The 2008–09 Illinois State Redbirds men's basketball team represented

Illinois State University Illinois State University (ISU) is a public research university in Normal, Illinois, United States. It was founded in 1857 as Illinois State Normal University and is the oldest public university in Illinois. The university emphasizes teachin ...

during the

2008–09 NCAA Division I men's basketball season The 2008–09 NCAA Division I men's basketball season began on November 10, 2008, and ended with the 2009 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament's championship game on April 6, 2009, at Ford Field in Detroit, Michigan. The season saw six ...

. The Redbirds, led by second year head coach

Tim Jankovich Timothy Robert Jankovich (born June 4, 1959) is an American former college basketball coach and former head coach at Southern Methodist University. During his first year (2007–08) at Illinois State, Jankovich led the Redbirds to a 13–5 secon ...

, played their home games at Doug Collins Court at Redbird Arena and were a member of the

Missouri Valley Conference The Missouri Valley Conference (also called MVC or simply "The Valley") is the fourth-oldest collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference in the United States. The conference's members are primarily located in the Midwestern Unite ...

. The Redbirds finished the season 24–10, 11–7 in conference play to finish in third place. They were the number three seed for the Missouri Valley Conference tournament. They won their quarterfinal game versus the

University of Evansville The University of Evansville (UE) is a private university in Evansville, Indiana. It was founded in 1854 as Carnegie Hall of Moores Hill College, Moores Hill College. The university operates a satellite center, Harlaxton Manor, Harlaxton College ...

and semifinal game versus

Creighton University Creighton University () is a private research university in Omaha, Nebraska, United States. Founded by the Society of Jesus in 1878, the university is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. In 2015 the university enrolled 8,393 graduate ...

but lost their final game versus the

University of Northern Iowa The University of Northern Iowa (UNI) is a public university in Cedar Falls, Iowa, United States. UNI offers more than 90 majors across five colleges. The fall 2024 total enrollment was 9,283 students. The university was initially founded in 1 ...

. The Redbirds received an at-large bid to the

2009 National Invitation Tournament The 2009 National Invitation Tournament was a single-elimination tournament of 32 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I teams that were not selected to participate in the 2009 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament. T ...

and were assigned the number five seed in the

San Diego State University San Diego State University (SDSU) is a Public university, public research university in San Diego, California, United States. Founded in 1897, it is the third-oldest university and southernmost in the 23-member California State University (CS ...

regional. They were defeated by

Kansas State University Kansas State University (KSU, Kansas State, or K-State) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university with its main campus in Manhattan, Kansas, United States. It was opened as the state's land-grant coll ...

in the first round.

Roster

Schedule

, - !colspan=9 style=, Exhibition Season , - !colspan=9 style=, Regular Season , - !colspan=9 style=, Missouri Valley Conference tournament , - !colspan=9 style=, National Invitation Tournament

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:2008-09 Illinois State Redbirds men's basketball team Illinois State Redbirds men's basketball seasons Illinois State Illinois State