Men’s Basketball Reveals 2024-25 Non-Conference Schedule - Illinois State University Athletics (2025)

NORMAL, Ill. – Illinois State men's basketball head coach Ryan Pedon has announced his 2024-25 non-conference schedule, which includes six home games, two true road contests, and three games at the Paradise Jam in the U.S. Virgin Islands.

"I am really excited about our non-conference schedule," said Pedon. "This is a challenging schedule that will test our team in the early parts of the season. Having six home games was very important to us, and with hard work from our staff and administration, we were able to achieve that mark. We will have two difficult road tests against programs that are accustomed to winning and will be very good for us. We are also excited about our tournament in the Virgin Islands, which will provide the most challenging field we have played in our three years at Illinois State."

The non-conference season opens on Monday, November 4 and ends on Sunday, December 22 with one Missouri Valley Conference game in the middle of the non-conference season. The entire Missouri Valley Conference schedule will be announced later.

Lewis (Exhibition)
Before the season officially begins in November, the Redbirds host the Lewis Flyers in an exhibition game on Saturday, October 26. Last season the Flyers went 18-13 overall, falling in the Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) Championship game.

UT Martin
The Redbirds open the season at home on Monday, November 4 against the UT Martin Skyhawks. Last season the Skyhawks finished with a 21-11 record and a 14-4 mark in Ohio Valley Conference play – good for a tie of the regular season title. After last season UTM's head coach left to take the same job at Mercer, and the team returns just one of the 13 players that saw action on the court last season.
Location: Martin, Tennessee
Mascot: Skyhawks
Conference: Ohio Valley Conference
ISU Record Against: Illinois State leads 5-0
2023-24 Record: 21-11
2023-24 Conference Record/Place: 14-4 / t-1
Starters Returning / Lost: 0 / 5
Letterwinners Returning / Lost: 1 / 12
Head Coach (Seasons at school): Jeremy Shulman (first)
Top Returners: David Kamwanga (F, 6-7, 220, Sr. // 1.7 ppg, 2.7 rpg)

North Dakota State
Three days after the season opener – on November 7 – ISU takes to the road for the first time during the season, heading to Fargo, North Dakota, to take on the North Dakota State Bison in the second game of a two-year series between the programs. Last season NDSU went 15-17 overall, finishing fifth overall. The game in Fargo will be the first time the Redbirds have played a game inside the state of North Dakota and features a former Bison playing for the Redbirds (last seasons' Bison leading scorer Boden Skunberg) and a former Redbird playing for the Bison (two-year ISU letterwinner Luke Kasubke).
Location: Fargo, North Dakota
Mascot: Bison
Conference: Summit League
ISU Record Against: 1-0
2023-24 Record: 15-17
2023-24 Conference Record/Place: 8-8 / 5th
Starters Returning / Lost: 3 / 2
Letterwinners Returning / Lost: 6 / 6
Head Coach (Seasons at school): David Richman (11th)
Top Returners: Damari Wheeler-Thomas (G, 6-0, 190, Jr. // 10.7 ppg, 81 assists); Jacari White (G, 6-3, 175, Sr. // 10.3 ppg, 3.8 rpg); Noah Feddersen (F, 6-10, 250, So. // 7.4 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 11 blocks)

Ohio
On Tuesday, November 12, the Redbirds host their first of two Mid-American Conference foes during the non-conference season, as the Ohio Bobcats come to town. Last season the Bobcats went 20-13 during the year, falling in the second round of the MAC Championship to eventual champion Akron.
Location: Athens, Ohio
Mascot: Bobcats
Conference: Mid-American Conference
ISU Record Against: 2-4
2023-24 Record: 20-13
2023-24 Conference Record/Place: 13-5 / 3rd
Starters Returning / Lost: 4 / 1
Letterwinners Returning / Lost: 7 / 5
Head Coach (Seasons at school): Jeff Boals (fifth)
Top Returners: Shareef Mitchell (G, 6-1, 170, Grad. // 13.3 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 77 assists), AJ Clayton (F, 6-8, 225 Sr. // 12.0 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 58 blocks), Aidan Hadaway (F, 6-8, 190, Jr. // 8.3 ppg, 4.7 rpg), Elmore James (G, 6-3, 205, Jr. // 7.8 ppg, 3.7 rpg)

Trinity Christian
The following Sunday, on November 17, the Redbirds will host non-Division I opponent Trinity Christian. Last season the Trolls went 6-22 and new head coach David Osborn comes from Indiana Wesleyan where he was an assistant coach from 2017-23.
Location: Palo Heights, Illinois
Mascot: Trolls
Conference: Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference (CCAC)
ISU Record Against: First Meeting
2023-24 Record: 6-22
2023-24 Conference Record/Place: 1-19 / 12th
Head Coach (Seasons at school): David Osborn (first)

McNeese
Opening play at the Paradise Jam on November 22, the Redbirds will face off against McNeese Cowboys, a team that advanced to the NCAA Tournament, falling against Gonzaga a season ago. Last season McNeese finished with a 30-4 overall record under then-first-year head coach Will Wade. The Redbirds previously played in the Paradise Jam during the 2014-15 and 2019-20 seasons.
Location: Lake Charles, Louisiana
Mascot: Cowboys
Conference: Sun Belt Conference (SBC)
ISU Record Against: 6-1
2023-24 Record: 30-4
2023-24 Conference Record/Place: 17-1 / 1st
Starters Returning / Lost: 3 / 2
Letterwinners Returning / Lost: 6 / 8
Head Coach (Seasons at school): Will Wade (second)
Top Returners: Christian Shumate (F, 6-6, 213, Sr. // 12.1 ppg, 9.5 rpg, 47 blocks), DJ Richards Jr. (G, 6-4, 185, Jr. // 11.4 ppg, .451 3FG%), Javohn Garcia (G, 6-3, 183, Sr. // 11.2 ppg, 54 assists)

