Setting The Stage:
Indiana State continues year three of the Kevin McKenna era on Tuesday, March 16 when the Sycamores travel to Saint Louis University to take on the Billikens in the opening round of the 2010 College Basketball Invitational. Tip-off is slated for 9:00 p.m. (ET) from Chaifetz Arena. The game will be televised nationally on HDNET (check page 2 of this release for television particulars). 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.

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 has never faced Saint Louis as a head coach, and is making his first appearance in the College Basketball Invitational.

Rick Majerus (Marquette '70) is in his third campaign as head coach of the Billikens with a 54-40 slate. He has a 22-year career mark of 476-187 and has never had a losing season. Majerus has taken 11 teams to the NCAA Tournament and four to the NIT. At the start of the 2009-10 season, his .722 career winning percentage tied for 13th among active coaches, and Majerus' 456 wins ranked 23rd on the active list. This season marks the 14th time he has won at least 20 wins in a campaign. Majerus is 1-1 against Indiana State, with both of those contests coming when he was the head coach at Ball State in 1987-88 & 1988-89.

SERIES HISTORY
Indiana State is 4-9 all-time against Saint Louis, with Tuesday night's contest being the first between the two schools ISU down the Billikens 82-67 at Hulman Center. The series dates back to 1924.

TELEVISION PARTICULARS
The game will live on HDNET. The broadcast will be available live on Dish Network's Channel 9422 or DirecTv's Channel 79 or 306.

TICKET INFORMATION
Tickets are available through The Chaifetz Arena Box Office. The cost is $10. The number to the box office is 317-977-5000. Tickets are also available online at www.thechaifetzarena.com.

A Little History:
Indiana State is currently in its 114th season of college basketball at the school. The Sycamores are 1,348-1,146 all-time on the hardwood. The Sycamores are six contests away from playing their historic 2,500th game in the history of the program.

A Return To The Postseason:
Indiana State is making its first appearance in the postseason since participating in the 2001 NCAA Tournament when the Sycamores downed No. 4 seeded Oklahoma in the first round by the score of 70-68 (OT). ISU has never appeared in the College Basketball Invitational. ISU is 38-19 all-time in postseason play. The Sycamores won the 1950 NAIB National Championship, downing Delta State, Arkansas State, Baldwin-Wallace, Tampa and East Central Oklahoma. The Sycamores have appeared in the 1942 & 1943 National Intercollegiate Tournament, the 1946, 1948, 1949 & 1950 NAIB National Tournament, the 1952, 1953, 1954, 1959, 1962 & 1963 NAIA National Tournament; the 1966, 1967 & 1968 NCAA College Division Tournament; the 1977 & 1978 National Invitation Tournament; and the 1979 & 2001 NCAA Division I Basketball Championship. ISU made a run to the 1979 NCAA Final Four behind the star power of Sycamore legend Larry Bird, falling in the national championship contest to Michigan State, 75-64 in a game that is still the highest rated television basketball broadcast of all-time.

They're Free! Take Em!:
Indiana State has been hitting the freebies this season, as the Sycamores are ahead of Drake for top honors in the Missouri Valley Conference and are just behind BYU for the national lead with a 77.3 percentage from the charity stripe. ISU has hit 462-of-598. ISU is currently just shy of BYU for first nationally in free throw percentage, one of three Valley teams to rank in the Top 25 nationally. BYU's 78.6 percent mark leads the nation just in front of the Sycamores. ISU has made 462 free throws this season while the opposition has made just 401. The Sycamores are 13-5 this season in games in which they make more free throws than the opposition.

