Setting The Stage:
Indiana State continues year three of the Kevin McKenna era on Thursday, January 28 when the Sycamores return home to face off against Southern Illinois. Tip-off is slated for 7:05 p.m. (ET) at Hulman Center. On the radio airwaves, the game will be live on The Crock 92.7 FM as well as online at GoSycamores.com. Brian Fritz & Matt Renn will call the action live on the radio broadcast. The game will not be televised locally, however it will be available on a pay-per-view basis on GoSycamores.com.

ABOUT THE COACHES:
Kevin McKenna (Creighton '93) is in his third season as the head coach at Indiana State (36-41 at ISU & 126-74 overall). 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. Last season, he led the Sycamores to six victories in their final seven regular season games, including three consecutive league road wins in the span of 10 days. McKenna came to Indiana State 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. McKenna is one of just two NCAA Division I head men's basketball coaches who have won an NBA World Championship (with the Los Angeles Lakers in 1982). Florida International's Isiah Thomas is the other. He is the only NCAA Division I men's basketball head coach to earn both an NBA and CBA Championship and is the only person in the history of the Missouri Valley Conference to win a MVC Regular Season Title , MVC Tournament Championship, NBA Championship and CBA title. McKenna is 2-3 against Southern Illinois, including a mark of 1-1 against the Salukis inside Hulman Center.

Chris Lowery (Southern Illinois '95) returned to his alma mater as an assistant coach under Bruce Weber in 2002. That team advanced to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament, knocking off opponents such as Indiana, Texas Tech and Georgia. Saluki Basketball has been on a sweet ride ever since. After Lowery spent three seasons serving under Weber, he was named head coach at Southern Illinois in 2004. In his first year at the helm of SIU, all Lowery did was win 27 games and become the youngest coach, at age 32, to ever win Missouri Valley Conference Coach of the Year honors. The Salukis won the MVC regular-season crown and beat Saint Mary's in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The program continued its steady ascent. Lowery guided a team with no seniors to the 2006 NCAA Tournament and a Missouri Valley Conference tournament championship. In 2006-07, the Salukis had the greatest season in school history. They won a school-record 29 games, advanced to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament and finished the year with a No. 11 ranking -- the highest ever at SIU. Lowery is 8-3 against Indiana State, including a 4-1 mark at Hulman Center.

SERIES HISTORY:
Southern Illinois leads the all-time series against Indiana State by a 76-38 margin. ISU and SIU are tied at 26 in games played at Terre Haute.

A Little History:
Indiana State is currently in its 114th season of college basketball at the school. The Sycamores are 1,342-1,141 all-time on the hardwood. The Sycamores are 17 contests away from playing their historic 2,500th game in the history of the program.

Over The Century Mark Against Six Opponents:
Southern Illinois is one of just six schools that Indiana State has faced at least 100 times in the 114-year history of the program. Below are the schools that Indiana State has faced at least 100 times throughout the years.

Indiana State Century Club:
1. Evansville 149
2. Ball State 125
3. Butler 122
4. Eastern Illinois 121
5. Southern Illinois 114
6. Illinois State 100

They're Free! Take Em!:
Indiana State has been hitting the freebies so far this season, as the Sycamores are ahead of Wichita State for top honors in the Missouri Valley Conference with a 76.7 percentage from the charity stripe. ISU has hit 299-of-390 while the Shockers are 312-of-413. ISU currently ranks fifth nationally in free throw percentage.

Marshall's March To 1,000 Career Points & Milestone Game Against Wichita State:
Indiana State senior Harry Marshall currently has 961 career points, needing 39 to become the 32nd member of the Indiana State 1,000-point club. Marshall played his 100th career game against Wichita State and celebrated the milestone by scoring a career-high 29 points to become ISU's first 20-plus point scorer this season.

Gettin' Rich:
Indiana State sophomore Carl Richard averaged 13.5 points per game for the Sycamores as they battled Missouri State and Northern Iowa. Richard tied a career-high with 20 points versus the Bears, hitting 8-of-10 shots from the field, including a pair of 3-pointers. He also pulled down a pair of rebounds with a blocked shot and two steals. One of his steals in the backcourt late in the game set up a key ISU basket that helped the Sycamores nearly complete the largest comeback in the history of the MVC. Against UNI, Richard added seven points with three rebounds and a steal in 30 minutes of action.

Close Call To Biggest Valley Rally EVER!:
Down 52-28 with 16:20 left at Missouri State, the Indiana State Sycamores faced their biggest deficit of the game and nearly completed the largest comeback in the history of the Missouri Valley Conference. No MVC team has ever come from down by as many as 24 points in a game to earn a victory. ISU fell in overtime, but a 3-pointer by senior Harry Marshall with one second left knotted the score at 83 and completed the 24-point comeback. MSU grabbed the victory in overtime by a 99-92 margin. ISU did complete the third largest comeback in the history of the league on Feb. 19, 2008 by coming back from 21 down to defeat Wichita State 83-73 in overtime.

