Storylines
After going 2-0 in the exhibition season with wins over Albion College (Mich.) and St. Joseph's College (Ind.), Indiana State will open the 2008 regular season tonight against Northern Illinois at the Convocation Center in DeKalb. Ill. Tip-off is set for 8 p.m. ET.
The Sycamores (0-0) head into the game on a high note after defeating St. Joseph's by a score of 93-71 last Friday night at the Hulman Center. 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. In all, five Sycamores scored in double figures in the win.
Redshirt freshman Jordan 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. Rashad Reed, who also finished with a 3-for-5 mark from beyond the arc, added 14 points to go along with three assists.
Junior transfer Josh Crawford collected a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds, while sophomore Aaron Carter put together a strong all-around effort with 10 points, five assists and four steals. Senior Jay Tunnell rounded out the balanced scoring effort for ISU with 10 points and three rebounds in the win.
The Huskies (1-1) will open their home schedule against the Sycamores tonight. NIU heads into the game after competing last weekend at the 100 Club Classic in Kennesaw, Ga. In the opening game, the Huskies dropped a 77-65 decision to Maine and then came back with a 65-54 win over Western Illinois on Saturday night.
Freshman guard Mike DiNunno has been the early standout for the Huskies, averaging 21 points, three rebounds and two steals per game through the first two contests for NIU. He scored 19 points in the team's season-opening loss to Maine, but rebounded with 23 points in the win over Western Illinois.
Northern Illinois leads the all-time series between the two schools 11-6. The Huskies had won five straight contest against the Sycamores until ISU posted a 75-65 win over NIU last season at the Hulman Center in Terre Haute, Ind.
Gabe Moore was one of four Sycamores in double-figures in last year's win for ISU, as he led the team with 14 points, eight rebounds and seven assists at the point. Marico Stinson added 11 points, thanks to a 3-for-7 performance from behind the three-point line, while the freshmen duo of Aaron Carter and Isiah Martin chipped in with 10 points apiece.
About The Coaches
Kevin McKenna (Creighton ?93) is in his second season as the head coach at Indiana State (15-16). In his first season with the Sycamores, McKenna led the team to its highest win total since the 2000-01 season and an impressive 12-2 record at home in the Hulman Center. McKenna came to Indiana State after after spending nine seasons as an assistant coach at Creighton, where he helped the Bluejays advance to four NCAA tournament appearances. From 2001-05, McKenna spent four years as the head coach (89-33) at NCAA Division II Nebraska-Omaha, where he guided the Mavericks to four consecutive 20-win seasons and three appearances in the NCAA Division II Tournament.
Ricardo Patton (Belmont ?80) is in his second year as the head coach at Northern Illinois.
In Patton's first season at NIU, Patton fielded a young squad and led the Huskies to a mark of 6-22 led by MAC Freshman of the Year Darion Anderson. Patton joined the Huskies after averaging nearly 17 wins per season and taking Colorado to six postseason berths, including a pair of NCAA appearances, between 1995-96 and 2006-07. Colorado advanced to postseason play in three of the last five seasons. Patton finished his CU tenure as the second-winningest coach in Colorado basketball history.
Scouting The Huskies
► Northern Illinois is located in DeKalb, Ill., and has an enrollment of 25,208 students. The Huskies are members of the Mid-American Conference (West Division) and player their home games at the Convocation Center (9,100).
► The Huskies finished last season with a 6-22 overall record, including a 3-12 mark in MAC play (6th in West Division).
► Sophomore Darion Anderson returns as the reigning Mid-American Conference and MidAmPub.com Freshman of the Year. Anderson played in all 28 games, including 19 starts, and averaged a team-best 12.2 points and 2.6 assists per game. With the honor, he became the first NIU freshman to lead the Huskies in scoring since T.J. Lux accomplished that feat since the 1995-96 campaign.
► NIU heads into the game with a 1-1 record after competing last weekend at the 100 Club Classic in Kennesaw, Ga. In the opening game, the Huskies dropped a 77-65 decision to Maine and then came back with a 65-54 win over Western Illinois on Saturday night.
