|
 The Redbird guard entered with nine seconds left in regulation,
was fouled with 5.9 seconds left in a scramble for possession and
calmly hit two free throws to restore a four-point lead.
"To ask a freshman to do it that's pretty cool," Illinois State
coach Dan Muller said. "For Tony Wills to come off the bench — he
was a defensive substitution — and for him to make those two free
throws as cleanly as he did, that's a testament to Tony staying in
the game mentally."
Teammates Zach Lofton and Daishon Knight led a balanced attack with
15 points apiece while John Jones had 11, Reggie Lynch added 10 and
Michael Middlebrooks collected 11 rebounds.
The Redbirds (1-2) snapped a two-game losing streak and won for the
third time in the five meetings with the Wildcats.
"This is a real quality win, and I'm happy that we're starting to
play better," Muller said.
Northwestern (1-2) rallied from a 19-point second half deficit and
trailed 66-64 after JerShon Cobb's jumper with 8.2 seconds to play.
But Wills locked down the win seconds later with his free throws.
Cobb closed with 19 points, and Drew Crawford had 13 while Tre Demps
added 12.
The Redbirds overcame a sluggish start and took a lead for good in
the game's ninth minute.
Northwestern opened an early 8-3 lead while Illinois State hit just
one of its first nine field goals. The Wildcats then missed seven
straight shots while the Redbirds sprinted to an 15-8 lead by the
8:06 mark after back-to-back Knight layups, a Lynch dunk and another
a fast break jam by Middlebrooks.
The Redbirds later used a 9-0 run to open a 31-17 lead with 4:04
showing on the way to a 40-22 halftime edge. Lofton had 12
first-half points on 3-of-6 shooting from the arc. Northwestern
missed all seven 3-point tries.
"In the first half (with) their energy, their fight and the
competitiveness, they pretty much outplayed us in every facet,"
Northwestern coach Chris Collins said. "At halftime, we regrouped
and played much better. We played more like the team I'd like us to
be. ... We were pushing the ball up, getting some stuff early and
attacking and driving."
[to top of second column] |
The Wildcats opened the second half with six
unanswered points, including a Dave Sobolewski 3-pointer that
cut the deficit to 12.
The Redbirds replied with seven straight points, including a
Lofton 3-pointer for a 47-28 lead — their biggest lead of the
game — with 16:06 remaining.
Another Northwestern surge cut the Illinois State lead to single
digits at 53-44 when Sobolewski drove uncontested for a layup
with 10 minutes left.
The Wildcats trailed 63-56 with 2:28 to play, hit 4-of-6 free
throws over the next two minutes and had two Cobb baskets.
"We got really stagnant offensively when they went on their run
and we stopped executing," Muller said.
Illinois State shot 51.6 percent in the first half (16-for-31)
but hit just 8 of 28 (28.6 percent) in the second half.
Northwestern rebounded from a poor 26.9 percent first half (7
for 26) to hit 14 of 31 for 45.2 percent in the second.
The Redbirds outrebounded the Wildcats 43-40 but had 12
turnovers to just five for the hosts.
Northwestern, under first-year coach Chris Collins, has four
starters back from a team that went 13-19 under former coach
Bill Carmody. Second-year Redbirds coach Dan Muller opened the
season with just two returnees, no seniors and nine players with
no Division I experience.
Chris Collins is the son of Redbirds legend Doug Collins,
Illinois State's all-time leading scorer (2,240 points) who
later went on to a lengthy NBA career as a player and coach.
Both teams resume play Wednesday with Northwestern at
Illinois-Chicago while Illinois State hosts Manhattan.
[Associated
Press; JACK McCARTHY]
Copyright 2013 The Associated
Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. |
