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Second-Half Run Propels ISU to 81-68 Win Over EIU
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[November 12, 2007]
CHARLESTON -- For the third time
in the Robin Pingeton era, the Illinois State women's basketball
posted a victory in its season opener. Leading three double-digit
scorers, Kristi Cirone, the 2007 Missouri Valley Conference Player
of the Year, notched a game-high 23 points as the Redbirds recorded
an 81-68 nonconference win over Eastern Illinois at Lantz Arena on
Sunday.
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The Redbirds (1-0) used an 18-6 run to start the second half to
overcome Eastern Illinois' (0-2) hot first-half shooting (61.9
percent). Leading 41-38 at the intermission, the Redbirds missed
their first three field goal attempts in the second half. However,
ISU quickly got the hot hand by rattling off an 18-6 run, including
six points by Cirone and five more from Tiffany Hudson, to take a
59-44 advantage at the 13:40 mark. For the game, Hudson tied her
career high with 18 points. Joining Cirone and Hudson in
double-figure scoring was Sha'la Jackson with 10 points, in her
first collegiate game. Cirone added a game-high eight assists.
"I thought this was a great win for our kids on the road in a
season-opener," Pingeton said. "I didn't think our defensive
intensity was where we wanted it to be in the first half, but we
came out and played harder in the second half. We forced them to
rush shots, and defense is not always about getting steals, it
includes forcing them into bad shots."
ISU maintained its lead and claimed its largest margin of the
contest on a Nicolle Lewis basket at 9:43, for a 68-52 lead. EIU
used a 6-0 run and a Redbird scoring drought, which included four
turnovers, to close the lead to 70-61 with 6:02 on the clock.
[to top of second column]
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With less than three minutes remaining, the Redbirds answered
with a 9-2 run to match their largest lead at 79-63. ISU converted
5-of-6 free throws down the stretch to seal the win. In addition to
the second-half runs, Illinois State used 18 offensive rebounds to
post the win, which resulted in 20 second-chance points.
"Our defense just picked up (in the second half) and wasn't as
intense as it needed to be in the first half," Cirone said. "Defense
is our team's focus this year, and I know it is mine personally."
Illinois State returns to action Thursday, when the Redbirds host
Wisconsin-Green Bay at 7:05 p.m.
(Final box
score)
(Post-game
notes)
[To download Adobe Acrobat Reader for
the PDF files, click
here.]
[Text from file received from Todd Kober,
assistant athletics director, media relations,
Illinois
State University]
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