Marshall Named All-Valley Second Team & MVC All-Defensive:
Indiana State senior Harry Marshall was named an All-Missouri Valley Conference Second Team selection as well as a member of the MVC's All-Defensive squad earlier this week. Marshall capped the regular season portion of his regular season campaign by scoring 21 points and hitting a buzzer-beating 3-pointer against Missouri State that propelled the Sycamores out of the State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Tournament Play-In Contest for the first time since the 2001 campaign. Marshall played in 24 contests this season, starting in 22. He led the league in scoring in MVC games with a 16.2 ppg average. Marshall leads ISU with a 14.0 ppg average in all contests, and has hit 47.3 percent of his shots from the field. The Sycamores are second in the nation in team free throw percentage, and individually, Marshall hit 87-of-103 charity tosses, an 84.5 percent mark. Marshall is the first-ever initial walk-on in the history of the Sycamore basketball to join the Sycamores' elite 1,000-point club. He has tacked on 3.9 rebounds per game and is fourth in the league by averaging 33.6 minutes per game. Marshall leads the Sycamores by scoring in double figures 21 times this seasons He scored a career-high 29 points this season against Wichita State. Marshall is the first Sycamore to earn either first or second team all-conference honors since David Moss did so as a second teamer in 2005-06. Marshall is also the first Sycamore to earn MVC All-Defensive Team honors since Gabe Moore did so in 2007-08. He led ISU with 29 steals this season. His 1.1 steals per game average in league contests, ranks ninth best in The Valley this season.

Sycamores Finish In A Tie For Fifth In Missouri Valley Conference:
Indiana State finished the MVC campaign with an even 9-9 record, tied for fifth place with Bradley. Following completion of the league's tiebreaking procedures, the Braves qualified for the No. 5 seed & ISU got the No. 6 based on Bradley's edge in the power points system that the Valley employs. The Sycamores secured a spot in the league's top 6 and are avoiding the play-in Thursday night portion of the State Farm MVC Tournament following a thrilling overtime victory over Missouri State as Harry Marshall drained a buzzer-beating 3-pointer. Indiana State had appeared in the Thursday night play-in portion of the conference tournament following every season since the 2000-01 campaign when the Sycamores finished fifth with a 10-8 league record and became the lowest seed to ever win "Arch Madness" and advance to the NCAA Tournament. Prior to this season, ISU had appeared on Thursday night at the league tournament for eight consecutive seasons.

A Senior Day To Remember:
Indiana State's senior class of Josh Crawford, Rashad Reed and Harry Marshall each had key moments for the Sycamores in their 75-72 overtime Senior Day victory over Missouri State. Crawford posted a pair of key second half buckets to help ISU close an eight-point gap against the Bears, scoring four points and tying for the team lead with seven rebounds. Reed hit a 3-pointer late in overtime which gave ISU a late three point advantage of the Bears and finished the game with 12 points, hitting 3-of-8 3-pointers. Marshall had the shot of the day as he beat the overtime buzzer with a deep trey from the left wing to secure the victory and keep ISU out of the play-in game at the conference tournament. Marshall led the team with 21 points, hitting 8-of-16 shots from the field to go with four rebounds, three assists and three steals in 40 minutes of action.

Reed Moves Into ISU 3-Pointers Made Top 10:
With his two 3-pointers in the State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Tournament against Illinois State in the quarterfinals, Rashad Reed now has 116 career treys, which is the tied for eight-most in the history of the program, which is equal to the 116 triples Travis Inman made from 1988 until 1992. Reed needs two more to pass Rob Cheatam for seventh place. Along those same lines, his 56 3-pointers made this season are tied for seventh best all-time and he needs just four more to catch his total of 60 from last season which is ranked sixth.

Celebrating Arch Madness Past With Michael Menser's 32 Points Against Creighton In 2001:
Michael Menser's 32-point performance that helped lead Indiana State to a semifinal victory over Creighton in the semifinals of the 2001 State Farm MVC Men's Basketball Championship on March 4, 2001 has been selected as the No. 6 top moment in Arch Madness history by a vote of the league's fans. Menser was 9-of-18 from the field in the 87-74 Sycamore victory over the top-seeded Bluejays. He hit 5-of-11 3-pointers and was a perfect 9-of-9 at the free throw line en route to posting a career-best 32 points. He added seven assists as well in front of 10,708 fans at the then-named Savvis Center. In the 2001 edition of Arch Madness, Indiana State became the lowest seeded team (No. 5) to win the event. It was ISU's second MVC tournament title, with the previous coming at Hulman Center in 1979. ISU's No. 6 seed for this year's tournament is its highest since that magical run through the field in 2001. The Sycamores went on to to down No. 2 Bradley the next day by the score of 69-63 to take the tournament crown. ISU advanced to the NCAA Tournament where they downed No. 4 seed Oklahoma 70-68 in overtime before falling to No. 12 Gonzaga in the second round of the Big Dance.