► Freshman Mike DiNunno has been the early standout for the Huskies, averaging 21 points, three rebounds and two steals per game through the first two contests for NIU.
Last Time Against The Huskies
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. ? The Indiana State men's basketball team was glad to be home on Tuesday night after dropping two-straight games on the road. The Hulman Center and the 3,112 fans in attendance were kind to the Sycamores (2-2), as they evened their season record by defeating Northern Illinois (0-5) in a non-conference contest.
Indiana State got out to a quick start, as Adam Arnold's jumper at the 17:23 mark gave the Sycamores an early 10-3 lead. Northern Illinois came right back, though, to cut the lead to one at 11-10 on a three-point play by Darion Anderson. ISU then took over and went on a 19-8 run to widen the lead to 30-18 on an Isiah Martin tip-in with 4:43 left in the half. The Huskies answered the Sycamores' run with one of their own, as NIU finished the half on a 13-2 run to cut the lead to just one at halftime at 32-31.
The second half started with the teams battling for position. Four points from Gabe Moore and a three-pointer from freshman Aaron Carter widened the lead to eight points at 39-31 just 1:19 into the half. The Huskies then fought back with a 7-2 run, capped off by a pair of made free-throws by Jarvis Nichols, to cut the lead down to three points at 41-38 with 15:25 left on the clock.
However, that would be as close as the Huskies would get for the rest of the game as the Sycamores took control and put the game away. Freshman Isiah Martin's dunk at the 10:14 mark put ISU up 12 and Moore followed that up with a three-pointer to widen the lead to 15 points at 60-45 with just over nine minutes left. Later in the half, Moore connected once again from beyond the arch to give ISU a 17-point advantage at 65-48, the largest of the contest.
Northern Illinois made a late charge and cut the lead to eight at 67-59 with just over two minutes left on the clock on a three-pointer by Ryan Paradise. However, the Huskies could not sustain the comeback and the Sycamores held on for a 75-65 victory.
Moore was one of four Sycamores in double-figures, as he led the team with 14 points, eight rebounds and seven assists at the point. Marico Stinson added 11 points, thanks to a 3-for-7 performance from behind the three-point line, while the freshmen duo of Carter and Martin each chipped in with 10 points apiece. NIU's Darion Anderson led all scorers with 23 points on the night, while Egan Grafel added 11 points for the Huskies.
Honoring A True Sycamore Legend
Prior to the start of lSU's first exhibition game against Albion College, the floor at Hulman Center will officially be named the Nellie and John Wooden Court in honor of the legendary coach and his late wife, Nellie. Prior to achieving legendary success as the head coach at UCLA, Wooden began his collegiate coaching career and served two years as head men's basketball coach, baseball coach and athletics director at Indiana State from 1946 to 1948. While earning his master's degree at Indiana State, he compiled a 44-15 record as basketball coach while leading the Sycamores to post-season tournament appearances each year and two conference championships. In addition, coach Wooden will also be inducted into the Missouri Valley Conference Athletic Hall of Fame in March.
The Dream Season ... 30 Years Later
This season marks the 30th anniversary of Indiana State's historic 1978-79 season that saw the Sycamores advance to the NCAA championship game. Led by consensus First-Team All-American and future NBA Hall of Famer Larry Bird, ISU compiled a 33-1 overall record, including a perfect 29-0 record during the regular season. ISU's only loss of the season came in the championship game of the 1979 NCAA Tournament against Michigan State and Magic Johnson. Throughout the season, the current Sycamores will wear commemorative patches on their uniforms to celebrate the anniversary and will wear throwback 1978-79 jerseys in selected games during the season.
A Balanced Scoring Attack
In ISU's first two exhibition games of the season, several Sycamores have shown an ability to share in the scoring duties. In the team's first game against Albion, five players scored in double figures led by Aaron Carter and Rashad Reed with 13 points each. The team followed that up with another strong scoring performance against St. Joseph's (Ind.), with five more player chipping in with double-figure scoring efforts. This time, Jordan Printy led the way with 15 points, while Reed added 14 and Josh Crawford recorded a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds.
