BOX SCORE Illinois State 75, Sonoma State 58 -- Box Score
SAN FRANCISCO -- Justin Herold scored a game-high 21 points on 9 of 13 shooting and
Brandon Glanz added 10, the Sonoma State men's basketball team suffered a 75-58 loss to NCAA Division I Illinois State in non-conference action on Friday evening at the Golden Gate Challenge, hosted by the University of San Francisco at War Memorial Gymnasium. The Seawolves drop to 1-3 this season while the Redbirds improve to 2-4.
Friday's contest was the only countable game for Sonoma State at the Golden Gate Challenge this weekend -- Wednesday's loss to host San Francisco and Saturday's contest against Vermont are considered exhibition games.
While Sonoma State trailed for much of the game, the Seawolves kept within striking distance throughout the night. SSU tied the score once at 9-9 with 14:19 left in the first half and even took a 17-16 lead at the 10:27 mark on a three-pointer by
David Ahern. It would be a see-saw battle for the remainder of the half, but Illinois State scored the final five points of the half to build a 37-30 lead at the intermission.
Beginning with a layup by Illinois State's Daishon Knight, both teams would trade scoring possessions before ISU took a nine-point 43-34 lead on a Bobby Hunter layup at the 17:23 mark, but Sonoma State responded with an 8-0 run, which included two layups by Glanz, to pull within just one point at 43-42 with 14:33 left in regulation. However, an ensuing 8-1 run by the Redbirds pushed ISU back to an eight-point cushion at 51-43 midway through the half.
A Herold jumper and a pair of free throws by Ahern accounted for the next four points scored by either team, cutting the Seawolf deficit to just four points (51-47) with 9:18 to play, but that would be as close as Sonoma State would get the rest of the way. Illinois State's final margin of victory (17 points) also represented its largest lead of the game. Much like the first half, the Redbirds would score the final five points of the second half to record the 75-58 win.
The Seawolves shot 35.3 percent from the floor on 18 of 51, including just 3 of 12 from long range. In addition to the 31 combined points from Herold and Glanz,
Steve Lackey came off the bench and scored nine points, seven of which were obtained from the free throw line. Glanz corralled a game-high eight rebounds and handed out four assists along with his aforementioned 10 points.
For Illinois State, Knight matched Herold for game-high honors in points scored with 21 -- Knight went 8 for 10 from the floor (3 of 4 from downtown). As a team, the Redbirds shot 44.0 percent (22-50) and were 10 for 21 from beyond the arc (47.6 percent).
Sonoma State will face the University of Vermont -- another Division I squad -- on Saturday at 6:00 pm in San Francisco to wrap up its participation in the Golden Gate Challenge, hosted by the University of San Francisco at War Memorial Gymnasium.
