McLean County Times

Illinois State University seniors led their team to a 62-53 victory over Evansville in their final regular-season game at CEFCU Arena. Seniors Malachi Poindexter, Dalton Banks, Jordan Davis, and Caden Boser played key roles in securing the win for the Redbirds.

Dalton Banks was instrumental with a team-high 13 points, including his career 1000th point scored in the first half. He also contributed six rebounds, two assists, and achieved a season-high of five steals. "Banks scored twice in the final two minutes," contributing significantly to the team's success. Poindexter added 11 points to the scoreboard while Johnny Kinziger and Caden Boser chipped in eight and seven points respectively. Ty Pence set a personal best with nine rebounds as Illinois State out-rebounded Evansville 33-to-32.

The victory places Illinois State as likely contenders for the fifth seed in the upcoming MVC tournament unless there is a significant change in NET rankings for either Illinois State or UIC. The Redbirds are scheduled to face Missouri State on Thursday, March 6 at 2:30 p.m. at Enterprise Center.

In this match-up against Evansville, Illinois State initially took control with a strong start leading by three points before extending it further during an impressive run where they kept Evansville scoreless for nearly seven minutes. By halftime, ISU led by 11 points at 34-23 despite a late rally from Evansville.

The second half saw Evansville briefly take a one-point lead; however, ISU responded strongly by scoring ten of the next thirteen points to secure their lead once more and eventually closed out with a decisive 7-0 run.

"Evansville was led by Tanner Cuff who scored 15 points," supported by Connor Turnbull's contribution of 14 points and Gabriel Pozzato adding another 13.

Despite achieving only a .350 field goal percentage—the lowest for ISU since November 9, 2021—this win marks an important milestone as it was accomplished while holding Evansville to just 53 points; matching their defensive feat last seen on November 20, when Long Beach State managed only one point less against them.

###