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1996–97 Illinois State Redbirds men's basketball team

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1996–97 Illinois State Redbirds men's basketball
Missouri Valley Conference
24–6 (14–4 MVC)
Kevin Stallings (4th season)
Tom Richardson
King Rice
Jeff Wulbrun
Redbird Arena

The 1996–97 Illinois State Redbirds men's basketball team represented Illinois State University during the 1996–97 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Redbirds, led by fourth year head coach Kevin Stallings, played their home games at Redbird Arena and were a member of the Missouri Valley Conference.

The Redbirds finished the season 24–6, 14–4 in conference play to finish in first place. They were the number one seed for the Missouri Valley Conference tournament. They won their quarterfinal game versus Indiana State University, semifinal game versus the University of Northern Iowa, and final game versus Southwest Missouri State University to earn the championship title.

The Redbirds received the conference automatic bid to the 1997 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament. They were assigned to the Midwest Regional as the number eleven seed where they lost to Iowa State University in the first round.

Datetime, TVRank#Opponent#ResultRecordHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsSite (attendance) city, state
November 11, 1996*New Castle (Australia)W 79–6922 – Watkins12 – Watkins6 – SchaefbauerRedbird Arena Normal, IL
November 19, 1996*Converse All–StarsW 87–7919 – Hill––Redbird Arena Normal, IL
November 24, 1996*at PittsburghW 69–501–016 – Schaefbauer8 – Hill8 – SmileyFitzgerald Field House (6,482)Pittsburgh, PA
November 30, 1996*Eastern KentuckyW 87–642–019 – Schaefbauer10 – Hill10 – SmileyRedbird Arena (8,740)Normal, IL
December 4, 1996*vs. DePaulW 75–503–023 – Hill6 – Schaefbauer9 – SmileyKiel Center (13,625)St. Louis, MO
December 7, 1996*OhioW 81–694–017 – Hill7 – Muller,Hill9 – SmileyRedbird Arena (8,153)Normal, IL
December 14, 1996*at DuquesneL 64–914–114 – Watkins7 – Muller,Watkins,Hill4 – SmileyA. J. Palumbo Center (3,654)Pittsburgh, PA
December 18, 1996*at NorthwesternW 67–475–116 – Muller7 – Hill6 – SchaefbauerWelsh–Ryan Arena (3,423)Evanston, IL
December 21, 1996*at Wisconsin–Green BayW 71–616–125 – Hill7 – Smiley6 – SmileyBrown County Veterans Memorial Arena (4,188)Ashwaubenon, WI
December 23, 1996*Illinois–ChicagoW 78–587–121 – Schaefbauer14 – Hill9 – SmileyRedbird Arena (9,005)Normal, IL
December 29, 19967:05 pmat CreightonW 54–458–1(1–0)17 – Schaefbauer15 – Hill7 – SmileyOmaha Civic Auditorium (4,959)Omaha, NE
January 4, 19971:30 pm, ESPN2EvansvilleW 80–679–1(2–0)21 – Hill10 – Hill5 – SmileyRedbird Arena (8,088)Normal, IL
January 9, 1997Northern IowaL 71–77 OT9–2(2–1)21 – Hill7 – Hill9 – SmileyRedbird Arena (6,291)Normal, IL
January 12, 1997at Southern IllinoisW 76–7010–2(3–1)15 – Muller6 – Watkins6 – SchaefbauerSIU Arena (4,212)Carbondale, IL
January 16, 1997Indiana StateW 101–5811–2(4–1)23 – Hill7 – Cartmill14 – SmileyRedbird Arena (7,834)Normal, IL
January 19, 1997at EvansvilleW 67–5312–2(5–1)19 – Watkins12 – Watkins7 – SmileyRoberts Municipal Stadium (8,412)Evansville, IN
January 22, 1997at Northern IowaL 88–93 2OT12–3(5–2)25 – Hill6 – Muller8 – SmileyUNI Dome (2,592)Cedar Falls, IA
January 25, 19977:05 pmWichita StateW 79–7113–3(6–2)14 – Muller9 – Hill4 – HansellRedbird Arena (9,821)Normal, IL
January 27, 1997Southwest Missouri StateW 95–8414–3(7–2)37 – Hill13 – Hill10 – SmileyRedbird Arena (7,065)Normal, IL
February 1, 1997MVC-TVBradleyW 69–6715–3(8–2)21 – Hill9 – Hill10 – SmileyRedbird Arena (10,348)Normal, IL
February 3, 1997at DrakeW 73–6516–3(9–2)27 – Schaefbauer13 – Hill4 – Hansell,HillThe Knapp Center (3,180)Des Moines, IA
February 8, 19977:35 pmat Wichita StateW 62–5317–3(10–2)17 – Watkins9 – Hill5 – SmileyHenry Levitt Arena (10,545)Wichita, KS
February 10, 1997at Southwest Missouri StateL 66–7917–4(10–3)18 – Schaefbauer10 – Hill5 – Schaefbauer,SmileyJohn Q. Hammons Student Center (7,764)Springfield, MO
February 13, 1997Southern IllinoisW 82–7718–4(11–3)32 – Hill11 – Hill9 – SmileyRedbird Arena (8,187)Normal, IL
February 15, 1997DrakeW 82–5119–4(12–3)19 – Muller7 – vanVelzen9 – SmileyRedbird Arena (9,755)Normal, IL
February 18, 1997at Indiana StateW 78-6820–4(13–3)24 – Hill8 – Hill7 – SmileyHulman Center (4,217)Terre Haute, IN
February 22, 1997MVC-TVat BradleyL 64–6920–5(13–4)18 – Hill8 – Watkins5 – SmileyCarver Arena (11,207)Peoria, IL
February 24, 19977:05 pmCreightonW 74–6921–5(14–4)23 – Hill8 – Hill10 – SmileyRedbird Arena (8,374)Normal, IL
March 1, 1997(1)(9) Indiana State QuarterfinalW 72–5822–521 – Hill9 – Muller10 – SmileyKiel Center (9,594)St. Louis, MO
March 2, 1997(1)(4) Northern Iowa SemifinalW 69–6523–529 – Hill7 – Hill5 – SmileyKiel Center (13,329)St. Louis, MO
March 3, 19978:30 pm, ESPN(1)(3) Southwest Missouri State FinalW 75–7224–531 – Hill8 – Muller4 – Hansell,Schaefbauer,SmileyKiel Center (9,751)St. Louis, MO
March 13, 19972:00 pm, CBS(11)vs. (6) No. 18 Iowa State Midwest Region[First Round]L 57–6924–614 – Hill14 – Hill12 – SmileyThe Palace of Auburn Hills (21,020)Auburn Hills, MI
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Central Standard Time.
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