GAME NOTES: The Illinois State Redbirds will get their season underway with a home matchup against the Utah State Aggies in a non-conference clash at Redbird Arena Sunday evening.

Utah State was in action on Friday's opening night, as the Mountain West Conference Aggies took on Weber State. The Aggies came away with the 72-61 victory in Logan, and hit the road for the first time this season.

Illinois State recorded an 18-16 overall record a year ago, with a 9-9 mark in the Missouri Valley Conference. The Redbirds made the conference postseason, losing to Missouri State in the MVC quarterfinal round. The Redbirds went on to the College Basketball Invitational, where they lost to Siena in the semifinals.

The all-time series between Utah State and Illinois State is all knotted up at three games apiece. The two sides met in February of 2013 in Logan, where the Aggies game away with an 80-71 victory in the most recent meeting.

Not a single starter came back from last season's Utah State program, which means the Aggies, on paper, had some work to do in the offseason to straighten out a lineup. After a pair of exhibition game wins, Utah State took on Weber State Friday night in the team's season opener, and won a very convincing game against the Big Sky Conference foes, 72-61. The Aggies are 15-13 all-time against teams from the Missouri Valley Conference, so coach Stew Morrill will hope his program's history can get his squad to a 2-0 start.

Two players for the Aggies registered at least 20 points in the team's win over Weber State two nights ago. David Collette hit on 11-of-15 shooting from the floor for 22 points and six rebounds to lead the team, while Jalen Moore chipped in with 20 points of his own and eight boards. Julion Pearre came off the bench to net 10 points for Utah State, and guard Darius Perkins scored seven with a team-high nine assists. The Aggies shot 46.6 percent from the floor in the win, and held the Wildcats to a dismal 17.4 percent shooting percentage in the second half Friday.

Illinois State returns four starters from the 2013-14 campaign, which led them all the way to the CBI semifinal round that saw the Redbirds defeat teams like Morehead State and Texas A&M. Third-year coach Dan Muller loses second-leading scorer Zach Lofton (11.3 ppg), although the former Redbirds player shot a dismal 33.9 percent from the floor. Guard Daishon Knight (13.2 ppg) and Bobby Hunter (10.5 ppg) are back for this season and will be the go-to players when it comes to scoring. Reggie Lynch should be a player to watch this season for ISU, after the forward managed 8.3 ppg, 4.8 rpg and 2.8 bpg in just 20 minutes of floor action as a freshman.

Lynch's 96 blocks last season was a freshman record, so imagine what he can do with a full workload as a sophomore and a focal point to the 2014-15 team. Illinois State took on Lewis in an exhibition matchup last week, and earned a 76-67 victory thanks to four double-digit scorers led by DeVaughn Akoon- Purcell's 16. Lynch notched a double-double with 10 points and 12 rebounds, all while blocking seven shots against Lewis. Paris Lee scored 14, and Knight chipped in with 13 points in the contest.

The two teams finished pretty even statistically in the 2013-14 season, and Illinois State does have four returning starters compared to zero for Utah State, not to mention the homecourt advantage. But that didn't stop Utah State from dominating in the team's season opener against Weber State. Still, give the Aggies more time to jell as they make their way through the 2014-15 campaign.