Marshall's Hits 1,000 Career Points & Milestone Game Against Wichita State:
Indiana State senior Harry Marshall currently has 1,051 career points, and is the 32nd member of the Indiana State 1,000-point club. He is believed to be the first initial walk-on in the history of the program to reach the elite group of Sycamores who have scored at least 1,000 career points. 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.

Workin' Overtime Against Missouri State & Bradley This Season:
Indiana State's victory over Missouri State broke a three-game overtime skid for the Sycamores this season, with all four contests that reached an extra frame occurring during league play. It marked the first time in the history of the program that ISU has gone to overtime twice during league play against two opponents.

Richard On The Boards:
Indiana State sophomore Carl Richard recorded a career-high 14 rebounds at Green Bay, marking the third time this season that he has reached double figures rebounding this season. Richard's 14 rebounds were the most by a Sycamore since Matt Renn posted 15 against Southern Illinois in 2001.

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.

Six Times Four:
Indiana State junior Aaron Carter has become known as the "King of the 4-Point Play" in the Sycamores circles. For the most part, converting a 4-point play is extremely rare, but for Carter it is becoming old hat. Carter has converted a 4-point play, defined as being fouled in the act of shooting a successful 3-point field goal and then converting the free throw, six times in his three-year Sycamore career. Carter posted a pair last season and has had four this year, including one with 3:42 to play in the first half against Drake this past week. Carter converted two in one game earlier this season at Missouri State as part of a 24-point second half comeback for Indiana State.

When The Starters Are Scoring ... :
When the Indiana State starting five scores more points than the opponents' starting five the Sycamores have put together a perfect 12-0 record this season. In fact in the 12 contests in which ISU's starting five has eclipsed the point total of their starting counterparts, the Sycamores are winning by an average score of 71.1-59.9 - an average margin of victory which equals 11.2 points.

Martin Hits Century Mark For Blocked Shots:
Indiana State junior Isiah Martin now has 108 blocked shots in his career after recording one against Illinois State in the State Farm Missoouri Valley Conference Tournament. His current total of 108 blocks ranks fourth all-time in the history of the program and he needs one more to tie Nate Green for third (109). The Indiana State school record is 168, set by DeCarsta Webster from 1975-78.


Bringin' Out The Brooms:
The Sycamores have swept both Evansville and Drake this season, giving Indiana State a pair of MVC season series sweeps for the second consecutive season. In fact, ISU's sweep of Drake this year is its first since the 1999-00 campaign and gives the Sycamores multiple MVC season series sweeps of a league opponent in consecutive seasons for the first time since the 1998-99 & 1999-00 seasons. Last season, ISU swept both Illinois State and Missouri State.

Three Or More In Double Figures Equals Sycamore Success:
Indiana State has had a least three players reach double digit scoring in 20 contests this season. When the Sycamores are able to accomplish that feat they are 13-7 in such situations. ISU is averaging an 5.6 point margin of victory when the Sycamores post at least three double digit scorers.

Ability To Bounce Back:
ISU is 22-28 under third-year head coach Kevin McKenna in games following a loss. This season, ISU is 8-5 in games which follow a loss by redeeming themselves against Missouri State after falling at Illinois State.

Winnin' By A Whisker:
Indiana State has recorded six 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 15 "close" wins while at Indiana State. In addition to the six 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 94 games as head coach of the Sycamores, 23 have been decided by five points or less and ISU is 15-9 in those games, for a .625 winning percentage.

We Don't Need A TO Baby!:
The Sycamores posted the most efficient offensive outing in the history of the program against Drake on February 13 when Indiana State committed an all-time low three turnovers versus the Bulldogs. It was the fewest turnovers for the Sycamores since only having five last season in the finale against Missouri State. Since the 1998-99 season, only on four instances has a Valley team committed just three turnovers in a contest, with one being ISU's 76-66 homecourt victory over Drake.

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.