By ISU Sports Information:
NEW HAVEN, Conn. – The Illinois State women’s basketball team fell to Yale, 60-47, Wednesday at the Lee Amphitheater, after a third-quarter run proved to be too much for the Redbirds.
Shakeela Fowler led all scorers with 19 points, connecting on seven field goals and five free throws. Fowler was the only Redbird to reach double figures. Taylor Stewart scored eight points, while Katrina Beck added six. Colleene Smith pulled down 10 rebounds, leading both teams on the boards. Smith grabbed six offensive rebounds against the Bulldogs. Octavia Crump, Beck and Smith recorded two steals apiece. ISU pulled down 38 rebounds, two more than Yale. The Bulldogs (8-5) connected on 39 percent of their shot attempts, while the Redbirds (1-8) sank 28 percent of their field goal attempts
“The turnovers and their third-quarter run were the issues for us,” head coach Barb Smith said. “Outside of those two things, we had a better start, played better defense and played better basketball. Their third-quarter run shook us. We are a young team, and we have to learn to stay strong during those runs.”
Illinois State struggled to find its offensive rhythm in the first quarter, as the Redbirds connected on one field goal over the first nine minutes of the game. ISU ended the quarter with a pair of field goals and two free throws from three separate Redbirds. Yale also struggled from the field, scoring nine points in the first 10 minutes of play.
The Redbirds controlled the offensive momentum for most of the second quarter, as ISU took its first lead, 14-13, off of a pair of free throws by Millie Stevens at the 5:20 mark. Illinois State took a five-point advantage, 18-13, thanks to a 12-4 run. Fowler and Stewart scored four points apiece during the run. ISU wasn’t able to maintain the offensive attack, as Yale regrouped and ended the quarter with an 8-2 run, including a basket at the buzzer to take a one-point lead at the half, 21-20. The Redbirds outscored the Bulldogs, 14-12, in the second quarter.
At the break, Fowler led all scorers with eight points, while Stewart added four. Four Redbirds added two points in the opening half. Smith led all rebounders with five boards, as ISU grabbed 17 rebounds over the first two quarters. Yale recorded 19 rebounds and shot 39 percent from the field compared to Illinois State’s 28 percent.
Like the first quarter, Illinois State struggled to connect from the field in the third quarter. The Redbirds’ first basket came at the 4:56 mark, when Fowler sank a jumper. The Bulldogs took a 13-point lead, 42-29, with 34 seconds remaining in the third quarter. Yale used a 12-3 run to take its largest lead of the game. Then, Beck hit a three at the buzzer to pull Illinois State within 10 points at the end of the quarter.
The Redbirds were scoreless for over four minutes to start the fourth quarter until Fowler connected on a free throw with 5:25 left to play. Fowler scored Illinois State’s first five points of the quarter, including the team’s first field goal of the quarter at the 2:46 mark. In the fourth quarter, Fowler scored nine of ISU’s 15 points. ISU made a late comeback, but ran out of time, as it fell, 60-47.
After three-straight road games, ISU returns to Redbird Arena Monday to take on in-state rival Chicago State at 7 p.m.