Three Or More In Double Figures Equals Sycamore Success:
Indiana State has had a least three players reach double digit scoring in 11 contests this season. When the Sycamores are able to accomplish that feat they have been nearly unbeatable, as ISU is 8-3 in such situations. ISU is averaging an 8.4 point margin of victory when the Sycamores post at least three double digit scorers.

Impressive Second Half At Missouri State:
In roaring back from the 24-point deficit at Missouri State, ISU put together a 60 point second half against Missouri State. The Sycamores were 20-of-28 from the field in the second half versus the Bears (71.4 percent), including a mark of 11-of-14 from 3-point range (78.6 percent). Jordan Printy set a career-high with six 3-pointers in the game, hitting five of them in the second half alone. The 60 points are the most in a half in the two-year history of the JQH Arena.

Air Marshall:
Indiana State senior guard Harry Marshall leads the Sycamores with 16 double digit scoring contests this season. He has currently scored 10 or more points in nine consecutive contests which is his longest string of double digit scoring performances since he put together 11 in a row at the end of last season.

Martin Nearing Century Mark For Blocked Shots:
Indiana State junior Isiah Martin needs two blocked shots to reach 100 for his career. His current total of 98 blocks ranks fourth all-time in the history of the program and he needs 12 more to overtake Nate Green for third (109). The Indiana State school record is 168, set by DeCarsta Webster from 1975-78.

The Chairmen Of The Boards:
After falling against Wichita State despite holding a 31-28 lead in rebounding, ISU is 9-1 on the season when posting more rebounds than an opponent. Indiana State is virtually even for the season in rebounds as the Sycamores have hauled in 663 rebounds while opponents have gathered 691.

Ability To Bounce Back:
ISU is 19-26 under third-year head coach Kevin McKenna in games following a loss. This season, ISU is 5-3 in games which following a loss and are looking to bounce back from a four-game skid against Southern Illinois.

Winnin' By A Whisker:
Indiana State has recorded four victories in close games this season, defined as a game decided by five or fewer points. Winning the close ones has been a staple of third-year head coach Kevin McKenna's career as he has already has 13 "close" wins while at Indiana State. In addition to the four already posted this season, his Sycamores' recorded five in 2008-09 and four more during his first season at the helm, 2007-08. In fact of McKenna's first 83 games as head coach of the Sycamores, 20 have been decided by five points or less and ISU is 13-7 in those games, for a .650 winning percentage.

Long Range Success Against Bradley & Evansville:
Indiana State made 10 field goals from 3-point range against Evansville as that performance came on the heels of a 16-trey performance at Bradley which marks the first time the Sycamores have connected on 10 or more 3-pointers in consecutive contests since draining 14 at Illinois State (02/08) and 11 versus Drake (02/11) last season.

Carl Richard Posts First Double-Double of the Year:
Carl Richard scored 11 points and pulled down 10 rebounds in the 91-85 overtime road loss at Bradley to post Indiana State's first double-double of the season. Richard was 5-of-8 from the field, including a 3-pointer. It marked Indiana State's first double-double since Richard posted one himself at Missouri State last season. In that contest, Richard had 20 points and 10 rebounds.

Best Defensive Performance In A Year At Drake:
The Indiana State defense clamped down in the final 10 minutes at Drake and held the Bulldogs to just 46 points, which is Drake's lowest offensive production at home this season. The 46-point defensive gym turned in by the Sycamores marks the first time that the Sycamores have held an opponent to less than 50 points since Jan. 23, 2008 when ISU held Evansville to just 42 points.

Lathan Named Valley Newcomer of the Week Twice:
Indiana State sophomore Dwayne Lathan was named the Missouri Valley Conference's Newcomer of the Week for the second time this season following his performance before the Holiday Break against IUPUI. Lathan led ISU with a career-best tying effort in leading ISU with 18 points. Lathan hit 6-of-11 shots from the floor and was 6-of-10 from the free throw line as he led ISU with 18 points and 7 rebounds. He added one assist and a steal in 29 minutes of action. Lathan leads ISU with nine double digit scoring performances in his 10 games played (missed season opener against Nebraska-Kearney). Lathan also leads ISU with a 14.3 ppg scoring average which is the fifth-best mark in the Missouri Valley Conference and is the top by any league newcomer. Lathan also leads ISU with his 5.8 rebounds per game average, which is seventh in the league. Lathan also took the league's top newcomer honor following the second week of play at LSU, on a neutral floor against Milwaukee and at home versus Colorado State.

