By ISU Sports Information
TULSA, Okla. – Illinois State led by as many as 14 points early in the second half, but Tulsa came back to beat the Redbirds, 70-68, Wednesday night at the Reynolds Center.
Paris Lee led all scorers with 18 points. He added six assists and two steals. MiKyle McIntosh added 15 points with a team-best seven rebounds. For Tulsa, Junior Etou and Sterling Taplin both netted 15 points, while Will Magnay recorded a double-double with 10 points and 13 rebounds. Illinois State shot 23-for-59 (39.0 percent) from the field, and Tulsa shot 25-for-55 (45.5 percent). The Golden Hurricane outrebounded ISU, 38-35.
Tulsa pulled ahead, 6-0, to start the game, including four points by Taplin. The Redbirds answered with four-straight to pull within 6-4. However, the Golden Hurricane responded with a 6-0 run to lead, 12-4. McIntosh stopped the streak with a baseline 3-pointer followed by a free throw to make the score 12-8. A Tony Wills steal and three-point play made it a one-point game, 15-11. A Keyshawn Evans 3-pointer then tied the game, 17-17.
A 3-pointer by Lee rom the top of the key gave Illinois State its first lead, 20-19. A pair of McIntosh free throws extended ISU’s advantage to 22-19. A Deontae Hawkins 3-pointer made the score 27-23. Two Hawkins free throws increased Illinois State’s lead to 29-24.
Defensively, Illinois State held Tulsa without a field goal until a Pat Birt 3-pointer which tied the game, 29-29. Hawkins broke the tie with a layup to make it 31-29. A fastbreak Phil Fayne layup then pushed the Redbirds ahead, 33-29. And, after Etou netted a 3-pointer, Lee answered with a last-second trifecta to make the score 36-32 at halftime.
Wills scored the first basket of the second half to extend ISU’s lead. Wills, along with Lee and Hawkins, then drained 3-pointers to lift the Redbirds ahead, 48-34. The Golden Hurricane pulled within 50-40 before another Lee 3-pointer pushed the Redbirds in front by 13. Lawson Korita’s 3-pointer followed by two Corey Henderson free throws made the score 53-47.
A Taplin 3-pointer cut ISU’s lead to 55-50. But, Lee responded with a trifecta from the right wing to give Illinois State a 58-50 lead. Magnay’s ally-oop dunk pulled the Golden Hurricane within 58-54. Back-to-back lay-ins by Fayne made the score 62-54 and Evans pushed the Redbird lead to 65-57 with a 3-pointer. A dunk by Jaleel Wheeler followed by a back-to-back Magnay layups pulled Tulsa within 65-64, and an Etou three-point play with 2:29 remaining lifted the Golden Hurricane ahead, 67-65. McIntosh tied the game at 67-all on the other end.
A Taplin layup pushed Tulsa ahead, 69-67, and a technical foul against the Illinois State bench allowed Henderson to attempt two free throws. He missed the first and made the second, and Illinois State got the ball with 11.3 remaining. Tulsa then intentionally fouled, and Lee made one free throw, intentionally missed the second one, and a double-foul on the rebound gave Illinois State the ball back based on the possession arrow. However, a last-second Hawkins 3-pointer was off the mark, and Tulsa held on for a 70-68 victory.
With their final true non-conference road game complete, the Redbirds return to Doug Collins Court at Redbird Arena for two-straight home games, starting Saturday, Dec. 10 at 2 p.m. versus UT Martin for Star Wars Day. ISU will then face Saint Joseph’s Sunday, Dec. 18 at 3 p.m. before traveling to the Diamond Head Classic in Honolulu, Hawaii to wrap up non-conference play.
