Bonnie Ryan
GoSycamores.com
MANHATTAN, Kan. - Behind a career night from senior guard Kelsey Luna, the Indiana State women's basketball team posted a 77-73 win over Kansas State and improved to 1-0 in front of 4,045 fans at Bramlage Coliseum on Saturday evening. Luna, who had a career-high 37 points on the night in 38 minutes of work, smashed the coveted 1,000 career points milestone in the first game of her senior season. The returning All-MVC honoree now stands at 1,019 points over the last three-plus years at Indiana State.
Luna went 15-for-21 in field goal range and 5-for-6 in free throws, while adding a pair of 3-point shots, to finish as one of three Sycamore scorers in double figures. Junior Kelsie Cooley notched 12 points, and sophomore Deja Mattox, who finished with 11, was a perfect 4-for-4 from the free throw line. The duo added six rebounds apiece, while freshman Moriah Hodge chipped in six boards of her own. Sophomore Shannon Thomas also had a team-leading seven rebounds and a game-high four blocks before fouling out late in the fourth quarter.
With the win, head coach Jim Wiedie also reached a major accomplishment in his 10-year coaching career with his 156th victory. The mark ties former Sycamore coach Edith Godleski (156-116) for the most wins in a women's basketball coaching tenure at ISU, as Wiedie now sits at 156-108. With a win at Furman next Thursday, he will surpass Godleski on the all-time list to become the winningest coach in program history.
Indiana State's stellar defensive effort held Kansas State to just 21 points in the first half, only two of which came from All-Big 12 selection Ashley Sweat. The senior finished with 16 points and was one of four Wildcats in double figures with scoring, along with Kari Kincaid (16), Shalin Spani (15) and Jalana Childs (14). Freshman Taelor Karr also notched nine points in her collegiate debut for the Wildcats.
Indiana State jumped out to an early lead in the opening minutes of the contest and never looked back, refusing to forfeit its lead the entire game. Thomas opened with a layup at 19:46 and added a block before Luna rattled off three field goals to go up 8-3 at just after the first media timeout. Luna totaled 15 points in the first half, while freshman Taylor Whitley chipped in four free throws, to give ISU at 35-21 cushion heading into the locker room at the half.
Luna and Mattox came out firing in the second half, with Mattox hitting a two-point shot and a trey to make it 42-24. Luna's second layup of the half put her at 1,001 career points and extended the Sycamore lead to 46-28. She then added a free throw and two more layups to make it 51-36, followed by a 12 more points to lead the offensive effort and surpass her previous career record of 28 points in a game.
But K-State would not back down, as the Wildcats rallied with a 14-7 run in the final minutes, led by a pair of 3-pointers from Kincaid. Sweat then had two straight jumpers, followed by two-point shots from both Childs and Kincaid in the closing minute to cut the margin to four points. In the three-minute span, KSU also had five fouls, and the Sycamores responded with 7-for-8 shooting from the charity stripe to keep the hopes of a win alive. Karr put up a last-second 3-point shot attempt, but it was not enough, and the Sycamores left with a 77-73 victory.
"We joked before the game that if [Luna] scored 18 points and was able to break the record, then we felt that we would be in a good position," Wiedie said. "I never anticipated that she would have the type of night that she did. Overall, it was a fantastic team effort by our kids."
Indiana State returns to action on Thursday, Nov. 19 with Furman in Greenville, S.C. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. (ET).
