 Illinois State is making its fourth straight appearance in the WNIT,
after advancing to the semifinals in each of the last three seasons.
ISU is 11-3 in its last three WNIT appearances, including a 9-2
record at Redbird Arena.Illinois State leads the all-time series
with Central Michigan 7-1. ISU and CMU faced off last season in the
opening round of the WNIT, when the Redbirds won 72-59 in Normal.
ILLINOIS STATE-CENTRAL MICHIGAN SERIES
Illinois State leads the all-time series with Central Michigan
7-1. ISU won the first six meetings, with four in the 1970s and a
home-and-home series in 1994-95. Central Michigan's only win came in
a 72-62 game on Nov. 25, 2001, in Redbird Arena. ISU and CMU faced
off last season in the opening round of the WNIT, when the Redbirds
won 72-59 in Normal. Illinois State has a 3-1 advantage over Central
Michigan in games played in Normal.
ISU IN THE POSTSEASON WNIT
Illinois State is making its 11th appearance in the postseason
WNIT (1980, 1982, 1984, 1988, 1990, 1996, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011,
2012) and has a 18-16 all-time record in the tournament. The
Redbirds' 2012 WNIT at-large bid marks the fifth appearance for ISU
in postseason play in the last six seasons. In the last four WNIT
appearances, the Redbirds have a record of 12-4 during that span.
ISU is 10-2 all-time in WNIT games in Redbird Arena.
SIX-PEAT
Illinois State's berth in the 2012 WNIT puts the Redbirds in the
postseason for the sixth consecutive season. ISU made WNIT trips in
five of the last six years and appeared in the NCAA tournament in
2008. ISU's six-year postseason run is tied for the longest in
school history, matching the six straight trips in 1980-85.
REDBIRDS UPSET IN MVC TOURNAMENT QUARTERFINALS
For the fifth time in the last six years, Illinois State was
upset in the State Farm MVC Tournament as a top two seed, failing to
reach the championship game. The second-seeded Redbirds were beaten
by seventh-seeded Drake 56-54 in the quarterfinals on March 9. Drake
shot 52 percent from the field in the game, compared with Illinois
State's 38 percent. ISU had an eight-point lead with just under 11
minutes to play, but Drake used a 14-4 run to regain the lead at
52-50 with just under two minutes to play. The Redbirds tied the
game off a jumper by Marley Hall, but a shot by Kyndal Clark with
eight seconds left put Drake up by two, 56-54. Illinois State had
one last chance, but a Redbird turnover didn't allow a shot to get
off, as ISU fell to Drake 56-54.
BRINGING HOME THE HARDWARE
The Illinois State women's basketball team finished second in the
Missouri Valley Conference, after being selected to finish sixth in
the preseason poll. After the Redbirds' unexpected performance, the
Valley named junior transfer Jamie Russell Newcomer of the Year and
head coach Stephanie Glance Coach of the Year for the 2011-12
season. Glance is the third Redbird coach to earn the prestigious
Coach of the Year honor. Glance led ISU to a second-place finish in
conference play and led the Redbirds to their sixth straight season
finishing in the top two of the Valley regular-season standings.
Under her leadership, the Redbirds have four players who finished
the regular season averaging double-digit scoring efforts. Through
two seasons at the helm of the Redbirds, Glance has led ISU to a
record of 42-22. Russell, who transferred to Illinois State from
Wisconsin, is the first Redbird player to earn the Newcomer of the
Year honors, as the junior transfer played a crucial role for ISU on
both sides of the ball. Russell ranked second on the team with 13.5
points per game. She had 17 double-digit scoring efforts in ISU's
last 20 games, including 10 straight double-digit performances,
earning All-Valley First Team honors.
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REDBIRDS FINISH SECOND IN THE VALLEY
Illinois State finished the regular season in sole possession of
second place in the Valley standings. The Redbirds have finished in
the top two in the Valley regular season in each of the last six
years. ISU earned the No. 2 seed in the State Farm MVC Tournament,
making the fourth time the Redbirds competed as No. 2. In 1997,
Illinois State lost a quarterfinal game against Wichita State 81-53.
In 2007, the Redbirds beat Bradley 75-60 before losing to Creighton
in the semifinals 59-56. During the 2011 tournament, ISU lost to
Indiana State 80-51.
FOUR REDBIRDS RECEIVE ALL-VALLEY HONORS
Four Redbirds received all-Valley honors and three of the four
players received Valley recognition for the first time in their
careers.
Katie Broadway and Jamie Russell were named to the All-Valley
First Team. The last time ISU had two players on the first team was
during the 2009-10 season. Russell was also selected to the
All-Defensive Team. Candace Sykes earned accolades when she was
named to the All-Valley Honorable Mention Team and Chloe Nelson was
an All-Valley Honorable Mention selection on the All-Scholar Team.
Illinois State has had three players named ll-Valley in each of the
last four years and has had a player on the Valley All-Defensive and
Scholar-Athlete teams in six consecutive seasons.
REDBIRDS IN THE VALLEY RANKINGS
Illinois State had several players finish the regular season in
the top 10 in the Valley rankings. Candace Sykes was in the top 10
in six categories. Sykes averaged 7.8 rebounds per game and was in
fifth place. She was also third in defensive rebounds (6.6 rpg),
seventh in steals (1.8 spg) and eighth in blocks (1.0 bpg). Sykes
found success beyond the arc, finishing the season in fourth place
in 3-point field goal percentage (.400) and 10th in 3-pointers made
(1.6 pg). Jamie Russell was in the top 10 in five categories.
Russell was second in assist-turnover ratio (1.4) and steals (2.6
spg), eighth in scoring with 13.5 points per game, and finished
sixth in assists (3.4 apg) and free throw percentage (.800). Katie
Broadway was in the top 10 in three categories on the offensive side
of the ball. Broadway was fourth in scoring with 15.9 points per
game, second in 3-pointers made with 2.7 per game and was eighth in
3-point field goal percentage (.377). Marley Hall finished the
season ranked 10th in field goal percentage, making 48.3 percent of
her shots.
LEADING THE RECORD BOOKS
Katie Broadway was 1 of 5 beyond the arc in ISU's 72-50 victory
over Southern Illinois on March 3. With that 3, Broadway has made 78
3-pointers so far this season, which is the most 3s made by a
Redbird player in a single season.
The previous record was held by Jenny Schmidt, who made 77 3s
during the 1997-98 season. The senior guard is shooting 37.7 percent
beyond the arc through 29 games.
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ISU women's basketball
notes
[Text from file received from
Illinois State]
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