Redbirds Run Away From The Salukis In Second Half, Win 73-56

[February 26, 2015]  NORMAL - The first half between Illinois State and Southern Illinois featured nine lead changes and ended in a 36-36 tie, however the second half belonged to DeVaughn Akoon-Purcell and the Redbirds (18-11, 10-7 MVC), who pulled away early and never looked back in a 73-56 defeat of the Salukis (10-20, 3-14 MVC) Wednesday night on Doug Collins Court at Redbird Arena.

ISU picked up its 10th conference win of the season, marking the most wins for the Redbirds in Valley play since the 2009-10 season. Akoon-Purcell scored four of his 12 second-half points in the first 30 seconds of the stanza and finished with a career-best 24 points, thanks to a 4-for-7 effort from long distance for the Redbirds. He led a trio of Redbirds in double figures, as senior Daishon Knight scored 11 points and MiKyle McIntosh finished with 10 points for the Redbirds.

The two teams traded baskets and the lead four times over the first five-plus minutes, with the Salukis jumping out to a three-point lead at 13-10 at the first media time out. SIU maintained a single-digit lead over the next seven minutes of play and the Redbirds cut the deficit to one point at 23-22, after a three-pointer by McIntosh, but Deng Leek threw down his second-consecutive dunk to put the Salukis back up 26-22 with 7:32 left in the first half.

A three-pointer by Knight trimmed the Saluki lead back to one point at 26-25 a minute later, which forced SIU head coach Barry Hinson to call a time out with 6:32 left before halftime. The Redbirds then took the lead for the first time since the 15:38 mark at 27-26 on a pair of free throws by Akoon-Purcell, as he was fouled attempting a fast break layup.

The Salukis took the lead right back on a three-pointer by Normal, Illinois, native Anthony Beane at 29-27 with just over five minutes left in the half. Knight later tied the game at 29-29 with a pair of free throws with just over four minutes left in the game, before the Salukis took a one-point lead a minute later. The teams traded the lead four more times over the next three minutes, before a three-pointer by Paris Lee from the corner put the Redbirds ahead at 36-34 with 42 seconds left in the half. Two free throws by Jordan Caroline tied the game at 36-36 and the Redbirds could not convert on the final possession of the game, as the two teams headed to the locker room tied at the half.

Illinois State came out of the locker room inspired, scoring the first nine points of the half to take a 45-36 lead, before Beane connected on a three-pointer to end the early scoring drought for the Salukis and cut the ISU lead to 45-39. The ISU run was sparked by Akoon-Purcell, who scored four quick points for the Redbirds to start the streak. A three-pointer by Akoon-Purcell later gave the Redbirds a nine-point lead at 50-41 seven minutes into the second half of play.

A jumper by Lee a minute later extended the ISU lead to 14 points at 55-41 and the Redbirds maintained a double-digit lead, until Beane scored four-straight points for the Salukis to cut the deficit to eight points at 59-51 with seven minutes left in the game. A pair of three-pointers by Justin McCloud capped off a quick 7-0 run for the Redbirds soon after, and ISU widened the advantage to 66-51 with 5:15 left in the game.

Akoon-Purcell’s fourth three-point field goal of the contest gave ISU its largest lead of the game at 19 points at 71-52 with just under four minutes left in the contest. The Salukis were able to trim the lead a bit, but ultimately suffered the double-digit defeat. The Redbirds wrap up the regular season on the road Saturday at Evansville. Tipoff is set for 1 p.m., and the game will be broadcast live on Comcast SportsNet Chicago, Fox Sports Midwest and ESPN Full Court as part of the MVC television package.

[Michael Williams, Illinois State University]

GoRedbirds.com: Your online source for Illinois State Athletics, tickets, Weisbecker Scholarship Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more.