Danny PfrankGoSycamores.com
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. - Sophomore Taylor Whitley filled up nearly every category on the stat sheet on Sunday, leading the Indiana State women's basketball team to a 70-62 win over the visiting Tennessee-Martin Skyhawks in front on 3,641 fans inside Hulman Center on Sunday afternoon.
Whitley finished the day with 16 points, going four-for-six from the field and eight-for-10 from the free-throw line, while also recording a career-high nine assists, six rebounds, five steals and one block. Junior Brittany Schoen and freshman Anna Munn also joined Whitley in double-figures, with Schoen totaling a game-high 20 points, including five 3-pointers, while Munn added 10 points of her own.
The Sycamores (2-0) started the game on a 10-2 run, on a pair of 3-pointers from Schoen, a jumper by sophomore Moriah Hodge and two free-throws from Whitley over the game's first five minutes and 18 seconds.
Indiana State never trailed on Sunday, but UT - Martin would never go away, with ISU's largest advantage in the first half coming at the 12:21 mark on a fast-break layup by Whitley. The Skyhawks would tie the score at 20-20 with 5:45 left until the break, but freshman Illyssa Vivo answered back just 12 seconds later with a 3-pointer to put ISU back in front.
ISU took a two-point lead into the halftime break, at 28-26. Over the game's first 20 minutes, Whitley totaled seven points, while Schoen added six. The Skyhawks won the rebounding battle in the first half, at 23-18, grabbing 10 offensive rebounds which led to 11 second-chance points.
The Sycamores used a key 8-0 run near the midpoint of the second-half to put some distance between themselves and the resilient Skyhawks. After UTM's Heather Butler made a jumper to cut the ISU lead to three, at 48-45 with 12:05 remaining, a layup by junior Shannon Thomas followed by 3-pointers from Hodge and Schoen pushed ISU's lead to 11 points, at 56-45 with 9:35 left in the game.
From there, ISU's lead never went below seven points, as Indiana State went eight-for-11 from the charity stripe over the game's final five minutes to secure the win.
Schoen led all scorers with 20 points on Sunday, joining Whitley and Munn in double-figures for the game. Thomas added six points, six rebounds and a pair of blocks while Hodge totaled six points and five rebounds. Senior Kelsie Cooley led ISU in rebounding, grabbing eight.
As a team, ISU shot 39.2% (20-51) for the game, including 10-for-22 from behind the arch (45.5%).
Freshmen Andrea Rademacher and Vivo both tallied three points on Sunday, while freshman Sadie Oyer added one on a free-throw at the end of the first half.
The Sycamores hit the road for their next contest, as the travel to Manhattan, Kan., to take on the Kansas State Wildcats on Wednesday evening. The game is set to tip at 8:00 p.m. ET and can be heard live on ESPN Radio AM 1300. Last season, the Sycamores opened their season with a win against KSU on the road, topping the Wildcats, 77-73, on Nov. 14.