DeVaughn Akoon-Purcell was 8 of 11 from the floor and scored 20 points as Illinois State dominated the second half to claim a 72-56 victory over Houston Baptist in the second round of the Cancun Classic on Saturday night.

Deontae Hawkins added 13 points for the Redbirds (2-2). Paris Lee had six points and five assists.

Houston Baptist (1-3), trailing 28-26 at the break, was still close in the second half until Nick Banyard nailed a 3-point jumper to start a 16-5 run to lead 57-41 with 8:41 left in the game. The Huskies never challenged again.

The Redbirds turned up the heat in the second half, forcing the Huskies into 23 turnovers for the game.

Illinois State was 29 of 59 (49.2 from the floor while limiting the Huskies to 18 of 51 (35.3%).

Josh Ibarra had 12 points, eight rebounds and two blocked shots for Houston Baptist.

>>Chatanooga Upsets Illinois

Eric Robertson's 15 points led six Mocs in double figures as Chattanooga overcame a nine-point, second-half deficit to defeat Illinois 81-77 Saturday.

Chattanooga (3-0) led by as many as 15 in the first half and by 12 shortly into the second before Malcolm Hill, who finished with 25 points, led a 34-13 Illinois surge. The Illini (1-3) led 69-60 with 6:20 left.

Three Mocs made 3-pointers to take back the lead in the final minutes. Tre' McLean tied it with 2:45 left and Robertson's corner trey gave the visitors from the Southern Conference a lasting lead at 1:55.

Illinois is 1-3 for the first time since 1965-66 and just the fourth time in 110 seasons.

The game is part of the Emerald Coast Classic, which concludes Friday and Saturday in Niceville, Fla.

Mike Thorne Jr. scored 18 for Illinois. Chuck Ester and Justin Tuoyo had 12 each for Chattanooga.