Illinois State’s New Leaders

(Normal, IL) – Defending champion Illinois State is attempting a rare feat. Few teams are able to repeat as Missouri Valley Conference champions. No team not named Wichita State or Northern Iowa has done it since Southern Illinois’ run in the early 2000’s.

Rarely has a contending team had the kind of turnover in personnel the Redbirds have endured this year, and achieved such a high standard. Muller and the Redbirds have a difficult task before them.

Not only have the Redbirds lost four starters to graduation and two substitutes to transfer, but they lost a valued assistant coach in Dean Oliver. Muller has been busy rebuilding the roster and the coaching staff, but believes his team can be in the thick of the Valley race.

Verbal Recruits measured the Redbird recruiting class as the second best in the Valley pending Valparaiso’s expected acceptance of membership (the Crusaders would be ranked first by VR). Loyola’s sturdy group is ranked number one.

Freshmen Elijah Clarance and Taylor Bruninga are players that had many suitors on the recruiting trail. Clarance, originally from Sweden is a 6’4 guard that was ranked as a top 60 player at his position. Bruninga is a 6’9 ‘stretch 4’ who Muller describes as an elite shooter.

Replacing Oliver was a key piece to the offseason and Muller signed former Kent State star DeAndre Haynes. The former Mid American Conference ‘Player of the Year‘ will replace Oliver working with the Redbird guards.

Muller says finding Haynes was vital to the team’s success and notes that MVC head coaches root for one another when not playing conference games, because they need each other to succeed.

 

 

Muller constantly talks about developing players, their work ethic and how each player develops at his own pace.

Other recruits in Muller’s elite level class are Saint Louis University transfer Milik Yarbrough, Lakeland College transfer William Tinsley and City College of San Francisco transfer Zach Copeland. Tinsley has been rated as the nation’s 54th best junior college player.

Despite the massive losses of Paris Lee, Deontae Hawkins, MiKyle McIntosh and Tony Wills, the Redbirds have a talented roster. Guiding those new players will be juniors Keyshawn Evans and Phil Fayne. Evans was a valuable player off Muller’s bench last season, earning four starts and Fayne was a full time starter who averaged over nine points and six rebounds per game.

Muller says those two and Yarbrough will provide solid leadership to the high number of incoming players. The work ethic those three have displayed is part of what sets them apart.

 

 

Evans’ shoulder injury will inhibit his summer work outs and  on-floor chemistry, but Muller believes the team will jell.

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