Illinois State already has created a small ripple of interest in the look-aheads at NCAA tournament possibilities beginning to surface. But if they want to be around when the serious tournament talk begins, the Redbirds will need to learn a lesson in closing.
For the third straight game, Illinois State (13-3, 5-0) allowed a double-digit lead to come dangerously close to vanishing Saturday night, this time at home against an Evansville team winless in the Missouri Valley, before stumbling away with a 74-66 victory.
“I don’t think we take our foot off the gas,” said guard Osiris Eldridge, who led Illinois State with 17 points. “We just get a little complacent.”
The victory, slowed to a dirge because of 37 fouls in the second half, gives the Redbirds eight straight victories for the first time since the 1991-92 season and kept them abreast of Drake, which defeated Missouri State. Illinois State will travel to Des Moines on Saturday for a game with potentially significant implications for the tournament hopes of both teams.
Eldridge effectively settled matters late in the second half. With Illinois State wobbling and its lead of 15 points down to three at 50-47, the Phillips High graduate scored nine of the Redbirds’ next 12 points, three on a falling-down layup and subsequent foul shot.
That play with 3 minutes 40 seconds left pushed Illinois State’s margin to 10, and Evansville (5-10, 0-5) never got closer than eight points. The Purple Aces were led by Shy Ely with a career-high 28 points.
“Evansville played great,” said Illinois State coach Tim Jankovich, shaking his head. “If that’s an 0-5 team in this league … oh, my.”
It was a designer Illinois State game, good and bad. The Redbirds’ full-court pressure contributed to a stretch of 4 of 6 first-half Evansville possessions ending in turnovers or offensive fouls and only one point scored as Illinois State built its double-digit lead. The defensive vise limited Evansville to only two field goals over an 11-minute span of the first half that resulted in a 15-point lead.
Guard Dom Johnson’s two three-pointers were Illinois State’s only points over the first seven minutes of the second half, and when Evansville scored six unanswered points in a 9-2 run, the Redbirds’ lead was three with nine minutes to play.
“Sometimes we punch teams in the mouth,” said forward Brandon Sampay, who had a game-high eight rebounds for Illinois State. “But they kept on coming back.”
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jmullin@tribune.com
