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 Reggie Lynch joined Knight in double-figures with 13 points and a
game-best nine rebounds. He also blocked three shots to tie Illinois
State’s sophomore blocks record with 48, matching Joe Galvin’s
1977-78 mark. The Redbirds have now won four-of-their-last-five
games, including three-straight contests over the last three years
in Des Moines, Iowa.
ISU (12-7, 4-3 MVC) shot 50.0 percent from the field compared to
Drake’s (4-15, 1-6 MVC) 38.2 percent shooting clip. Illinois State
also outrebounded the Bulldogs, 36-30. Gary Ricks Jr., and C.J.
Rivers both scored 10 points to lead DU.
Illinois State held Drake to 0-for-5 from the field to start the
game before Drake took an 8-4 lead on back-to-back 3-pointers. Bobby
Hunter answered with a 3-pointer which sparked a 7-0 run – including
a layup and two free throws by Tony Wills – to build an 11-8 Redbird
advantage. A 3-pointer by Ore Arogundade lifted the Bulldogs back in
front, 15-13, at the 8:18 mark. However, DU’s advantage was
short-lived, as Lynch responded with a two-handed rebound-dunk.
After Drake regained the lead, Knight netted back-to-back jumpers,
pushing ISU back in front, 19-18. A 7-2 Redbird run, capped by a
Hunter 3-pointer, increased Illinois State’s margin to 26-24 with
2:14 remaining in the opening half, and Illinois State outscored DU,
10-5, over the final 4:15 to take a 29-27 halftime advantage. Knight
led all scorers with 11 first-half points on 4-for-6 shooting as the
Redbirds shot 47.8 percent from the field while holding the Bulldogs
to 33.3 percent.
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Lynch netted ISU’s first three points of the second half with a
layup and a free throw, and Illinois State started the second half
on a 7-2 run to build a 36-29 lead at the 17:14 mark. Drake once
again answered, this time by outscoring ISU, 8-2, to pull within
38-37 on a Rivers layup with 15:35 to play. Illinois State’s 8-2 run
pushed the Redbird advantage to 46-39 at the 12:16 mark.
Drake pulled as close as 46-44 with 9:49 remaining, but ISU
responded with a 9-2 run, to establish a 55-46 lead. The Bulldogs
trimmed their deficit to seven with 19 seconds to play, but the
Redbirds never trailed in the second half and held off Drake, 64-56.
After playing four games in the last 10 days, Illinois State does
not play again until Sunday, Jan. 25 when the Redbirds return to
Doug Collins Court at Redbird Arena to host No. 19 Northern Iowa at
3 p.m. Tickets are available on GoRedbirds.com, or by visiting or
calling the Illinois State Athletics Ticket Office at (309)
438-8000.
[John Twork, Illinois State
University]
GoRedbirds.com: Your online source
for Illinois State Athletics, tickets, Weisbecker Scholarship Fund
gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more. |
