Redbirds Hang Tough With No. 13 Shockers In 68-62 Defeat

[February 16, 2015]  NORMAL - Illinois State’s DeVaughn Akoon-Purcell scored 15 of his 18 points in the second half to keep ISU close against No. 13 ranked Wichita State, but the Shockers (23-3, 13-1 MVC) dominated the rebounding margin, 40-26, and had 10 second-chance points that turned out to be the difference in a 68-62 defeat of the Redbirds (15-11, 7-7 MVC) Saturday on Doug Collins Court at Redbird Arena.

Akoon-Purcell was one of two Redbirds in double figures and finished with 18 points, including a 3-for-5 effort from three-point range. Reggie Lynch was the only other Redbird in double figures with 10 points, all of which were scored in the second half, to go along with eight rebounds, before he fouled out of the contest.

The Shockers jumped out to a 13-4 lead, making five of their first seven shots of the game. A three-pointer by Akoon-Purcell at the 15:33 mark cut the WSU lead to 13-7, just before the first media time out. Out of the break, Fred VanVleet nailed a jumper to extend the lead to 15-7, but Paris Lee answered on the other end of the floor with a 3-pointer to cut the Shockers’ lead to five at 15-10.

A jumper by Tony Wills at the 10:56 mark cut into the Wichita State lead at 19-16, but a 3-pointer by Ron Baker extended the lead back to six points at 22-16 on the next possession. Both teams struggled to score for the next four minutes, until VanVleet connected on a pair of free throws with just over seven minutes left in the first half to take a 24-16 lead.
 

The ISU scoring drought came to an end when MiKyle McIntosh converted a three-point play, after being fouled in the lane, to cut the WSU lead to 24-19 with 6:05 remaining in the first half. After a basket by the Shockers, a jumper by Bobby Hunter with 3:36 left on the clock cut the deficit back to five points at 26-21. The Shockers eventually took a 27-21 lead into the locker room at halftime, but finished the half just 2-for-14 from the field. The Redbirds made just two of their last 12 shot attempts to end the first 20 minutes of play, as they trailed heading into the locker room for the first time this season at home.

Four points from Reggie Lynch out of the break cut the Wichita State lead down to two points at 27-25, before Baker hit a 3-pointer to extend the lead back out to five points at 30-25. An answer on the other end on a 3-pointer by Akoon-Purcell cut the lead back to two points again at 30-28. The two teams traded baskets before Lynch scored his eighth point of the half on a layup at the 16:51 mark to make the score 34-32.

The Shockers took control and widened the lead back to seven points at 41-34, before McIntosh hit his second-straight bucket to cut the lead to 41-36 on the following possession with 14:17 left in the contest. A pair of free throws by VanVleet at the 9:32 mark gave the Shockers a 45-38 advantage, and a pair of free throws by Shaquille Morris widened the lead to 47-38, after Lynch picked up his fourth foul of the contest. A 3-pointer by Evan Wessel extended the Wichita State lead to 50-39, its largest of the game at the time, before a three-point play by Jones trimmed the deficit back to single digits at 50-42 with 8:28 left in the game. Another layup from Jones would cut the WSU lead to 50-44 with 7:00 left, as Wichita State head coach Gregg Marshall called time out to settle his squad down.

Four-straight points from Akoon-Purcell cut the WSU lead to 50-48 with just over six minutes left in the game to extend the Redbird 9-0 run. Two free throws from VanVleet would put an end to the scoring drought for the Shockers and make the score 52-48, before Deontae Hawkins made the first of two free throws on the other end to cut the lead back to three points at 52-49.

An alley-oop dunk by Lynch cut the lead to one at 53-51 with just over five minutes left, before a dunk by Rashard Kelly put the lead back to 55-53 as he was fouled on the play by Lynch, who fouled how. Kelly was called for a technical foul after the dunk, which allowed Akoon-Purcell to make two free throws to cut the lead to 55-53. After the technical shots, Kelly completed his three-point play to give the Shockers a 56-53 lead with just under five minutes to play.

A pair of free throws from Baker with 2:41 left in the game and a fast break layup by VanVleet pushed the Wichita State lead to 60-54, before a pair of free throws by McIntosh trimmed the lead back to four points at 60-56. A layup by Wessel with under a minute to play gave Wichita State a 62-56 advantage and a pair of late 3-pointers by Akoon-Purcell cut the WSU lead to 66-62, but the Shockers held on for the victory.

Illinois State returns to action Wednesday, Feb. 18, when they travel west on Interstate 74 to face the Bradley Braves. Tipoff is set for 8 p.m., from Carver Arena and will be broadcast live on Comcast SportsNet Chicago and FSN Midwest as part of the Missouri Valley Conference TV package.

[Michael Williams, Illinois State University]

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