Illinois

Missouri State Lady Bears got more late-game dramatics to top Illinois Chicago

Published

2 years ago

January 6, 2024

Missouri State Lady Bears got more late-game dramatics to top Illinois Chicago

The Lady Bears’ six-game homestand ended without a blemish as they’ve discovered consistency heading into their first road trip in over a month.

Missouri State (9-3, 3-0) escaped with a 51-50 win over Illinois Chicago (8-6, 1-2) on Saturday afternoon at Great Southern Bank Arena.

A Jade Masogayo go-ahead putback layup with 1.1 seconds remaining proved to be the difference. Illinois Chicago had an open look at a game-winner at the buzzer at the other end but the layup was short-armed.

It marked the Lady Bears’ third one-possession win over their winning streak. The win came a week after Lacy Stokes got a layup at the buzzer to fall in a 54-52 win over Northern Iowa. The Lady Bears are 5-0 in games decided by five points or less.

Before the winning streak, the Lady Bears had yet to put together two wins in a row. Over the stretch, they’ve shown massive improvement and the ability to win close games. They look to keep momentum going during their central Illinois road trip to Bradley on Thursday before playing Illinois State on Sunday.

Missouri State Lady Bears basketball responds to slow start with 20-0 run

Unlike how the Lady Bears started in their 20-point win over Valparaiso on Thursday evening, MSU found itself down in a 9-2 hole through the first four minutes.

That quickly changed as Missouri State finished the first quarter by scoring 20 unanswered points. Indya Green and Kyrah Daniels each scored seven points over the stretch while the defense forced UIC into eight-consecutive misses.

“I wasn’t pleased with how we started the game,” MSU head coach Beth Cunningham said. “That’s just something that can’t happen and we can’t continue to do it. We got hot on the offensive end for the floor and then started to get comfortable again. I don’t know what it is but I think more than anything that it’s mentality. It’s pedal to the metal and you just have to stay on it.”

UIC held MSU to five points in second quarter

Whatever UIC women’s basketball coach Ashleen Bracey said after the first quarter worked. The Flames held the Lady Bears to just five points in the second quarter after MSU scored 20 in the previous six minutes.

Missouri State didn’t score until Jade Masogayo got a layup to fall with 1:42 left in the half. Kyrah Daniels followed with a 3 before the break.

The Flames didn’t make the biggest dent into the Lady Bears’ lead as it led 27-21 at halftime. UIC started with a 10-0 run to start the quarter but only made one shot from the field over the final 6:39.

Lady Bears pull off another win in dramatic fashion

Neither team led by more than five in the second half and the final 4:38 never had a difference of more than a possession.

With the Lady Bears leading by two with 18.6 seconds to go, UIC guard Jaida McCloud missed the backend of a one-and-one with the Flames grabbing the rebound. After a timeout with 16 seconds remaining, UIC guard Makiyah Williams fought in the paint to get the ball to go off the backboard and in with three seconds left for a one-point advantage.

After a Lady Bears timeout, down one, a lob into Daniels underneath the basket was deflected into Masogayo’s hands who scored a go-ahead putback layup with 1.1 seconds remaining.

“Right place at the right time,” Masogayo said. “It just literally fell on my hands and I put it up.”

“It was just the way they pressure and overplay,” Cunningham added. “I felt like they overplayed. I thought we had (Daniels) and we threw it a bit short. If we threw it a bit higher, I think Kyrah probably would have had it there. But Jade was right there. It wasn’t exactly how it was designed but it ended up working out as a touch pass to Jade.”

A timeout advanced the ball up the court. A near-perfectly executed call gave the Flames an open look for a layup at the horn but the shot came up short.

Daniels led the Lady Bears with 15 points. No other Lady Bear scored more than nine as the team shot 35%. They held the Flames to 37.3% and came away with the win despite uncharacteristically losing the rebound battle by 10.

Up next

After six straight home games, the Lady Bears will hit the road for the first time since Dec. 6. They will travel to Bradley for a 6 p.m. game on Thursday before a 6 p.m. matchup at Illinois State on Jan. 14. Missouri State will return home Jan. 19 and 21 for games against Evansville and Indiana State.

Wyatt D. Wheeler is a reporter and columnist with the Springfield News-Leader. You can contact him at 417-371-6987, by email at wwheeler@news-leader.com or X at@WyattWheeler_NL.

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Illinois

Illinois is newest state to allow medical assistance in dying after Pritzker signs bill

Published

2 hours ago

December 12, 2025

Press Room

Illinois is newest state to allow medical assistance in dying after Pritzker signs bill

Updated on: December 12, 2025 / 11:49 AM CST
/ CBS Chicago

Gov. JB Pritzker signed a new law Friday making Illinois the newest state allowing medically assisted dying in terminally ill residents.

Known as “Deb’s Law,” it allows eligible terminally ill adults with a prognosis to live six months or less to request a prescription from their doctor that would allow them to die on their own terms.

The legislation was narrowly approved by the Illinois Senate in October after the Illinois House passed it in May.

People on both sides of the debate over the controversial legislation lobbied the governor up until the last minute. Medical aid in dying, also called assisted suicide or dying with dignity, is already legal in 12 states. Eight more are considering similar legislation.

