Knight scores 26 as Illinois State downs Evansville 72-53

NORMAL, Ill. (AP) — Seneca Knight had 26 points in Illinois State's 72-53 win over Evansville on Sunday.

Knight also contributed five rebounds for the Redbirds (11-20, 6-14 Missouri Valley Conference). Darius Burford was 4 of 8 shooting, including 1 for 3 from distance, and went 6 for 6 from the line to add 15 points. Kendall Lewis finished 6 of 10 from the field to finish with 13 points, while adding 11 rebounds. The Redbirds broke a six-game slide.

The Purple Aces (5-26, 1-19) were led by Kenny Strawbridge, who recorded 12 points and six rebounds. Gabe Spinelli added 10 points for Evansville. In addition, Marvin Coleman had nine points and three steals.

Illinois State took the lead with 1:17 remaining in the first half and did not give it up. The score was 31-28 at halftime, with Knight racking up 13 points. Illinois State outscored Evansville by 16 points over the final half, while Knight led the way with a team-high 13 second-half points.

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.