UAB
UAB is one of two second round opponents that the Redbirds can face in the Paradise Jam on either November 23 or 24. Last season the Blazers had a 23-12 overall record, and won the American Athletic Conference tournament, advancing to the NCAA Tournament where they fell 69-65 to fifth-seeded San Diego State in the opening round.
Location: Birmingham, Alabama
Mascot: Blazers
Conference: American Athletic Conference
ISU Record Against: 2-2
2023-24 Record: 23-12
2023-24 Conference Record/Place: 12-6 / 4th
Starters Returning / Lost: 2 / 3
Letterwinners Returning / Lost: 4 / 10
Head Coach (Seasons at school): Andy Kennedy (fifth)
Top Returners: Yaxel Lendeborg (F, 6-9, 240, Sr. // 13.8 ppg, 10.6 rpg, 72 blocks), Alejandro Vasquez (G, 6-4, 205, Sr. // 11.1 ppg, 39 assists)

Longwood
Longwood won the Big South Tournament last season to advance to the NCAA Tournament before falling to Houston in the opening round. Last season with a 21-14 record, the Lancers finished fifth in the Big South Conference regular season.
Location: Farmville, Virginia
Mascot: Lancers
Conference: Big South Conference
ISU Record Against: First Meeting
2023-24 Record: 21-14
2023-24 Conference Record/Place: 6-10 / 5th
Starters Returning / Lost: 1 / 4
Letterwinners Returning / Lost: 6 / 8
Head Coach (Seasons at school): Griff Aldrich (sixth)
Top Returners: Elijah Tucker (F, 6-8, 225, r-Jr. // 7.9 ppg, 4.3 rpg), Emanuel Richards (G/F, 6-4, 220, So. // 4.5 ppg, 2.7 rpg)

Paradise Jam Game 3
The Redbirds will face either Kansas State, George Washington, Liberty, or Louisiana, in the third and final game of the tournament on November 25.

Pacific
After returning from the Virgin Islands, the Redbirds host the Pacific Tigers on December 7. Pacific returns to Normal for the first time since the 1997-98 season when Pacific was led by eventual NBA first overall draft pick Michael Olowokandi. The Redbirds are 4-0 in the series in games played at home.
Location: Stockton, California
Mascot: Tigers
Conference: West Coast Conference (WCC)
ISU Record Against: 4-3
2023-24 Record: 6-26
2023-24 Conference Record/Place: 0-16 / 9th
Starters Returning / Lost: 0 / 5
Letterwinners Returning / Lost: 1 / 13
Head Coach (Seasons at school): Dave Smart (first)
Top Returners: Burke Smith (F/C, 6-11, 232, r-Sr. // 4.2 ppg, 2.0 rpg)

Saint Louis
The Redbirds and Billikens play the return game of a two-season home-and-home series on Sunday, December 15 inside CEFCU Arena. Saint Louis comes into the game with new head coach Josh Schertz, who helped guide MVC foe Indiana State to the top seed in the MVC regular season standings and a runner-up finish in the postseason NIT.
Location: St. Louis, Missouri
Mascot: Billiken
Conference: Atlantic 10 Conference
ISU Record Against: Series tied 7-7
2023-24 Record: 13-20
2023-24 Conference Record/Place: 5-13 / t-13th
Starters Returning / Lost: 2 / 3
Letterwinners Returning / Lost: 3 / 11
Head Coach (Seasons at school): Josh Schertz (first)
Top Returners: Gibson Jimerson (G, 6-5, 215, r-Sr. // 15.8 ppg, 2.9 rpg, 35.9 3FG%), Larry Hughes II (G, 6-4, 190, Jr. // 7.4 ppg, 2.7 rpg), Kellen Thames (G, 6-6, 210, Jr. // 6.0 ppg, 3.7 rpg)

Northern Illinois
The final non-conference home game of the 2024-25 season comes in the form of Northern Illinois, which visits CEFCU Arena on Wednesday, December 18. Last season the Huskies were 11-20 overall, including a 5-13 mark in the Mid-American Conference. The meeting will be the 106th all-time in the series between the two schools, and the first meeting since the 2003-04 season.
Location: DeKalb, Illinois
Mascot: Huskies
Conference: Mid-American Conference (MAC)
ISU Record Against: 66-39
2023-24 Record: 11-20
2023-24 Conference Record/Place: 5-13 / 11th
Starters Returning / Lost: 0 / 5
Letterwinners Returning / Lost: 10/ 6
Head Coach (Seasons at school):
Top Returners: Quaran McPherson (G, 6-4, 197, Jr. // 4.6 ppg, 2.8 rpg), Nasir Muhammad (G, 6-2, 186, So. // 3.8 ppg)

Cornell
The Redbirds close non-conference play on Sunday, December 22, when the squad travels to Ithaca, New York. The game will be the program's first against a school from the Ivy League, as the Big Red fell in the opening round of the NIT Tournament last season in Columbus, Ohio.
Location: Ithaca, New York
Mascot: Big Red
Conference: Ivy League
ISU Record Against: First Meeting
2023-24 Record: 22-8
2023-24 Conference Record/Place: 11-3 / 2nd
Starters Returning / Lost: 2 / 3
Letterwinners Returning / Lost: 11 / 8
Head Coach (Seasons at school): Jon Jaques (first)
Top Returners: Nazir Williams (G, 6-3, 180, Sr. // 11.4 ppg, 3.8 rpg, 94 assists), Guy Ragland (F, 6-8, 246, Sr. // 9.1 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 17 blocks), Cooper Noard (G, 6-2, 190, Jr. // 8.8, 3.1 rpg)


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