Birds blow away Braves in I-74 battle

Posted on February 12, 2017

 

Illinois State Senior Point Guard Paris Lee helped propel the Redbirds past the Braves of Bradley in the War on 74. (Photo: WJBC/File)

By: WJBC Staff

NORMAL, Ill. – Illinois State never trailed in a 64-50 Missouri Valley Conference victory over Bradley in front of 9,380 fans Saturday night on Doug Collins Court at Redbird Arena. With the win, ISU swept the I-74 Rivalry series for the third-straight season.

The Redbirds improved to 21-5 overall and 13-1 in the MVC. ISU also won its 19th-consecutive home game to extend the team’s record-long streak at Redbird Arena, which is tied for the third-longest home winning streak in program history. Bradley fell to 9-18 overall and 4-10 in the MVC.

Paris Lee led three Redbirds in double-figure scoring with 14 points. Meanwhile, Daouda “David” Ndiaye collected a career-high nine rebounds and matched a career-best nine points. Bradley was led by Jayden Hodgson’s 11 points and six rebounds. Illinois State shot 19-for-49 (38.8 percent) from the field, while Bradley shot 17-for-51 (33.3 percent).

ISU jumped out to a 13-1 lead and held Bradley without a field goal, on 0-for-15 shooting, until a rebound basket by Koch Bar at the 8:23 mark. Phil Fayne scored six of ISU’s first 13 points. The Redbirds went on to build a 19-3 advantage as Tony Wills scored four-straight points.

Deontae Hawkins lifted Illinois State to its largest lead of the game, 32-13, as Wills forced a steal, then recorded the assist on a one-handed Hawkins dunk, despite being fouled. Hawkins made his free throw to convert the three-point play and push ISU ahead by 19 points at the 1:17 mark. A jumper by Bar with 38 seconds remaining made the halftime score 32-15 in favor of Illinois State.

Bradley’s 15 first-half point were the fewest allowed by ISU in a half this season. The Redbirds held the Braves to 6-for-25 (24.0 percent) shooting in the first half, while Illinois State shot 10-for-27 (37.0 percent) in the opening stanza.

The Braves outscored the Redbirds, 7-4, to start the second-half and pull within 36-22. After ISU extended its lead to 39-22, Bradley went on a 6-1 run to cut the Redbird advantage to 40-28 at the 12:57 mark. Leading by 13 points, Illinois State responded with a 7-0 run, which included four points by Ndiaye to lift ISU ahead by 19 points, 50-31, with 8:21 remaining.

A 6-2 Bradley run pulled the Braves within 58-48 on a Hodgson 3-pointer. But, Illinois State ended the game on a 6-3 run to secure the 64-50 victory.

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