Illinois State Redbirds at Southern Illinois Salukis
· MVC MEN'S TOURNAMENT - SEMIFINAL
76 - 68
Fayne sparks Illinois St to 76-68 OT win over S Illinois
The Redbirds (18-14) earned a date with top-seeded Illinois-Chicago in Sunday's championship game.
Fayne, a 49 percent shooter from the free-throw line coming in, made just 1 of 4 from the line in the final 1:42, but the one he made sent the game to overtime tied at 56. Fayne, who scored the final four points of regulation, scored the first 11 points for Illinois State in the extra period and his 3-point play with 2:43 left gave the Redbirds a 65-61 lead. Fayne was 5 of 10 from the foul line through regulation, but he made all seven of his free-throw tries in overtime. He added nine rebounds and blocked three shots.
Fayne's dunk gave Illinois State a 54-49 lead with 6:36 left in regulation, but the Redbirds scored just two points from there on a pair of Fayne free throws. Meanwhile, Armon Fletcher buried a 3-pointer to pull the Salukis (20-13) within 54-52 with 3:40 remaining. Tyler Smithpeters made two free throws and Aaron Cook scored on a layup to give Southern Illinois a 56-55 lead with 1:59 to go.
Illinois State scored 20 points in the five-minute overtime after only scoring 20 in the second half. The Redbirds led 36-29 at halftime. William Tinsley finished with 14 points and nine rebounds for ISU.
Fletcher and Sean Lloyd Jr. each scored 15 for Southern Illinois.
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Recent Plays
| 3rd 0:00 | End of Game | 76 - 68 |
| 3rd 0:13 | Phil Fayne Defensive Rebound. | 76 - 68 |
| 3rd 0:15 | Madison Williams Block. | 76 - 68 |
| 3rd 0:15 | Aaron Cook missed Three Point Jumper. | 76 - 68 |
| 3rd 0:19 | Phil Fayne made Free Throw. | 76 - 68 |
Statistics
 ILST |
 SIU |
|
|---|---|---|
| 20-55 | FG | 24-60 |
| 36 | Field Goal % | 40 |
| 9-27 | 3PT | 7-22 |
| 33 | Three Point % | 32 |
| 27-37 | FT | 13-22 |
| 73 | Free Throw % | 59 |
| 47 | Rebounds | 35 |
| 14 | Offensive Rebounds | 9 |
| 33 | Defensive Rebounds | 26 |
| 14 | Assists | 12 |
| 5 | Steals | 5 |
| 9 | Blocks | 5 |
| 12 | Turnovers | 11 |
| 0 | Team Turnovers | 1 |
| 12 | Total Turnovers | 11 |
| 1 | Technical Fouls | 1 |
| 1 | Total Technical Fouls | 1 |
| 0 | Flagrant Fouls | 0 |
| 8 | Points Off Turnovers | 18 |
| 0 | Fast Break Points | 2 |
| 20 | Points in Paint | 24 |
| 21 | Fouls | 28 |
| 9 | Largest Lead | 3 |
Game Information
Location: St. Louis, MO
Attendance: 8,415 | Capacity:
2025-26 Missouri Valley Conference Standings
| TEAM | CONF | GB | OVER |
|---|---|---|---|
| Belmont | 16-4 | - | 26-6 |
| Bradley | 13-7 | 3 | 21-13 |
| Illinois State | 12-8 | 4 | 23-13 |
| Murray State | 12-8 | 4 | 20-13 |
| UIC | 12-8 | 4 | 19-16 |
| Northern Iowa | 11-9 | 5 | 23-13 |
| Valparaiso | 11-9 | 5 | 18-15 |
| Southern Illinois | 10-10 | 6 | 16-16 |
| Drake | 6-14 | 10 | 14-20 |
| Indiana State | 4-16 | 12 | 11-21 |
| Evansville | 3-17 | 13 | 7-25 |