TERRE HAUTE, Ind. ? The exhibition season for the Indiana State men's basketball season is officially over, as the Sycamores had five players score in double figures to secure a 93-71 win over Division II St. Joseph's College (Ind.) on Friday night at the Hulman Center.
The Sycamores jumped out to a quick 5-0 lead after a jumper and three-pointer from senior Jay Tunnell. That lead would eventually grow to 11-3 after a layup by junior Rashad Reed just over two minutes into the game. The Pumas didn't back down though and scored the next 11 points, capped off by a three-pointer by Will Jones, to take a 14-11 advantage with 15 minutes left in the half. SJC took a three-point lead a minute later after a trey by Andrew Helmer, before ISU went on an 8-0 run to take the lead 22-17 with 12 minutes remaining after Reed connected from behind the arc.
Reed stayed hot from long distance and hit his third 3-pointer in just over a two-minute span to widen the ISU lead to 27-20 and an Aaron Carter free throw then made the score 28-20 with 9:47 remaining in the half. The Pumas once again clawed back and used a 13-4 run to take a 33-32 lead after a jumper by Cory Hrynyk with 7:37 remaining. The back-and-forth play continued and ISU scored the next seven points, with freshman Tyler Cutter's three-pointer bringing the score to 39-33 with just over five minutes remaining.
The ISU lead later grew to 14 points at 47-35 after a dunk and a layup by junior Josh Crawford and a layup by redshirt freshman Jordan Printy. Printy then connected from three-point range to widen the lead to 17, but SJC's A.J. Mahar answered with a trey of his own with 11 seconds left to make the score 52-38 in favor of the Sycamores at halftime.
The second half belonged to the Sycamores, as they maintained a double-digit lead throughout the final 20 minutes of the game. The Pumas managed to cut the ISU to 11 points five minutes into the half after Michael Horton converted the traditional three-point play to make the score 56-45. From there, the ISU lead grew steadily over the next four and a half minutes of play. Printy connected from three-point range with 10:50 remaining to widen the lead to 19 points at 71-52 and a layup by Reed extended the lead to 22 points at 76-54 with 7:05 remaining in the game.
SJC chipped away and cut the ISU lead to 17 points at 80-63 after a pair of free throws from Jake Hassler, but six-straight points by the Sycamores widened the lead to 23 points at 86-63 after a pair of free throws by redshirt freshman Keenan Barlow with 2:34 left in the game. ISU stayed in control for the remaining time and took its largest lead of the game at 93-68 after a dunk by freshman Nick Donaldson, before a three-pointer by SJC's Denver Combs with seven seconds remaining brought the score to its final at 93-71.
The Sycamores capitalized on 25 turnovers by the Pumas, turning them into 41 points. ISU also dominated the post, out-rebounding the Pumas 40-28 while scoring 32 points in the paint during the win.
Printy led the way for the Sycamores with a game-high 15 points, including a 3-for-5 effort from three-point range, in 20 minutes of action. Reed, who also finished with a 3-for-5 mark from beyond the arc, finished with 14 points to go along with three assists. Crawford collected a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds, while Carter put together a strong all-around effort with 10 points, five assists and four steals. Tunnell rounded out the balanced scoring effort for ISU with 10 points and three rebounds in the win.
The Sycamores open the regular season on Tuesday, Nov. 18, when they travel to DeKalb, Ill., to face off against the Northern Illinois Huskies. Tip-off is set for 8:05 p.m. (ET) at the Convocation Center.
