Redbirds march to Super 16 of WNIT with win over Western Illinois

Image Courtesy of Redbird Athletics

NORMAL, Ill. — To kick off postseason play for the Redbirds, Shannon Dowell and Elyse Knudsen combined for 51 points as ISU beat Western Illinois, 90-80.

Aside from Dowell and Knudsen, 3 other Redbirds Maya Wong (15 pts), Addison Martin, and Neveah Thomas (12 pts each) finished the game with double-figure points.

Collectively, the Redbirds shot 54.7% from the floor and 52.5% from deep while knocking down 11 three-pointers, tying the program’s postseason record set in 1990, led by Knudsen’s 5 makes on 11 attempts.

Elyce Knudsen also grabbed a season-high 8 rebounds in her performance to go along with her 23 points.

Her 5 three-pointers pushed her to 80 three-pointers made this season, which ranks her third on the program’s single-season three-pointer list, as she joins Mary Crompton and Katie Broadway as the only Redbirds to hit 80 threes in a single season.

The Redbirds trailed 23-19 after the opening periods before Dowell and Thomas scored 9 points each in the second period of play to claim a 45-40 lead for the Redbirds heading into the locker rooms.

Coach Gillespie’s team was able to extend the lead to double digits for the first time in the early stages of the third period after an Elyce Knudsen layup made it 51-40.

Western Illinois stayed in the game thanks to 30 points from Raegan McCowan and by going perfect from the charity stripe as a team (15-for-15).

Holding on to a 78-76 lead with just over 4 minutes left to play, back-to-back buckets from Addison Martin extended the lead to seven before the Redbirds outscored the Leathernecks 12-4 in the final four minutes to secure the victory.

Shannon Dowell scored 14 of her team-high 28 points in the fourth quarter, shooting an impressive 10-for-13 from the field and 2-for-3 from three in the contest.

Dowell has scored 20+ points in four straight games, and he’s up to 576 points on the season, only three points shy of moving into fifth place on the program’s single-season scoring list. She is averaging 26.5 points over her last four contests.

With the playoff win, Illinois State improved to 17-10 in the WNIT since 2000 and 14-3 at home during that stretch.

Their Super 16 matchup will be determined on Monday night. The winner between Central Arkansas and Abilene Christian will play the Redbirds next.