Women's Basketball January 15, 2009 ISU Athletics

Behind 19 Points From Kelsey Luna; The Sycamores Improve To 4-0 In MVC Play With 52-48 Victory At Wichita State

TERRE HAUTE, Ind. ? Indiana State used a solid defensive effort and 19 points from junior guard Kelsey Luna as the Sycamores scored the final five points of the game to escape with a 52-48 victory in front of 1,459 fans at Charles Koch Arena.

ISU improved to 8-7, 4-0 MVC while Wichita State fell to 9-7, 1-4 MVC. The Sycamores are 4-0 in The Valley for the just the second time in the history of the program. The last time the Sycamores started out at 4-0 in league play, they went on to win their first 12 games and capture the MVC Regular Season Championship.

"I have never coached a team that refuses to roll over and give up," head coach Jim Wiedie said. "They play with such heart and emotion. You know how much I love offense, but this team's strength is on the defensive end and we are going to continue to get better on that end of the floor."

Luna hit 7-of-14 shots from the field, including 5-of-9 shots from 3-point territory to lead the team with 19 points. Luna hit her first two treys in the first half to stake ISU to a quick 6-2 advantage and then helped build on a 27-24 halftime lead with a couple of more 3-pointers out of the break to stake ISU to a 33-26 lead.

"I credit my teammates with setting good screens and running our plays correctly in order to get great shots," Luna said. "We are playing with great chemistry right now, it is really fun to be a part of this team."

A key point of the game came with 36 seconds left before the half when Sarah Paul connected on a wide-open 3-pointer to give ISU its 27-24 halftime lead. With the win, the Sycamores improved to 4-0 this season when leading at the half. It marked the first time this season through the 4-0 start that ISU has held a halftime lead.

The Sycamores trailed 48-45 on a lay-up by Marcy Sudbeck with 3:44 left in the game to give Wichita State the lead. Bianca Jarrett converted a dribble drivewith 3:20 showing to get ISU with a point at 48-47.

Out of a timeout, the Sycamores drew up a monster play as Luna found Shannon Thomas wide open under the basket for a lay-up to give ISU a 49-48 lead they would not lose.

Up a point with 17 seconds left and the Sycamores looked to get up by more than a basket, Deja Mattox connected on a jumper in the paint that bounced off the front of the rim, high off the back and then back in for the 51-48 lead.

WSU's Marisah Henderson missed a 3-pointer with three seconds left and Kara Schilli grabbed the weak side rebound to secure the victory. Jarrett hit 1-of-2 free throws to give ISU its 52-48 margin of victory.

With buckets hard to come by in the game ? Wichita State hit 38.5 percent of its shots while ISU hit just 36.4 percent ? the Sycamores got the victory by valuing the basketball and by playing solid defense. ISU turned the ball over just 10 times in the game while forcing the Shockers into 20 miscues. The Sycamores held a 15-9 advantage in points off turnovers.

WSU man-handled ISU on the boards as they held a 45-28 lead on the glass, but were able to score just eight second chance points. The Sycamores posted five of their own in the second half after not grabbing an offensive rebound before halftime.

Luna's 19 was the only double figures scoring for ISU, but Mattox had nine and Jarrett as well as Cooley had six.

Frazier led WSU with 16 points and 16 rebounds while Sudbeck and Haleigh Lankster put in 10 each.

ISU will look to make it six in a row on the season, five in a row in the Valley and three in a row at Springfield as the Sycamores take on Missouri State Saturday afternoon at the new John Q Hammons Arena. Tip-off between the Lady Bears and Sycamores is set for 2:05 p.m. (EDT).

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Players Mentioned

#33 Kelsey Luna: G; 5' 5"; Junior

#13 Deja Mattox: G/F; 6' 0"; Freshman

#24 Sarah Paul: G; 5' 5"; Junior

#32 Kara Schilli: G/F; 5' 10"; Senior

#5 Shannon Thomas: C; 6' 4"; Freshman

Players Mentioned

#33 Kelsey Luna
: 5' 5"; Junior
: G

#13 Deja Mattox
: 6' 0"; Freshman
: G/F

#24 Sarah Paul
: 5' 5"; Junior
: G

#32 Kara Schilli
: 5' 10"; Senior
: G/F

#5 Shannon Thomas
: 6' 4"; Freshman
: C