The 2009-10 Campaign:
Indiana State concluded year three of the Kevin McKenna era by participating in the 2010 College Basketball Invitational. The Sycamores made their first postseason appearance since the 2001 NCAA Tournament by accepting a bid to the CBI. ISU's 17-15 final record was the program's first winning campaign since that same season and it 9-9 record in MVC was its best since the 2001 campaign. The Sycamores secured the MVC's No. 6 seed at the State Farm MVC Tournament after finishing in a tie for fifth place in the league. McKenna was rewarded for the turnaround of the program by being named the MVC Coach of the Year by Collegeinsider.com.

ISU was led in scoring by senior Harry Marshall, who was selected to the All-MVC Second Team as well as the MVC's All-Defensive squad despite missing a total of five league contests due to injury. Marshall's 16.2 ppg average in league games, paced the entire MVC.

The Sycamores had the services of their entire starting lineup for a total of 28 minutes of MVC play as junior Jake Kelly went down with a knee injury eight minutes into the second half of the conference opener at Southern Illinois. Dwayne Lathan, who averaged 12.7 ppg was injured in the fourth game of league play while Marshall missed five games. Despite the rash of injuries, the Sycamores still achieved their best season in nearly a decade.

ABOUT THE COACH:
Kevin McKenna (Creighton '93) recently completed his third season as the head coach at Indiana State (43-52 at ISU & 133-85 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. In 2009-10 McKenna led ISU to its first postseason appearance since the 2001 campaign as the Sycamores qualified for the College Basketball Invitational and traveled to Saint Louis for its opening round contest. The Sycamores secured their first winning record in nine seasons and its No. 6 seed at the State Farm MVC Tournament was its highest since that same year. McKenna led ISU to all of this success despite losing over 50 percent of their scoring punch due to three key injuries. For his efforts, McKennna was named the MVC Coach of the Year by CollegeInsider.com. 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.

A Little History:
Indiana State is currently in its 114th season of college basketball at the school. The Sycamores are 1,348-1,147 all-time on the hardwood. The Sycamores are five contests away from playing their historic 2,500th game in the history of the program.

A Return To The Postseason:
Indiana State made 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) by qualifying for the 2010 College Basketball Invitational. ISU had never appeared in the College Basketball Invitational before battling Saint Louis in the opening round this season. ISU is 38-20 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.

Sycamores Fall At Saint Louis In College Basketball Invitational:
Indiana State fell to host Saint Louis by the score of 63-54 in the opening round of the College Basketball Invitational in front of 3,542 fans at The Chaifetz Arena. ISU, which accepted its first postseason bid since 2001, ends the season with a 17-15 record, which is its first winning season since that same campaign. The Sycamores were without the services of senior Harry Marshall, who missed the game with a foot injury. Indiana State was led in scoring by eight points each from five different players -- Rashad Reed, Koang Doluony, Dwayne Lathan, Isiah Martin and Aaron Carter.

They're Free! Take Em!:
Indiana State hit their freebies this season, as the Sycamores are ahead of Drake for top honors in the Missouri Valley Conference and finished just behind BYU for the national lead with a 76.9 percentage from the charity stripe. ISU hit 476-of-619 attempts from the free throw line this season. ISU was 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 made 476 free throws this season while the opposition has made just 438. The Sycamores finished the season 13-5 in games in which they made 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 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 Opening Round for the first time since the 2001 campaign. Marshall played in 25 contests this season, starting in 23. He led the league in scoring in MVC games with a 16.2 ppg average. Marshall led ISU with a 13.7 ppg average in all contests, and hit 46.6 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 tacked on 3.9 rebounds per game and was sixth in the league by averaging 33.6 minutes per game. Marshall led the Sycamores by scoring in double figures 21 times this season. He scored a career-high 29 points 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 recorded 29 steals this season. His 1.1 steals per game average in league contests, ranked ninth best in The Valley.

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 avoided the opening round 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 opening round 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 Finishes Career In ISU 3-Pointers Made Top 10 While Printy's Season Reaches Top 10 As Well:
With his two 3-pointers in the College Basketball Invitational at Saint Louis during the opening round, Rashad Reed finished his two-year run with the Sycamores with 118 career treys, which is the seventh-most in the history of the program, Along those same lines, his 58 3-pointers made this season are seventh best all-time and he was just two behind his total of 60 from his junior campaign which is ranked sixth. Jordan Printy connected on 52 treys during the season which ranks as the ninth-most for a season.

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 finished his Sycamore career with 1,051 points, to become 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 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 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. 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 scored more points than the opponents' starting five the Sycamores put together a perfect 12-0 record this season. In fact in the 12 contests in which ISU's starting five eclipsed the point total of their starting counterparts, the Sycamores won 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 which ranks fourth all-time in the history of the program and heads into his senior season needing 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 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 had a least three players reach double-digit scoring in 20 contests this season. When the Sycamores were able to accomplish that feat they were 13-7 in such situations. ISU averaged a 5.6 point margin of victory when the Sycamores posted at least three double digit scorers.

Ability To Bounce Back:
ISU is 22-29 under third-year head coach Kevin McKenna in games following a loss. This season, ISU was 8-6 in games which follow a loss by redeeming themselves against Missouri State after falling at Illinois State.

Winnin' By A Whisker:
Indiana State 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 95 games as head coach of the Sycamores, 24 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 this year.

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.