NORMAL, Ill. – Defending the three-point line will be of interest for the Pacific men's basketball program when it travels to Illinois State for a 4 p.m. (PT) game Saturday at CEFCU Arena.
 
Pacific (5-5) ranks second in the West Coast Conference and top-50 in the nation in three-point percentage defense with a .284 clip. The Tigers have held the opposition to under 30 percent five times from long range.
 
Those numbers will be put to the test Saturday against an Illinois State (4-4) squad that seemingly lives and dies by the long ball. The Redbirds rank 11th in the nation in three-point percentage (.402) and 12th in threes made per game (11.3). Of the 452 shots attempted by Illinois State on the season, 224 of them – 49.6 percent – have been from beyond the arc.
 
The Tigers have been led by the trio of senior Elias Ralph, junior Lamar Washington and sophomore Elijah Fisher. Ralph averages team-highs of 18.0 points and 7.8 rebounds per game and shoots .545 from the field. He ranks second in the West Coast Conference in scoring and fourth in field goal percentage. Ralph has scored in double-figures in all 10 games this year.
 
Fisher records 17.3 points per game and ranks top-five in the WCC in minutes played. Fisher has played 40 minutes three times in the last five games. Over the last three games, he's averaged 20.7 points per outing.
 
Ralph and Fisher, both Canadians, were named to both the Outrigger Rainbow Classic All-Tournament Team in Hawaii and the Russ Pott Production (RPPI) All-Tournament Teams. The RPPI tournament included games against Mizzou and UAPB.
 
Washington ranks top-10 in the nation in assists with 7.0 per game. He's dished 10 or more assists in two different games. Washington also scores in double-figures with 10.9 points per game.
 
Illinois State has four student-athletes who shoot over 42 percent from long range with at least 25 attempts on the year. Johnny Kinziger is the team's leading scorer with 14.4 points per game and is 19-of-45 (.422) from beyond the arc.
 
In addition to their three-point shooting, the Redbirds rank top-15 in the country in free throw percentage with a .805 mark. Illinois State scores 80.9 points per game and has wins this year over North Dakota State, Ohio and UAB.
 
Saturday's game can be watch live on ESPN+ and can be heard on Fox Sports 1280 AM with Zack Bayrouty on the call.
 
NOTES
- Pacific and Illinois State will meet for the first time since Jan. 4, 1998. The two teams have played seven times with the home team winning each encounter. It will be Pacific's fifth game at Illinois State.
 
- The Tigers will be playing their first game in the state of Illinois since Nov. 14, 2014 when they beat Western Illinois 73-71 in overtime.
 
- Pacific's last road win came on Nov. 10, 2023 when it beat Cal 87-79.
 
- As a team, the Tigers rank top-45 in the country in rebounding (40.6 rpg), defensive rebounding (28.6 drpg) and rebounding margin (+7.7).
 
- The Tigers are 5-1 this year when they outrebound their opponent and 4-0 when they score at least 80 points.
 
Tigers Tickets
Tickets for upcoming events can be purchased through the PacificTigers.com tickets tab, or by calling the Box Office at 209-946-2474.  Groups of 10 or more are eligible for a group discount and exclusive fan experiences.
 
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