Preview: Indiana State Sycamores at Illinois State Redbirds NORMAL, Ill. (Interstat) — A surging Illinois State team looks to continue its strong start when it hosts an Indiana State squad eager to bounce back from a draining defeat as the Missouri Valley Conference men’s basketball season continues Sunday at Redbird Arena. The Redbirds (9-3) enter with momentum after a 75-68 road win at Southern Illinois on Thursday. They have won seven of their last eight games, with their only loss in that stretch coming in a narrow 83-78 defeat at Utah State. Illinois State is led by guard Ty Pence, who is averaging 20.3 points over his last three contests. He scored 22 points in the win over Southern Illinois and had a 20-point, 10-rebound double-double against Furman on Nov. 28. The Indiana State Sycamores (7-5) are coming off a heartbreaking 108-99 triple-overtime loss to Bradley at home on Thursday. Guard Ian Scott logged a staggering 48 minutes in the marathon contest, finishing with 24 points and three blocked shots. Scott has been a consistent offensive force, scoring in double figures in six of his last seven games. The Sycamores have shown resilience, winning a tight 70-68 game at Milwaukee on Dec. 14 just prior to the Bradley loss. However, their record against stronger competition includes losses to Bradley, Alcorn State, Louisiana Tech and a blowout defeat at Duke on Nov. 14. Illinois State holds the edge in recent performance and will have the benefit of playing at home, where they are 5-1 this season with dominant wins over Chicago State, Eastern Kentucky and Coastal Carolina. Indiana State is 1-3 in true road games, with its sole win coming at Milwaukee. This is the first of two regular-season meetings between the in-conference rivals. They will meet again in Terre Haute on Jan. 14. Sunday’s contest tips off at 3 p.m. CST and will be broadcast on ESPN-Plus.