Preview: Illinois State at Indiana State

TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (Interstat) — The Illinois State Redbirds look to rebound from a tough overtime loss and maintain their position near the top of the Missouri Valley Conference when they visit the Indiana State Sycamores on Wednesday night at Hulman Center.

Illinois State (12-5) saw a three-game winning streak snapped in a 63-59 overtime defeat to Illinois-Chicago on Saturday. The Redbirds will aim to rediscover their offensive rhythm against an Indiana State (8-9) team they dominated less than a month ago, winning 85-65 in Normal on Dec. 21.

The Redbirds are led by guard Mason Klabo, who scored 15 points in the previous meeting with the Sycamores and followed that with a team-high 15 points in the loss to UIC. His backcourt mate, Johnny Kinziger, logged 41 minutes in that contest and leads the team in distribution.

Indiana State seeks to end a four-game skid, the most recent a 72-69 home loss to Evansville. Despite the team’s struggles, guard Ian Scott has been a consistent bright spot. He scored 20 points in the first matchup with Illinois State and is coming off a 24-point performance against Evansville, his third game of 24 or more points in the last six outings.

The Sycamores’ defense, which allowed 108 points in a triple-overtime loss to Bradley and 85 to Illinois State last month, will be tested again. Illinois State’s offense averages over 75 points per game.

A key for Indiana State will be containing Klabo and Kinziger on the perimeter while finding more scoring support for Scott to keep pace. For Illinois State, protecting the ball and improving late-game execution after the UIC loss will be focal points.

Wednesday’s contest is the only scheduled regular-season meeting between the in-conference rivals at Hulman Center this season. Following this game, Illinois State hosts Bradley on Saturday, while Indiana State travels to face Murray State.