Redbirds top Evansville in OT

Posted on March 1, 2015

Daishon Knight scored a baseline jumper with two seconds remaining in overtime to lift Illinois State over Evansville, 69-67 (Photo courtesy of GoRedbirds.com)

By WJBC staff

EVANSVILLE, Ind. – Daishon Knight scored a baseline jumper with two seconds remaining in overtime to lift Illinois State over Evansville, 69-67, in the Missouri Valley Conference regular-season finale Saturday afternoon at the Ford Center.

The Redbirds (19-11, 11-7 MVC) extended their winning streak to a season-best four games ahead of next week’s Missouri Valley Conference Men’s Basketball Tournament. With Saturday’s win over the Purple Aces (19-11, 9-9 MVC), ISU tied Indiana State for third place in the final league standings and secured the MVC Tournament’s No. 4 seed. Illinois State will once again play Evansville – the MVC Tournament’s No. 5 seed – Friday, March 6 at 2:30 p.m. in the tournament quarterfinals.

DeVaughn Akoon-Purcell scored a team-high 16 points in ISU’s victory at Evansville, including a clutch layup with two seconds remaining in regulation to force overtime. Paris Lee and Reggie Lynch also reached double-figures, with 12 points apiece. Illinois State shot 42.0 percent from the field compared to UE’s 40.0 percent, and the Redbirds outrebounded the Purple Aces, 49-31, including a season-high 21 offensive boards. Akoon-Purcell and John Jones each collected nine rebounds, marking a career-best for Jones. Limited to four first-half points, Evansville’s D.J. Balentine led all scorers with 22 points.

After falling behind, 8-4, early, the Redbirds went on a 7-0 run to take an 11-8 advantage at the 12:43 mark. ISU extended its lead to 18-10 on a Lee 3-pointer followed by two Lee free throws. However, Evansville pulled within 24-23 at the 4:21 mark after outscoring ISU, 13-6, over a 6:12 stretch. Illinois State answered with five-straight to take a 29-23 advantage, and the Redbirds led at halftime, 31-27. Lee paced all first-half scorers with eight points on 2-for-2 shooting from beyond the arc and a 3-for-3 effort at the free throw line.

Illinois State outscored UE, 9-5, to start the second half, and the Redbirds went on to build an eight-point advantage, 40-32, at the 15:47 mark. An 11-2 Evansville run pushed the Purple Aces back in front, 53-52, on a layup by Egidijus Mockevicius with 5:04 remaining. A Lynch layup at the 1:24 mark tied the game, 59-59; however, Evansville answered with two free throws by Adam Wing with 13 seconds to play. Trailing by two, Akoon-Purcell penetrated the lane, scoring a layup with two seconds left, tying the game, 61-61, and forcing overtime.

In the extra period, ISU took a two-point lead with two Akoon-Purcell free throws. A charity shot by Wing pulled the Purple Aces within one, and a jumper by Akoon-Purcell lifted ISU ahead, 65-62. Two more Wing free throws were matched by a Lee layup, and Mislav Brzoja’s 3-pointers with 32 seconds remaining tied the game, 67-67. Illinois State secured the win with Knight’s baseline jumper at the two-second mark.

The Redbirds swept the regular-season series against Evansville, securing Illinois State’s fifth MVC regular-season sweep of the year, signifying ISU’s most conference sweeps since the 2007-08 season. ISU also earned its fifth league road victory, the Redbirds’ most conference road wins since 2007-08.

With the regular-season complete, Illinois State begins play in the Missouri Valley Conference Men’s Basketball Tournament, starting Friday at 2:30 p.m. against Evansville at Scottrade Center in St. Louis. All-session tickets to the 2015 Missouri Valley Conference Tournament are on sale now through the Illinois State Athletics ticket office by either calling (309) 438-8000, or by visiting GoRedbirds.com.

For up-to-date information about Arch Madness events, including the Redbird Rally and other pregame and postgame social festivities, fans can visit GoRedbirds.comArchMadness.

Podcasts:

Daishon Knight discusses his team's overtime win at Evansville.

http://www.stationcaster.com/player_skinned.php?s=711&c=3911&f=4065023

Illinois State men's basketball coach Dan Muller discusses his team's overtime win over Evansville.

http://www.stationcaster.com/player_skinned.php?s=711&c=3911&f=4065013

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