By Canadian Press on April 1, 2025.
Troy Trojans (23-13, 14-6 Sun Belt) at Illinois State Redbirds (24-12, 15-7 MVC) Normal, Illinois; Wednesday, 7:30 p.m. EDT BOTTOM LINE: Illinois State plays Troy in the National Invitation Tournament. The Redbirds’ record in MVC games is 15-7, and their record is 9-5 in non-conference games. Illinois State ranks sixth in the MVC in rebounding averaging 32.6 rebounds. Nevaeh Thomas leads the Redbirds with 7.0 boards. The Trojans are 14-6 against Sun Belt opponents. Troy averages 16.9 turnovers per game and is 10-2 when winning the turnover battle. Illinois State makes 48.4% of its shots from the field this season, which is 11.0 percentage points higher than Troy has allowed to its opponents (37.4%). Troy averages 6.3 made 3-pointers per game this season, 1.8 fewer made shots on average than the 8.1 per game Illinois State allows. TOP PERFORMERS: Shannon Dowell is averaging 17.1 points and 5.3 rebounds for the Redbirds. Elyce Knudsen is averaging 3.6 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games. Zay Dyer is shooting 44.6% and averaging 13.8 points for the Trojans. Emani Jenkins is averaging 1.5 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games. LAST 10 GAMES: Redbirds: 7-3, averaging 76.9 points, 29.0 rebounds, 15.7 assists, 5.8 steals and 2.0 blocks per game while shooting 49.8% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 70.1 points per game. Trojans: 7-3, averaging 83.7 points, 45.7 rebounds, 15.2 assists, 7.8 steals and 7.0 blocks per game while shooting 43.9% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 75.0 points. ___ The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar. The Associated Press 15