Aces And Redbirds Tip-Off At 3 p.m.
 Missouri Valley Conference road play begins on Saturday for the University of Evansville men’s basketball team, who treks to Normal, Ill. to face Illinois State in a 3 p.m. game. ESPN3 will have the broadcast.
“It was great to start off with a win on Wednesday when we play the type of defense that we did and we play connected, we are really tough. Our last four or five games, we have done very well,†UE head coach Walter McCarty said. “Illinois State has a lot of talented guys who can score the basketball and play multiple positions. We have to protect the paint, play together and be tough tomorrow.â€
Setting the Scene
– The Aces look to halt a 6-game losing streak against Illinois State; the last UE win came at Redbird Arena on January 15, 2016
– UE is looking to start 2-0 in the Valley for the first time since 2015-16
Last Time Out
– In Wednesday’s MVC opener, the Purple Aces hung on for an 82-77 double-overtime win against Drake
– It was UE’s first double-overtime win since 2009
– K.J. Riley (25 points) and Marty Hill (24) each set career highs against the Bulldogs
– Dainius Chatkevicius and Evan Kuhlman recorded 10 points apiece
– UE finished with a 23-11 edge in points off turnovers in the winning effort
Takeaways from Drake
– Marty Hill set career highs in points (24), field goals (9), attempts (16) , 3-pointers (5), 3-point attempts (7) and minutes (39) against the Bulldogs
– Riley has posted 23 points per game in the last three contests; he leads the Aces with 14.7 points per game
– The Aces improved to 4-2 in their last six overtime games
– The first 9 games this season were decided by over five points, the last five have each been decided by five or less; UE is 2-3 in those games
– Evansville was 7-of-24 from outside against the Bulldogs; it marked the 9th game in a row UE has shot 35% or lower from outside
Near the Top
– It was another career night for K.J. Riley, who reset his scoring high with 25 points against Drake
– Riley was 6-of-16 from the field and 13-of-17 from the line in the win
– Riley now ranks 4th in the nation with 115 free throw attempts and 11th in the country with 87 makes
– He ranks 11th in the country with 8.0 fouls drawn per game
– Over his last nine games, Riley has posted 15.9 points; he has notched 23 PPG in the last three outings
– Following 24 points against Green Bay, Riley notched 20 at Miami and 25 versus Drake
Putting it together
– Career night in the home win over Drake saw Marty Hill score 24 points while hitting five out of seven 3-pointers in 39 minutes of work
– It was Hill’s top effort at UE, surpassing his 16-point outing at Arkansas State
– Hill was 9-of-16 from the field in the win over the Bulldogs and tallied six board
Winning with Defense
– UE ranks fifth in the conference in shooting defense, allowing the opposition to shoot 41.9%
– Over its last five games, Evansville has held each opponent to 40.3% shooting or lower
– The 3-point defense for the Aces is 4th in the league, giving up just 31.6% of its outside shots
Scouting the Opponent
– Illinois State stands at 7-7 on the season and is 0-1 in the Valley following a 58-56 loss at Valparaiso on Wednesday
– The Redbirds have dropped five of their last six games after starting the season at 6-2
– Milik Yarbrough paces the Redbirds with 16.5 points and 7.9 rebounds per game
– He also has a team-best 52 assists
– Phil Fayne stands at 15.3 PPG while Zach Copeland and Josh Jefferson average 11 points apiece
