With a league championship at stake, Illinois State women’s basketball forward DeAnna Wilson poured in a career-high 26 points against Indiana State last Saturday to help the Redbirds secure their first share of a Missouri Valley Conference regular season title in 13 years.
Now, Wilson and her teammates are aiming to add a 2023 Valley Tournament championship trophy to their growing collection of achievements under sixth-year head coach Kristen Gillespie who was named MVC Coach of the Year Wednesday night.
Top-seeded Illinois State (23-7, 17-3 MVC) tips off Hoops in the Heartland Friday at noon at Vibrant Arena in Moline with a quarterfinal matchup against the winner of Thursday’s No. 9 Evansville versus No. 8 Murray State opening round game. The Valley Tournament champion earns an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
“We’re just trying to get through one game, three different times,” Wilson said. “We just need to stay steady. It’s hard to go and win three games in three days—but that’s what we need to do.”
And that’s exactly what Wilson and the Redbirds did last year. As the No. 4 seed, Illinois State upset top-seeded Southern Illinois in the semifinals and edged No. 3 Northern Iowa in the title game to win the 2022 Valley Tournament—the Redbirds’ first tournament championship since 2008. Wilson was named to the All-Tournament Team alongside teammate JuJu Redmond ’22, Illinois State’s leading scorer (17.8 points per game) who graduated last spring.
Taking Redmond’s spot atop the Redbirds’ stat sheet this year is graduate transfer Paige Robinson, the 2023 Jackie Stiles MVC Player of the Year and the Newcomer of the Year. Robinson ranks second in league scoring (18.8 points per game) and fifth in 3-point field goal percentage (40.1%).
Wilson, who became the 31st member of Illinois State’s 1,000-point club in Saturday’s win at Indiana State, is the Redbirds’ leading rebounder (7.0 rebounds per game) and ranks second in scoring (12.8 points per game). A second-team All-MVC selection, Wilson enters Hoops in the Heartland on a hot streak, netting 20 or more points in each of the past three games.
“DeAnna is playing at a really high level,” Gillespie said. “When DeAnna is playing like this, we’re pretty darn good because now opponents really have to decide, ‘Who are you going to double off of? Do you send a double team (to defend Wilson), or do you play one-on-one?’”
Double teaming Wilson might be necessary, but it could allow other scorers such as Robinson or fifth-year graduate student Mary Crompton ’21—the Valley’s top 3-point shooter (44% from beyond the arc) and the State Farm Scholar-Athlete of the Year—to get open shots.
Gillespie said she has been impressed by Wilson’s improved ability to pass out of double teams to create scoring opportunities for her teammates. Defensively, the Redbirds have been led by junior Kate Bullman, an MVC All-Defensive Team selection who averages 1.6 blocks per game.
As a co-captain with Crompton, Wilson has also provided steadfast leadership this season while helping the Redbirds maintain a confident, consistent—and fun–vibe, according to Gillespie.
“DeAnna is our heart and soul,” Gillespie said. “She plays with a ton of emotion, and we feed off Dee, so when she’s playing well, we follow her lead. She’s also a funny young lady. She gets everyone laughing. She makes sure we’re having fun, and I think sometimes that gets lost in the shuffle a little bit. Because everyone wants to win, and you want to perform, and no one wants to perform poorly—but Dee keeps it light and keeps everyone loose.”
When the Redbirds beat UIC at CEFCU Arena February 23, to secure 20 wins in a season for the first time under Gillespie and for the first time since 2012-13, Wilson hustled back to the locker room to add “20” to the dry erase board’s win column. When Gillespie walked in, Wilson—still holding the marker—was the first to embrace her coach.
“I was super proud to get that for Coach G,” Wilson said. “Every year, it’s like we get an inch better, and everyone has so much faith in one another. It’s always been that way with Coach G. I can get down on myself sometimes, but my teammates never will. And that’s what you need as a player.”
Wilson, who didn’t begin playing basketball until her freshman year of high school, said the Redbird coaching staff has helped her learn to “read the floor” to identify how she can best contribute—both as a player on the court and as a leader in the locker room.
“I feel like I’ve grown so much in different ways,” Wilson said. A criminal justice major, Wilson will graduate in the fall and plans to become a cognitive behavioral therapist for juveniles.
As one of five women’s basketball players honored during senior day last month, Wilson said it is “bittersweet” to reflect on her three-year Illinois State career. Some of her favorite memories include feeding off the energy of loyal and loud Redbird fans.
“I love our fans and the impact they have,” Wilson said. “When they cheer for us, when they get loud and rowdy—it’s a momentum builder. The crowd has been amazing.”
This year’s senior class has given Redbird fans a lot to cheer about. They have improved the team’s record each season while winning a Valley Tournament and regular season title in 2022 and 2023, respectively.
And, before the final horn sounds on their college careers, the seniors want one more chance to hoist a championship trophy and cut down the nets.
“I love what this team can do,” Gillespie said. “They’re an unselfish group, we have a really balanced scoring attack, we have some really good depth, and they’re just mature. I like where we’re at, I like our headspace, and we’re excited about the opportunity in Moline.”
To win back-to-back Hoops in the Heartland titles, Wilson said the Redbirds must stay true to their identity.
“Together,” Wilson said. “We don’t stay too high. We don’t get too low. We just stay the course.”
Redbird fans heading to Moline Friday, March 10, are invited to attend a Redbird Rally at Pour Bros. Craft Taproom Moline, starting at 10 a.m., before Illinois State tips off Hoops in the Heartland Friday at noon. As the Redbirds advance in the tournament, rallies will take place two hours prior to each tipoff.
All-session tickets are still available for $65 through the MVC website. Alumni can also get discounted tickets on the day of games.
Games Friday and Saturday will be streamed on ESPN+, and Sunday’s 1 p.m. championship game will be televised on ESPNU. All of Illinois State’s games will be broadcast on WJBC AM 1230 / FM 93.7 / The Varsity Network.
