguous United States, opening at Ohio (eastern time zone), and also playing in Los Angeles against USC (western time zone), with home games being played in the central time zone. This season was the first time since 2017-18 that ISU had played in all four time zones in the same season. In 1994-95 ISU played in five different time zones, with games in Hilo, Hawai'i; in Santa Clara, California; Logan Utah; Normal, Illinois; and Terre Haute, Indiana. The team also played in all four time zones in 1966-67, 1973-74, 1975-76, 1989-90
BIG SEASON FOR THE ROOK
Illinois State freshman Ty'Reek Coleman is one of just 21 players in the NCAA this season to have shooting splits of at least .510 / .410 / .705, Â while averaging 10.5 or more points per game, as there are just two freshmen on that list. Since 2005-06 he is one of just ten freshman in the NCAA with those same numbers. Those nine freshmen are listed below.
BIG MARGINS
On November 23, ISU secured a 52-point, 94-42 win over Coastal Carolina. The 52-point margin of victory is tied for the 21st largest in NCAA Division I this season against a NCAA Division I opponent. Only Gonzaga (72 vs Southern Utah), Georgia (65 vs Md. Eastern Shore), Iowa State (64 vs Alcorn State), UConn (63 vs UMass-Lowell), Louisville (59 vs South Carolina State), Kansas State (59 vs Mississippi Valley State), Saint Louis (59 vs Bethune-Cookman), Illinois (58 vs Jackson State), Duke (58 vs Niagara), Louisville (57 vs NJIT), Baylor (57 vs Alcorn State), Miami (56 vs Delaware State), Iowa (55 vs Bucknell), Duke (55 vs Army), Gonzaga (55 vs Texas Southern), High Point (55 vs Gardner-Webb), Marshall (55 vs Louisiana Monroe), Arkansas (54 vs Jackson State), Oklahoma (53 vs Stetson), and Ohio State (53, Mount St. Mary's) have a higher total against a Division I school.
MANY IN DOUBLE DIGITS
Illinois State has had 11 different players (Jack Daugherty, Mason Klabo, Ty'Reek Coleman, Johnny Kinziger, Brandon Lieb, Boden Skunberg, Ty Pence, Cameron Barnes, Chase Walker, Landon Moore, and Landon Wolf) reach double-digit scoring during the year, tied for the most in the MVC alongside Valparaiso, with Belmont, Drake, UIC, and Northern Iowa each having 10 players reaching double-digits in a game this season (as of games played on 2/21)
GETTING DEFENSIVE
Not only was Illinois State's win over Coastal Carolina one of the top scoring margin totals in the NCAA this season, but by holding the Chanticleers to 42 points, it is tied for the 15th fewest points allowed against a Division I school in the country this season.
STAYING TRADITIONAL
Starting in the 2023-24 season, the NCAA started allowing student-athletes to wear non-traditional jersey numbers, outside of the typical 0-5 numbers. In the three seasons' worth of rosters since the adjustment, there have been just 15 schools to not have a "new number" on its rosters. Joining Illinois State on that list include Alabama State, Army West Point, Bethune-Cookman, Binghamton, Central Michigan, Delaware, ETSU, Holy Cross, Lehigh, Mississippi Valley, UMES, Vermont, Western Illinois, and Wright State.
