NORMAL, Ill. — Illinois State continues to build momentum from last season’s fourth-place finish in the 10-team Missouri Valley Conference. The Redbirds’ 16-11 conference record marked a vast improvement from 2023, when they finished 9-18 in conference play. Drilling down even further into 2024, Illinois State won nine of its last 14 games before bowing out deep in the conference tournament.
Graduation and the transfer portal led to the departure of some talent from that squad, but the ‘Birds return much of their core that includes plenty of high-end talent in their everyday lineup. They also return more than 80% of[…]