Get That Outta Here!
Albion College found it very hard to score points in the paint against the Sycamores in the last Saturday's game, as the team had 11 of its shots blocked by ISU defenders. Sophomore Isiah Martin, who led the Missouri Valley Conference last season with 59 blocked shots as a freshman, collected six by himself to start the season strong. Freshman Koang Doluony added three swats of his own thanks to his wingspan of over seven feet while junior Josh Crawford and Carl Richard each added a block apiece.
Reed For Three
Sycamore fans may get used to hearing Rashad Reed's name called a lot this year, especially with his prowess for shooting three-pointers. In his first game at ISU after transferring from Vincennes University, Reed connected on 4-of-7 shots from behind the arc in the team's fist exhibition game against Albion for 12 of his game-high 13 points. He followed that up by shooting 3-for-5 from long distance for nine of his 14 points in the team's second and final exhibition game against Division II St. Joseph's College (Ind.) on Friday night.
Taking Advantage of Mistakes
Last season, the Sycamores forced an average of three more turnovers from their opponents than they gave up at home. Based on last Friday's game against St. Joseph's, that trend may continue for the Sycamores this season. ISU forced 25 SJC turnovers and turned those miscues into 41 of the team's 93 points scored during the win.
Pounding The Paint
Indiana State defeated St. Joseph's last Friday by a score of 93-71, thanks in part to a strong effort in the post by the Sycamores. ISU scored 32 of its 91 points in the paint against the Pumas. In addition, ISU dominated SJC on the boards by a margin of 40-28, with junior transfer Josh Crawford leading the way with 10 rebounds to go along with 11 points for the first double-double of his career at ISU.
What A Debut
During his freshman season, Isiah Martin surprised many people with his ability to block shots and change shots in the paint. Martin ranked first in the conference in total blocks (59) and blocks per game (1.9) last season while ranking 54th nationally in blocks per game (1.9). In addition, his 59 blocks set a new ISU freshman record and were the second-most in a single season at ISU by any player. To prove it wasn't a fluke, Martin swatted six shots in the team's exhibition opener against Albion College to start the season.
Protecting Their Home Floor
The Hulman Center was a tough place to play for visitors in head coach Kevin McKenna's first season at Indiana State. The Sycamores compiled a 12-2 record at home and started the season 9-0 at home before losing to then No. 16-ranked Drake on Feb. 2. Opponents shot 29.1% from three-point range at the Hulman Center and ISU collected a +3.143 turnover margin at the Hulman Center.
Martin And Richard Return Close To Home
For sophomore Isiah Martin and freshman Carl Richard, tonight's game may feel like a home game playing in the Chicagoland area. Both had successful prep careers in Chicago, with Martin playing at Morgan Park High School and Richard playing at Oak Lawn Richards High School. Richard averaged 15.9 points per game as a senior last season and helped lead his high school team to the IHSA Class 4A State Championship.
The Man Everyone Looks To
Indiana State fields one of its youngest teams in years in 2008, with forward Jay Tunnell serving as the team's lone senior leader. Tunnell has played in 90 career games, with 84 starting assignments, while averaging nearly nine points and five rebounds per contest in his three seasons with the Sycamores. During his career, he's recorded four double-double performances, including 14 double-digit scoring efforts during the 2007-08 season. In addition, Tunnel has scored 767 points in his career with the Sycamores which leaves him just 233 points shy of becoming the 31st player in school history with at least 1,000 career points.
Up Next For ISU ...
Indiana State will play its first home game of the 2008-09 season, when the Sycamores welcome the North Texas Mean Green to the Hulman Center on Sunday, Nov. 23. UNT opened the season with an 87-66 win over Cameron on Nov. 14 and will face off against Oklahoma State (Nov. 17) and Sam Houston State (Nov. 20) before facing off against the Sycamores. Last season, the Mean Green handed the Sycamores a 78-69 loss in front of 2,531 fans at the Super Pit in Denton, Texas. Marico Stinson led the way with 15 points for the Sycamores, while Gabe Moore and Jay Tunnel also scored in double figures with 12 and 11 points respectively.
