McLean County Times

The Illinois State University (ISU) men's basketball team is set to honor its senior players during their final home game of the season. The Redbirds will face off against the Evansville Aces at CEFCU Arena on Sunday, March 2, with a 2 p.m. tip-off. This game marks a significant moment for graduating student-athletes Caden Boser, Jordan Davis, Dalton Banks, and Malachi Poindexter.

Dalton Banks is nearing two career milestones with 992 points and 397 assists. The Redbirds have shown remarkable improvement over the past seasons, currently ranking 14th in three-point field goal percentage nationally.

Chase Walker leads the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) in field goal percentage at 59.3 percent and aims to be the first Redbird since Dinma Odiakosa in 2009-10 to lead in this statistic. Walker also averages 15.4 points per game alongside fellow sophomore Johnny Kinziger's 15.2 points per game.

Jack Daugherty has made an impressive impact as a freshman with his .495 three-point shooting percentage being the second-highest in NCAA history for ISU freshmen.

Evansville enters Sunday's game after losing five of their last seven matches. Tayshawn Comer leads the Aces with an average of 16.2 points per game.

ISU's recruiting class for the upcoming season ranks 60th nationally according to 247sports.com, featuring promising talents like Nick Allen and Isaac Ericksen.

Redbird legend Doug Collins was recently inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame, joining other notable figures such as Chauncey Billups and Vince Carter.

Sophomore guard Johnny Kinziger has been named to Bracketeer.org's All-American watch list and was selected for the First Team in preseason polls alongside teammate Malachi Poindexter on the Second Team.

The Illinois State men's basketball team was picked fourth in preseason polls by media members, SIDs, and head coaches within their conference.