Illinois Springfield Women's Basketball made a statement Tuesday night, knocking off Division I Southern Illinois 75-70 at Banterra Center in its final exhibition game. The Prairie Stars overcame a nine-point third-quarter deficit, using a 12-0 run spanning the third and fourth quarters to take control. Senior Kayla Rice led the way with 30 points.
Southern Illinois scored the first seven points of the game before UIS found its footing. Rice got the Prairie Stars on the board with two free throws at the 6:25 mark, and
Alandyn Simmons followed with a layup off a
Julia Sollberger assist to make it 7-4.
Kace Urlacher connected on a jumper and
Molly Knight made two free throws to bring the Stars within one. Sollberger's layup tied the game at 12-12, and Rice's free throws gave the Prairie Stars their first lead at 14-12 with 1:13 remaining. AÂ late steal and fast-break layup sent SIU into the second quarter with a 16-14 advantage.
Julia Mingus opened the second-quarter scoring for Illinois Springfield with a 3-pointer off Rice's assist, pulling the Prairie Stars within 18-17. Southern Illinois responded with a stretch of inside scoring to extend the lead to 27-20. The Salukis maintained their advantage and moved ahead 35-28 with 2:24 remaining. The Prairie Stars answered with a timely push of their own. Rice connected from beyond the arc, Knight scored in the paint and Rice added a free throw to make it a two-point game. After Knight secured a defensive rebound in the final half-minute, Rice drove for a layup with just two seconds remaining, sending the teams into halftime tied at 36-36.
Rice continued to carry the offensive load coming out of the break, scoring the first two baskets of the third quarter for UIS. SIU answered each time, eventually moving ahead 42-40 on a Kynnedi Davis jumper before
Paula Strzelecki tied the game with a fast-break layup.
Makenna Yeager and
Allison Wheeler then scored on consecutive possessions to put the Prairie Stars ahead 46-42. Rice added a free throw, and Wheeler scored again after the Salukis had trimmed the margin to one, giving UIS a 49-45 advantage with 2:56 remaining.
The Salukis responded with nine consecutive points, tying the game on a Yaiza Paredes Diaz basket before McCline put the home team ahead at the free-throw line. Davis finished a fast break to make it 54-49 with 58 seconds left, putting the Prairie Stars in a difficult position heading into the final quarter. Rice, refusing to let the momentum slip, scored a layup and converted the ensuing free throw with 49 seconds remaining before finishing another layup off Sollberger's assist with seven seconds left. Her late scoring burst erased the deficit and sent the Stars into the fourth quarter tied at 54-54.
The Prairie Stars carried that momentum into the final period, completing a 12-0 run that changed the game. Rice opened the fourth with a 3-pointer at the 9:40 mark to put Illinois Springfield ahead 57-54. Yeager followed with a layup, and Rice added another basket after coming up with a steal to extend the Prairie Stars' advantage to 61-54.Â
Southern Illinois continued to battle, cutting the deficit to 68-64 on a Davis jumper and free throw, followed by a McCline layup. Mingus answered with a clutch 3-pointer at the 3:23 mark before knocking down two free throws with 2:18 remaining to push the lead to 73-64.Â
Knight added a free throw with 43 seconds left, but Southern Illinois made one final push with free throws from Davis and Mia Gaines before Gaines converted a layup off Cooper's assist to make it 74-70 with 22 seconds remaining. Yeager split a pair of free throws with 15 seconds left to maintain the two-possession advantage.
SIU had one final opportunity to cut into the deficit, but Wheeler came up with a key defensive stop, blocking Baker's 3-point attempt with five seconds remaining. Simmons collected the rebound, securing possession for the Prairie Stars as they closed out the 75-70 victory.
Kayla Rice led all scorers with 30 points, including a 10-for-10 performance at the free-throw line.
Julia Mingus added 16 points, shooting 8-for-8 from the charity stripe while knocking down two 3-pointers.
Alandyn Simmons was a force on the glass, finishing with 13 rebounds, including 10 on the defensive end.
Allison Wheeler contributed two blocks and four rebounds to go with five points, while
Julia Sollberger helped orchestrate the offense with four assists and two steals.
"We had players step up and make big plays at big times," said head coach
Olivia Birt. "
Kayla Rice had a huge game and played very composed. We had five or six people make big-time plays when we needed them and found a way to pull out the win."
The exhibition victory gives the Prairie Stars momentum heading into the regular season, which opens Monday, Nov. 9, when UIS hosts Purdue Northwest at TRAC.
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