Evansville Purple Aces @ Illinois State Redbirds
Evansville beats Illinois State 66-55
NORMAL, Ill. -- D.J. Balentine scored 25 points -- his 11th game of 20 or more this season -- and Egidijus Mockevicius collared 20 rebounds to surpass the legendary Jerry Sloan on the school's all-time list as Evansville defeated Illinois State 66-55 Friday night.
Balentine shot 7 of 17 from the floor and was a perfect 10-for-10 at the foul line. Mockevicius added 13 points, Adam Wing 11 and Jaylon Brown 10 as the Purple Aces (16-3, 5-1 Missouri Valley) shot 50-percent (22-44).
Mockevicius, a 6-foot-10 senior from Vilnius, Lithuania, tied Sloan for second place on the school's all-time list with his 17th rebound of the game, and went on to grab three more. Sloan, a legendary NBA player and coach, collected 1,053 rebounds between 1963-65.
Illinois State (9-10, 3-3) was led by 12 points each from De'Vaughn Akoon-Purcell and Paris Lee. The Redbirds shot 31 percent (23 of 75) despite grabbing 20 offensive rebounds.
Game Information
Normal, IL
Referee:Gerry Pollard
Referee:Kipp Kissinger
Referee:David Hall
2025-26 Standings
| Missouri Valley ConferenceMissouri Valley Conference | CONF | GB | OVR |
|---|---|---|---|
| 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 |
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