Horne scores 22 to carry Illinois State past Northern Iowa

Dec 31, 2019, 11:06 pm

NORMAL, Ill. -- DJ Horne had a season-high 22 points as Illinois State topped Northern Iowa 76-70 on Tuesday in their first Missouri Valley Conference game of the season.

Zach Copeland had 15 points for Illinois State (6-7, 1-0). Antonio Reeves added 13 points, and Jaycee Hillsman had 11 points.

The Redbirds were in trouble after the first half, heading to the locker room at the half trailing 30-20. But the home team mounted a second-half rally to get back in it and ultimately earn the victory. The Redbirds' 20 first-half points were a season low for the team.

AJ Green had 23 points for the Panthers (11-2, 0-1), whose five-game win streak was broken. Austin Phyfe added 13 points and 12 rebounds.

Green scored UNI's final seven points, capped by a 3-pointer with 57 seconds remaining before Illinois State made six free throws.

Illinois State takes on Southern Illinois on the road on Saturday. Northern Iowa plays Bradley at home on Saturday.

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Elements of this story were generated by Automated Insights, http://www.automatedinsights.com/ap, using data from STATS LLC, https://www.stats.com