“I have been deeply impacted by the stories of Illinoisans or their loved ones that have suffered from a devastating terminal illness, and I have been moved by their dedication to standing up for freedom and choice at the end of life in the midst of personal heartbreak,” Pritzker said in a news release after signing the bill.

Pritzker’s signature makes Illinois the first state in the Midwest to allow medically assisted death.

Advocates for the law say it allows adults to die on their own terms when survival is already not an option. Opponents say the bill legalizes “state-sanctioned suicide.”

The law requires two doctors to determine a patient has a terminal disease and will die within six months. The medication provided would need to be requested both orally and in written documentation, and will have to be self-administered. The law also requires all patients opting into medical assistance in dying to have been full informed about all end-of-life care options, including comfort care, hospice, palliative care and pain control.

The law is named for Deb Robertson, a former social worker from Lombard who had an aggressive case of neuroendocrine carcinoma. She began advocating for medical aid in dying in 2022 and has been a central figure in the movement.

Please note: The above video is from a previous report

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Illinois

Advocates, opponents seek to sway Gov. JB Pritzker on medical aid in dying legislation passed by Illinois General Assembly

Published

14 hours ago

December 12, 2025

Press Room

Advocates, opponents seek to sway Gov. JB Pritzker on medical aid in dying legislation passed by Illinois General Assembly

Illinois could soon join a growing list of states where terminally ill patients would be allowed to take life-ending medication prescribed by a doctor.

The Illinois Senate narrowly approved the “medical aid in dying” legislation in October, after the Illinois House passed it in May, and the legislation is now sitting on Gov. JB Pritzker’s desk.

Pritzker has not said if he’ll sign it, and the controversial legislation has people on both sides trying to bend the governor’s ear.

Medical aid in dying, also called assisted suicide or dying with dignity, is legal in 12 states, with eight others considering similar legislation.

If Pritzker allows the “End-of-Life Options for Terminally Ill Patients Act” passed by the Illinois General Assembly to become law, Illinois could be the first state in the Midwest to allow medical aid in dying.

Suzy Flack, whose son Andrew died of cancer, is among the advocates urging the governor to sign the bill.

Diagnosed with terminal cancer in 2017 in his home state of Illinois, three years later Andrew moved to California, where medical aid in dying is legal, and chose to end his life in 2022.

“He died on his own terms, peacefully. We were all there to see it and embrace him at that moment, and it was really a beautiful thing,” Suzy said. “His last words were, ‘I’m happy. Please sign this. Allow people in Illinois this option.’”

Illinois is on the brink of joining a growing number of states that allow doctors to prescribe a mixture of lethal medication for terminally ill patients.

Outside the governor’s Chicago office on Thursday, many disability advocates, religious leaders, lawmakers, and doctors have called on Pritzker to veto the bill that would legalize what they call state-sanctioned suicide

“The question becomes where do you draw the line in the medical ethics dilemmas?” one physician who identified himself as Dr. Pete said. “We don’t need to go to this crossing of a red line of actually providing a means to directly end life.”

Republican Illinois state Sen. Chris Balkema said he “would really appreciate it if the governor would veto this bill.”

“My plea is that we veto this; come back with language that is constructive on both sides,” he said.

Pritzker has he is reviewing the legislation and is listening to advocates on both sides before deciding whether to sign it.

“It’s a hard issue, and I don’t want anybody to think making up your mind about this is very easy. It’s not. There’s a lot to consider, but most of all it’s about compassion,” he said. “There’s evidence and information on both sides that leads me to think seriously about what direction to go.”

The Illinois legislation would require two doctors to determine that a patient has a terminal disease and will die within six months. The medication provided to terminally ill patients would need to be requested both orally and in written form, and would have to be self-administered.

The bill was sent to Pritzker on Nov. 25, and he has 60 days from then to either sign it, amend it and send it back to lawmakers, veto it, or allow it to become law without his signature.

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Illinois

Two rounds of snow on the way to central Illinois – IPM Newsroom

Published

1 day ago

December 11, 2025

Press Room

Two rounds of snow on the way to central Illinois – IPM Newsroom

Snow is making a comeback in Central Illinois.

IPM meteorologist Andrew Pritchard said A Winter Weather Advisory is in effect for Champaign County and surrounding portions of east-central Illinois beginning Thursday at 3:00 p.m. to Friday at 6:00 a.m.

Snow will spread into Champaign-Urbana between 3-6 PM late this afternoon into the evening with periods of moderate to heavy snowfall continuing overnight. Snow should taper off around sunrise on Friday morning, with around 2-4″ of new snow accumulation expected across Champaign County.

Winds will blow out of the east around 5-10 mph, with minimal impacts from blowing & drifting snow. Still, snow accumulation on roadways could lead to hazardous travel conditions overnight into the Friday morning commute.

On Saturday, the National Weather Service in Central Illinois forecasted for snow to return on Saturday afternoon. The chance of precipitation is 80%. New snow accumulation of 2 to 4 inches possible. Temperatures will drop below zero across much of central Illinois both Saturday night and Sunday night with resulting wind chill values as cold as 15 to 30 below zero.

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