Jake Kelly Suffers Season Ending Knee Injury Against Salukis:
Jake Kelly has been lost for the season following a knee injury that will require season ending surgery. The team learned of the severity of Kelly's injury following an evaluation conducted by team physician Dr. Tom Klootwyk at Methodist Sports Medicine in Indianapolis. Kelly was third on the team this season with a 9.0 ppg scoring average with 18 assists and six steals. He drained the game winning jumper in a 55-54 road victory over Toledo on December 19. Kelly was playing this season following his transfer from the University of Iowa as the NCAA waived the year in residence requirement and allowed him to compete this season.

Triple Trouble On The Road:
Indiana State has defeated Western Kentucky, Arkansas State and Toledo in back-to-back-to-back road non-conference games. It marks the first time ISU has won three consecutive road non-conference games since the 2005-06 campaign when the Sycamores downed Butler, Western Michigan and Eastern Illinois. ISU was 8-1 in non-league games that season.

Stepping Up To The Challenge:
Indiana State did its part for its league in the inaugural Mountain West/Missouri Valley Conference Challenge as the Sycamores downed Colorado State 65-60 at Hulman Center. All nine of the Mountain West Conference schools will face off against a predetermined member of the MVC with the exception of Evansville. The MVC won the inaugural Challenge this year by a 5-4 margin, capped by a win by Northern Iowa over Wyoming last week.

Best Shooting Performance In Five Seasons:
Indiana State connected on 30-of-52 field goals in the 76-63 victory against Milwaukee. That performance equates to a 57.7 percent mark. The 57.7 percent showing is the best by an Indiana State state team since they hit 59.6 percent from the field in January of 2004 against Drake.

Local Flavor Of Team To Get Some Seasoning:
All four of Indiana State's incoming freshmen are expected to redshirt this season. Jake Odum, a native of Terre Haute, along with RJ Mahurin (Rockville, Ind.,) and Logan & Lucas Eitel (nearby Marshall, Ill.) will all sit out their initial seasons in the program and take a redshirt season. Subject to change as the season progresses, the four local student-athletes will push the total to of six freshmen to redshirt in head coach Kevin McKenna's three seasons. Jordan Printy redshirted during the 2007-08 campaign while Koang Doluony took a redshirt season last year and made his Sycamore debut on Friday against Nebraska-Kearney.

Sycamore Signees:
Indiana State inked three student-athletes to national letters of intent as part of the NCAA Early Signing Period. Steve McWhorter, Myles Walker and Jake Kitchell comprised the Sycamores' 2009 Signing Class.

McWhorter, a 6-2, 185, point guard from Racine, Wis., won a Division 3 state championship last season at Saint Catherines High School as he averaged 10.0 points, 5.0 assists and shot 57.6 percent from the field for coach Bob Letsch. McWhorter took over as the starter at point guard when he was a sophomore. As a junior, he was on a team with nine seniors, and his talent shined in the state tournament. He had 12 points, seven assists and five rebounds in a 48-34 state championship victory against La Crosse Aquinas. In the state semifinals, McWhorter had nine points and nine assists.

Walker is a 6-8, 250, junior college post player from South Plains Junior College who averaged 7.4 points and 4.8 rebounds, while shooting 46.7 percent from the floor and 38.6 percent (32 for 83) from the free-throw line as a freshman last season for coach Steve Green. Walker's best game was a 24-point, 13-rebound performance on Jan. 1. He averaged 1.0 blocks per game with a season-high of five, and he twice had three steals in a game.

At Antonian College Prep in San Antonio, Texas he played for head coach Andre Walker. Myles was named to the all-state team three times and all-district four times. He was once named to the North-South All-Star tournament. As a middle linebacker for the football team Myles earned all-state recognition three times and played in the Army All-American Bowl. He also ran track, boasting a time of 48.07 seconds in the 400 meter dash.

Kitchell is a 6-9, 225, power forward from Union Mills, Ind., and played for coach John Steinhilber at South Central High School. Kitchell averaged 20 points, 14 rebounds, six assists and six blocks per game for a team that finished the 2008-09 season with a record of 17-5. He is expected to be a first team all-state selection later this month in the upcoming edition of the annual Hoosier Basketball Magazine. He was a member of the Indiana Junior All-Stars last spring.

Up Next:
Indiana State hits the road for one game on Sunday, January 31 to face off against Evansville for the second time this season. Tipoff is set for 3:05 p.m. (ET) and can be heard live in the Wabash Valley on The Crock 92.7FM as well as online on GoSycamores.com. The game will be televised locally on WTWO-TV.