CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Senior guard Shawndale Jones scored a game-high 25 points and the Crimson Hawks shot 45 percent from the field during an impressive return to the court with a 94-79 loss to Illinois in exhibition basketball Friday night at the State Farm Center. 

Jones shot 10-18 from the floor and went 5-7 from the foul line in 38 minutes of action. He added four rebounds, two assists and a steal in the IUP men's basketball program's first meaningful action since March 2020. 

IUP held the lead seven times during the first half of play, going into the locker room trailing 45-38. The Hawks found themselves down by double-figures early in the second half, but used a 14-7 run to make it a 68-63 game with under nine minutes to play. Illinois, the 11th-ranked team in the preseason Division I AP poll, then used a 15-4 run to extend its lead to 15 points at 82-67, putting it on cruise control the rest of the way.

Jones was one of four Hawks to score in doubles-figures against the Illini. Junior point guard Dave Morris had 15 points on 5-11 shooting with seven rebounds and five assists in 31 minutes. Junior guard Armoni Foster scored 13 points in 17 minutes and sophomore forward Ethan Porterfield had 10 points, five rebounds, four steals and two blocks in 29 minutes of work. 

IUP is no stranger to top-tier Division I opponents in the preseason. The Hawks narrowly lost to Elon in 2019 and played well before a late loss at No. 2 Kentucky in 2018. The Hawks have also played Villanova and Syracuse (2016), Pitt (2012, 2014), Michigan State (2013), Maryland (2012) and Florida State (2011) over the last decade. 

Up next
IUP, the 18th-ranked team in the NABC Division II preseason poll, opens its 2021-22 season November 12 against West Virginia Wesleyan.

Follow
For up-to-date information, visit IUPAthletics.com and follow IUP Men's Basketball on Twitter @IUPCrimsonHawk and @IUP_MBB.