By ISU Sports Information
PROVO, Utah– A furious second half in which Illinois State scored 51 points was not enough, as the Redbirds fell to the Cougars by an 80-68 final score.
PODCAST: Listen to post-game interviews with Coach Dan Muller and athlete Phil Fayne.
How It Happened
BYU scored the first seven points of the game, and never trailed in the contest. The Redbirds struggled from the field for the entirety of the first half, and went into the locker room trailing 39-17, as Illinois State went 0-for-15 from beyond the arc and 7-of-30 overall from the field in the opening half.
In the second half the Redbirds started to gain some momentum, and used the hot shooting of freshman Taylor Bruninga to bring the visitors out of its shooting slump. Bruninga hit 5-of-6 from long range, and scored all 20 of his points in the second half, as Illinois State out-scored BYU by 10 over the second 20 minutes of the game.
Key Moment
With 16:52 to play in the second half, Bruninga hit the team’s first three-pointer of the game, and kicked off a run where Illinois State out-scored BYU by 16 the rest of the way in the 12-point loss.
Inside the Box Score
• Bruninga scored a team-high 20 points – all coming in the second half – while making 7-of-10 shots from the field and 5-of-8 from long range.
• Milik Yarbrough scored 13 points while pulling down a game-high nine rebounds and also dishing out five assists.
• Phil Fayne scored 19 points, making 9-of-15 shots from the field while adding five rebounds
• Keyshawn Evans scored 14 points, and made 2-of-5 from long range, as he also had a team-high six assists
Stat of the Game
7-of-9: After going 0-for-15 from long range in the first half, the Redbirds made 7-of-9 from long range over the second 20 minutes of action.
What’s Next
Illinois State returns home on Saturday, December 9, when the team plays host to the Murray State Racers in a 3 p.m. tip-off at Doug Collins Court at Redbird Arena.
