Liam McChesney's Illinois State debut week gains valuable playing minutes in a Redshirt year

Prince Rupert's Liam McChesney heading to the key last week
as he made his Illinois State Redbirds debut in NCAA action
(photo from Illinois State Redbirds media)

The US College basketball season is off to a fast start for 2021-22, with NCAA ball the feature attraction at campuses across America over the last week as the Big Show got underway for another season.

For Prince Rupert hoops fans, the cheering interests have shifted from deep in the Southwest state of Utah to the basketball mad middle of America and Illinois, where former Rainmaker Liam McChesney has put down some new roots for his NCAA career.

The six foot ten inch forward has been mentioned in a number of dispatches from the Illinois State Redbirds as the first week of competitive action got underway, including a note on a debut record with the team coming from four blocked shots from his first game in an Illinois State uniform.

Both Liam McChesney and Mark Freeman both tied ISU program debut records, McChesney with four blocked shots and Freeman with seven made free throws.

His early play has seen McChesney get some significant court time, with thirty six minutes on the court in two games to date.

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Listed by the Redbirds as a Redshirt Sophomore, the former Charles Hays baller will see extensive training and practice time with the squad, in addition to occasional game action, that part of the trade off towards an extra year of NCAA eligibility.  

Though with the rules on NCAA Redshirts in flux of late, how many games he may see action is still somewhat of a work in progress it seems.

McChesney's Bio Page on the Redbirds website highlights some of the interest his arrival on the Illinois State campus has generated, while the growing collection of mentions found from that portal indicate some of the path ahead for his NCAA career.

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Illinois State is back in action this evening with a home court date with Murray State.

Next week marks Thanksgiving in the USA and that means tournament time for many NCAA teams, with the Redbirds off for some Mexican sunshine and trip to the Cancun Challenge.

Following that southern break,  the heart of their NCAA season gets underway and you can follow how the Rainmaker in the lineup is doing through their  online information flow.

For those with an expanded sports package, following Illinois State may be easier than the Utah State days, with the Big 10 Network and regional American network schedules, as well as TSN's college packages a place to keep an eye out for Illinois State games through the season.

More notes on Prince Rupert and other Northwest athletes in University or College sports can be reviewed from our archive page here.