NORMAL — Chris Matthews and Osiris Eldridge staged a personal shootout in Sunday’s championship game of the Basketball Travelers Classic. They were sinking 3-pointers from all over Doug Collins Court at Redbird Arena.

Yet something else might have been taking place with long-range ramifications.

“It was a coming-out party,” said Illinois State coach Tim Jankovich.

St. Bonaventure’s Andrew Nicholson came in averaging almost a double-double. But ISU freshman Jackie Carmichael was the man in the middle with season highs of 16 points, 10 rebounds and four blocked shots as the Redbirds edged St. Bonaventure, 80-77, to claim the tourney title before a crowd of 5,112.

“I was talking to Coach Jank about coming out and being ready to play,” said the 6-foot-9, 240-pound Carmichael. “I was thinking I had to come out and play more physical. I think that was the key tonight.”

Carmichael personally took Nicholson out of the game, drawing five fouls on the St. Bonaventure star. Nicholson, who was averaging 19.2 points and 9.6 rebounds, had only two points and three rebounds in 15 minutes.

Matthews tied the Redbird Arena and St. Bonaventure record with eight 3-pointers, most from NBA distance. His ISU counterpart, Eldridge, wasn’t too bad himself, sinking six 3-pointers as both finished with 28 points.

ISU improved to 6-0 in holding off the best team it has played thus far.

St. Bonaventure (4-2) shot 50 percent from the field and 58.8 percent on 3-pointers while grabbing a 36-29 rebounding advantage. But ISU prevailed thanks to outscoring the visitors, 27-11, at the free throw line and committing nine fewer turnovers.

“We took a big step. Everyone came to play,” said Eldridge, who was named the tourney’s most valuable player. “We’re going to need that every night not only from the seniors, but from the new guys.”

The Bonnies had a 9 p.m. flight out of Chicago back to New York, but they battled to the end.

Lloyd Phillips sank two free throws to put ISU ahead, 77-69, with 30 seconds left. Ogo Adegboye’s 19-foot jumper cut the gap to 80-77 with 4.4 seconds showing.

St. Bonaventure immediately fouled Phillips on the in-bounds pass. Phillips missed both free throws, giving the Bonnies a chance to tie. However, Phillips stole the ball from Jonathan Hall at midcourt to seal the victory.

“I knew it would be a really tough game. It’s a game we really needed,” said Jankovich. “I’m really proud of our team. I thought it was just a tremendous effort.”

Carmichael had shown what he could do in bits and pieces during the first five games. He put everything together at both ends in 26 minutes Sunday. Carmichael wasn’t fazed at the line, either, making 10 of 13 free throws, including 5 of 6 in the final 1:01.

“I thought he really turned it loose,” said Jankovich. “He didn’t hesitate. He went after every ball. He played to his athleticism, which he has plenty of. It’s such a big plus for our team if he continues down that path.”

Even with Nicholson rendered ineffective, St. Bonaventure didn’t blink. The Bonnies made six of their first seven shots in taking a 17-9 lead. ISU went ahead 32-27 on Eldridge’s 3-pointer. But the Redbirds trailed at halftime for the first time this season on Malcolm Eleby’s 3-pointer with a second left that gave St. Bonaventure a 39-37 lead.

ISU came out of the locker room and used an 11-2 run to take a 48-41 lead. However, the Bonnies refused to let the Redbirds pull away.

“I thought our guys fought to the bitter end and gave ourselves a chance,” said St. Bonaventure coach Mark Schmidt. “We did what we needed to do. We couldn’t stop Eldridge and got outscored at the foul line by 16.”

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Redbird report card

FRONT COURT - A-: Jackie Carmichael personally fouled St. Bonnie star Andrew Nicholson out of the game and produced the first of many double-doubles. ISU needs to do better on boards.

BACKCOURT - B: Osiris Eldridge nearly matched Chris Matthews 3-pointer for 3-pointer. Lloyd Phillips did good job running the show, while Alex Rubin’s defense was key in second half.

BENCH - A-: Carmichael was difference in the game, plain and simple. Austin Hill should be gaining confidence after second straight solid game.

OVERALL - B+: ISU took a step forward the last three days and is beginning to develop its rotation. Plenty of practice time the next two weeks should help even more.