Illinois State women’s basketball looks to remain undefeated at home against Belmont

Image courtesy of Illinois State women’s basketball.

NORMAL, Ill. — Illinois State women’s basketball hosts Belmont Friday night at 6 p.m. inside CEFCU Arena.

The Bruins are the No. 2 team in the Missouri Valley Conference and defeated the Redbirds 75-68 in their Jan. 4 matchup. Doneelah Washington and Grace Nelson were the leading scorers for the Redbirds, with Washington earning 23 point and Nelson securing 20.

The Redbirds have won five of their last six games and have yet to drop a game on Doug Collins Court. ISU is coming off a 88-75 win against Evansville, where they were down as much as 13 points but found a way to rally back. Nelson earned a career-high in points during the victory, tallying 23 on the campaign.

ISU is third in the MVC in scoring, averaging 73.3 points per game compared to Belmont’s 70. On the defensive side, the Bruins come in just above the Redbirds, allowing an average of 66 PPG compared to ISU’s 68 PPG.

Washington has consistently been a dominating player for ISU, but she would be unable to do without the help of players like Trista Fayta and Addison Martin.

Martin had 21 points in the victory over the Aces and Fayta picked up nine points and led the campaign with 12 assists. The forward and guard make plays in the paint and find a way to get the ball to Washington.

For the Bruins, Jailyn Banks leads the team with 16.1 PPG and had 19 points in the most recent 77-37 win over Valparaiso. She is eighth in the MVC in scoring and sits just behind Washington.

Belmont averages eight 3-pointers a game, the second-most in the conference. They are the top-team in the MVC in protecting the ball and have the lowest average of turnovers per game with 13.1.

The Bruins will have to protect the ball when coming into CEFCU Arena. Belmont is 7-3 on the road and have to come play a team that is 12-0 on its home court.

The Bruins will have to break down Washington in the paint and keep their shots from deep flowing. ISU needs to contain Banks and win the rebound battle against a team that is averaging just over 37 rebounds a game.

The MVC matchup could have strong effects on rankings going into the conference tournament.

ISU enters the match 15-10 overall, 9-5 in conference and are fifth in the Valley. The Bruins are second in conference with an overall record of 16-9 and a conference record of 12-2.

For all things ISU women’s basketball, stay tuned at WZND.com.