NIT First Round: Illinois State vs. Dayton, first half
March 17, 2010
By Jacob Rosen , Photos by Ryan Kozelka
The Flyers lead Illinois State by the score of 30-19 at UD Arena in NIT first round action.
It took a very solid defensive stretch for Dayton to capture the lead against the pesky Redbirds. Junior forward Chris Wright leads all UD players with seven points and nine rebounds at the break.
With 11:33 left in first half, Dayton's lead was only 11-9. Illinois State would then make only two field goals in the next 10 minutes as Dayton ballooned their lead to as many as 15 points.
One of the oddest moments of the game occurred with 14:47 left in the half. Confused by the small but boisterous Illinois State crowd, one of the referees called a shot clock violation on UD with three seconds left on the screen.
The Redbirds earned possession of the basketball as the public address announcer advised fans to clean up their act. The call epitomized a off-beat start of play for the Flyers.
The star to watch tonight for Illinois State is senior guard Osiris Eldridge, a three-time first-team All-Missouri Valley Conference selection. The leading scorer in the conference, the team entered tonight's game just 3-6 in games in which he scored 12 points or fewer, and 19-4 otherwise.
Eldridge finished the first half with just three points on 1-for-7 shooting, and and will be a name to keep an eye on during the second half.
These two teams were not unfamiliar with each other, as they also faced off in the 2008 NIT second round. The Flyers were victorious in this contest by the count of 55-48, before losing in the quarterfinals to the eventual champions Ohio State.
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