The 4th Seed Illinois State Redbirds Beat Down The Wounded Dayton Flyers

With the early hole, the Flyers simply were unable to recover and never led in the game. Illinois State shot 37.2% from three, going 6–16. Conversely, the Flyers shot a measly 3–25, or 12%. That made a comeback very unlikely.

The Redbirds were propelled by Kinzinger, who splashed in 16 points while also grabbing two rebounds. Other contributors were junior guards Chase Walker and Ty Pence. The pair combined for 25 points and 15 boards.

In their defense, Dayton lost one of their key players early on. Senior guard Javon Bennett suffered a lower-body injury early in the contest. He was unable to return to the game, severely impacting the Flyers’ scoring options. Bennett averaged 16.3 points per game.

Without Bennett, Dayton fell flat in this one. Illinois State held the Flyers to a season-low 55 points. The Redbirds, despite 15 turnovers, controlled the game.

They led by ten at halftime, 33–23.

Dayton Needed To Regroup

Now was the Flyers’ time to forget about the first half. That wasn’t their best basketball, and they knew it. Well, they knew they had to play their best to beat an efficient ISU offense.

Dayton didn’t seem to get the message as the second half started. The Flyers looked a step slower than ISU. Pretty soon, it turned into a 49–30 Redbird lead with 12:31 remaining.

It was now or never for the Dayton Flyers. The comeback attempt was valiant, but the lead proved to be too much to overcome.

Without Bennett, the Flyers struggled to score. Sophomore guard Bryce Heard led the team with 12 points, with seven coming by way of free throws. Others, such as Jordan Derkack and Amael L’Etang, provided 11 and ten points, respectively.

Illinois State had a stranglehold on this one, never letting Dayton within a single possession the rest of the way. Despite a long scoring drought of six-plus minutes for the Redbirds, Dayton just didn’t have the offensive weapons they needed to take advantage. The final score was 61–55 Redbirds, a strong showing by ISU against a great Dayton team.

End Of My ISU Rant

Illinois State moves on to face the winner of Auburn vs. Nevada. Either team poses a tough challenge for ISU. If they play as well as they did against the Flyers, though, it might not matter.