# 1987–88 Illinois State Redbirds men's basketball team

The 1987–88 Illinois State Redbirds men's basketball team represented Illinois State University during the 1987–88 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Redbirds, led by tenth year head coach Bob Donewald, played their home games at Horton Field House and were a member of the Missouri Valley Conference.
The Redbirds finished the season 18–13, 9–5 in conference play to finish in third place. They were the number three seed in the Missouri Valley Conference tournament. They were victorious in a quarterfinal game versus Drake University and in a semifinal game versus Wichita State University, but defeated beaten in the final game versus Bradley University.
The Redbirds received an at-large bid to the 1988 National Invitation Tournament. They lost to Cleveland State University in the first round.

## Schedule

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Exhibition Season |||||||||
| November 4, 1987* 7:30 pm | | vs. Soviet Union National Team | L 62–71 | | – | – | – | Prairie Capital Convention Center (6,500) Springfield, IL |
| Regular Season |||||||||
| November 30, 1987* 8:00 pm, ESPN | | No. 2 Purdue | L 61–68 | 0–1 | 20 – Harris | 11 – Peterson | – | Horton Field House (6,942) Normal, IL |
| December 2, 1987* 7:30 pm | | at Wisconsin–Green Bay | L 53–60 | 0–2 | 17 – Harris | – | – | Brown County Veterans Memorial Arena (2,902) Ashwaubenon, WI |
| December 5, 1987* 7:30 pm, WGN | | at DePaul | L 55–76 | 0–3 | 17 – Harris, Peterson | – | – | Rosemont Horizon (12,428) Rosemont, IL |
| December 12, 1987* 2:30 pm | | Saint Louis | W 61–58 | 1–3 | – | – | – | Horton Field House (4,688) Normal, IL |
| December 15, 1987* 7:30 pm | | Chicago State | W 70–54 | 2–3 | – | – | – | Horton Field House (4,552) Normal, IL |
| December 19, 1987* 2:30 pm | | Illinois–Chicago | W 79–61 | 3–3 | – | – | – | Horton Field House (4,666) Normal, IL |
| December 22, 1987* | | vs. Boston University Gator Bowl Classic [Semifinal] | W 61–52 | 4–3 | – | – | – | Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Coliseum (2,677) Jacksonville, FL |
| December 23, 1987* | | vs. St. Bonaventure Gator Bowl Classic [Final] | L 61–63 | 4–4 | – | – | – | Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Coliseum (2,173) Jacksonville, FL |
| December 29, 1987* | | vs. No. 14 Iowa All-College Tournament [Semifinal] | W 89–88 | 5–4 | 25 – Taphorn | – | – | Myriad Convention Center (9,870) Oklahoma City, OK |
| December 30, 1987* | | vs. No. 10 Oklahoma All-College Tournament [Final] | L 56–107 | 5–5 | 11 – Holifield | – | – | Myriad Convention Center (14,005) Oklahoma City, OK |
| January 4, 1988 8:05 pm, WEEK | | at Bradley I-74 Rivalry | W 85–74 | 6–5 (1–0) | – | – | – | Carver Arena (10,670) Peoria, IL |
| January 8, 1988 7:00 pm, SportsVision | | Tulsa | W 75–67 | 7–5 (2–0) | 23 – Harris | – | – | Horton Field House (6,014) Normal, IL |
| January 11, 1988 7:30 pm | | Wichita State | L 54–66 | 7–6 (2–1) | 19 – Harris | 6 – Holifield | 5 – Taphorn | Horton Field House (6,375) Normal, IL |
| January 20, 1988 7:00 pm, SportsVision | | Indiana State | W 72–64 | 8–6 (3–1) | – | – | – | Horton Field House (6,003) Normal, IL |
| January 23, 1988 2:30 pm | | Southern Illinois | W 102–98 $^{OT}$ | 9–6 (4–1) | 28 – Coleman | 11 – Coleman | 8 – Taphorn | Horton Field House (6,585) Normal, IL |
| January 25, 1988* 7:30 pm, SportsVision | | at Loyola–Chicago | L 80–86 | 9–7 | 21 – Holifield | – | – | International Amphitheatre (2,125) Chicago, IL |
| January 28, 1988 7:00 pm, SportsVision | | at Tulsa | L 31-51 | 9–8 (4–2) | – | – | – | Tulsa Convention Center (6,668) Tulsa, OK |
| January 30, 1988 7:30 pm | | at Wichita State | L 58–61 | 9–9 (4–3) | 16 – Holifield | 9 – Holifield | 4 – Blair | Henry Levitt Arena (10,280) Wichita, KS |
| February 2, 1988* 7:30 pm | | Rider | W 81–64 | 10–9 | – | – | – | Horton Field House (5,878) Normal, IL |
| February 8, 1988 7:35 pm | | at Creighton | W 74–61 | 11–9 (5–3) | 19 – Taphorn | 9 – Peterson | 6 – Jackson | Omaha Civic Auditorium (5,077) Omaha, NE |
| February 13, 1988 2:30 pm | | Drake | W 82–74 | 12–9 (6–3) | – | – | – | Horton Field House (7,730) Normal, IL |
| February 15, 1988 7:30 pm | | Creighton | W 82–70 | 13–9 (7–3) | 34 – Harris | 5 – Harris | 8 – Blair | Horton Field House (6,477) Normal, IL |
| February 17, 1988 7:30 pm | | at Indiana State | W 69–59 | 14–9 (8–3) | 22 – Holifield | – | – | Hulman Center (4,222) Terre Haute, IN |
| February 20, 1988 2:30 pm, WHOI | | No. 17 Bradley I-74 Rivalry | L 71–78 | 14–10 (8–4) | – | – | – | Horton Field House (7,745) Normal, IL |
| February 22, 1988 7:35 pm | | at Drake | W 72–69 | 15–10 (9–4) | – | – | – | Veterans Memorial Auditorium (4,430) Des Moines, IA |
| February 24, 1988* 7:30 pm | | Butler | W 87–62 | 16–10 | 27 – Taphorn | – | – | Horton Field House (5,830) Normal, IL |
| February 27, 1988 7:35 pm | | at Southern Illinois | L 67–68 | 16–11 (9–5) | 24 – Holifield | 14 – Peterson | 8 – Jackson | SIU Arena (4,062) Carbondale, IL |
| Missouri Valley Conference {MVC} tournament |||||||||
| March 5, 1988* 12:00 pm, SportsVision | (3) | vs. (6) Drake Quarterfinal | W 72–60 | 17–11 | 18 – Holifield | 8 – Coleman | 6 – Jackson | Carver Arena (8,248) Peoria, IL |
| March 6, 1988* 1:00 pm, SportsVision | (3) | vs. (2) Wichita State Semifinal | W 59–51 | 18–11 | 17 – Harris | 11 – Peterson | 7 – Jackson | Carver Arena (9,225) Peoria, IL |
| March 8, 1988* 8:30 pm, ESPN | (3) | at (1) No. 14 Bradley Final | L 59–89 | 18–12 | 25 – Holifield | 13 – Peterson | 3 – Taphorn, Jackson | Carver Arena (10,570) Peoria, IL |
| National Invitation {NIT} tournament |||||||||
| March 18, 1988* | | at Cleveland State First Round | L 83–89 $^{OT}$ | 18–13 | 18 – Taphorn | 9 – Peterson | 8 – Taphorn | Woodling Gymnasium (5,032) Cleveland, OH |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Central Standard Time. |||||||||