Ace Hunt
GoSycamores.com
SETTING THE STAGE
Indiana State continues year one of the Greg Lansing era on Saturday afternoon, February 12, when the Sycamores continue Missouri Valley Conference by hosting Drake on Fan Appreciation Day. Tip-off is set for 1:05 p.m. (ET). The game can be seen live locally on WFXW-TV with Jason Pensky and Jim Waugh on the call. The game can also be seen live on the popular Sycamore Vision, which is a pay-per-view subscription service on GoSycamores.com. The game will also be broadcast live locally on the radio via ESPN Radio 92.7 FM & 1300 AM, as Brian Fritz and Matt Renn describe the action with an internet broadcast available on GoSycamores.com. Additionally live stats for the contest can be found at GoSycamores.com.
THE DRAKE SERIES
Indiana State holds a 38-34 advantage in the all-time series against Drake and the Sycamores have won each of the last five meetings in the series, including a 62-57 victory at the Knapp Center earlier this season. ISU is 25-10 all-time against the Bulldogs at home.
THE HEAD COACHES
INDIANA STATE: Greg Lansing (South Dakota, '90)
- at Indiana State: 13-12 (First Season)
- Overall: 13-12 (First Season)
- vs. Drake: 1-0
- vs. Missouri Valley Conference: 8-6
DRAKE: Mark Phelps (Old Dominion, '96)
- Overall: 41-49 (Third Season)
- at Drake: 41-49 (Third Season)
- vs. Indiana State: 1-5
SATURDAY IS FAN APPRECIATION DAY
The annual Indiana State Basketball Fan Appreciation Day is set for Saturday as the Sycamore basketball team faces off against Drake while the women's basketball team will host Wichita State inside Hulman Center. All of the action begins at 1:05 p.m. (ET) with the men's contest versus the Bulldogs and the game against the Shockers will begin afterwards. All tickets to the doubleheader are free to the public as part of Fan Appreciation Day. Fans just have to stop by the Hulman Center Ticket Office this week or on game day to pick up their complimentary tickets for the contests. Further information may be obtained by calling 800-745-3000 or stopping by the Ticket Office during normal business hours.
QUICK HITS
- Indiana State has won a total of five games by five points or less this season, upping their total of close victories to 31 since 2005.
- Sycamore freshman Jake Odum recorded the second 20-point scoring game of his career with 22 points at Creighton. Odum hit 10 free throws against the 'Jays, which is the most by a Sycamore in a single-game this season and the most since Harry Marshall hit 11 against Wichita State last season.
- ISU junior Carl Richard has led the Sycamores in rebounding 13 games this season and has paced the Sycamores in scoring a total of five times. Richard set a career-high with five offensive rebounds against Illinois State.
- Indiana State is 5-2 on the season when Jake Odum records three or more steals in a game.
- In the last 15 games, the Sycamores made more 3-pointers than their opponents in the first 10 and has now been outshot by their opponents in three point percentage for the past 5 games.
An Indiana State Win Over Drake Would ...
• Give the Sycamores a total of nine league victories, equalling its total from last season. It would also be just the fifth time in the last 13 seasons that ISU has reached at least nine league victories during a season.
• Extend its winning streak against Drake to six games, which is the longest active winning streak against a league opponent.
• Give the Sycamores back-to-back season series sweeps over the Drake Bulldogs for the first time since the 1996-97 & 1997-98 MVC campaigns.
The Indiana State Head Coach
Indiana State head coach Greg Lansing (South Dakota, 1990) is 13-12 (.520) overall in his first season as a head coach. He is 8-6 all-time in MVC games, including a 5-2 mark at home, a 3-4 mark on the road and a 0-0 record in neutral court contests. During his career, he is 8-2 in all home games, 4-8 on the road, 1-2 in neutral court contests and 5-3 in games decided by five points or less. Lansing is 1-0 all-time against Drake, including a 0-0 record inside Hulman Center. With the Trees, Lansing is 0-2 in overtime games and 10-0 when holding teams to 63 points or less. Saturday's game is Greg Lansing's 26th as Indiana State head coach.
Television Particulars
Saturday afternoon's game can be seen live on WFXW-TV which airs on Channel 38 over the air in the Wabash Valley. WFXW-TV can also be seen on Channel 8 via Time Warner Cable as well as Channel 38 on both DishNetwork & Directv locally. For those out of the area, the game will be streamed live on Sycamore Vision, which is the pay-per-view web stream service on GoSycamores.com.
A Little History
Indiana State is currently in its 115th season of college basketball at the school. The Sycamores are 1,361-1,178 all-time on the hardwood. Indiana State's game at Oral Roberts this season was the historic 2,500th game in the history of the program.
19-1 Run Closes Out Sycamore Road Victory Over Illinois State
Indiana State found itself down by the score of 45-37 with 9:36 left in the contest against Illinois State inside Redbird Arena but used a 19-1 run over the final nine plus minutes of the game to secure a 56-46 road victory over the Redbirds. ISU hit 11-of-13 free throws down the stretch to help secure the victory. The Sycamore defense allowed just a Tony Lewis free throw with 1:37 left during the game winning stretch of play.
Sycamores Get Defensive At Illinois State
Indiana State recorded a Redbird Arena opponent record 16 steals in the 56-46 road victory over Illinois State. It was just one shy of the overall arena record. It was the most steals for the Sycamores since they posted 16 against Drake on March 2, 2006 at the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament.
Carl Richard Battles Flu; Still Excels Vs. WSU & MSU
Carl Richard averaged 10.0 points and 7.0 rebounds last week as ISU faced off against league-leading Wichita State and at Missouri State. Richard hit 8-of-19 shots from the field (42.1 percent), including a blazing 3-of-6 shots from 3-point range (50 percent). He also posted a pair of assists and steals during the two-game stretch. Richard scored 12 points and the Shockers, hitting 5-of-10 shots from the field, including one 3-pointer with five rebounds. He went on to added eight points and a team-high nine rebounds at Missouri State despite playing with the flu at Missouri State. At MSU, Richard hit 2-of-3 3-pointers (66.7 percent) with two assists and two steals.
Odum A Leader
Redshirt freshman Jake Odum averaged 12.5 points and 4.0 rebounds per game as ISU battled Wichita State and Missouri State last week. Odum added eight assists, one blocked shot and two steals against two of the league's top two teams. He hit 8-of-17 shots from the field (47.1 percent), including one 3-pointer and was 8-of-9 at the free throw line (88.9 percent). Odum paced the Sycamores with 18 points at Missouri State, hitting 6-of-11 shots (54.5 percent), including one from long range and was a perfect 5-of-5 from the free throw line. Odum added five rebounds, five assists and a blocked shot against the Bears.
Sycamores Will Play Morehead State In ESPN Bracketbusters
Indiana State was downed by last season's opponent Green Bay by the score of 60-59 on the road as part of the Brackbusters series. This season the Sycamores will host Morehead State this season inside Hulman Center. The Sycamores game against Morehead State scheduled for February 19 will mark's ISU's seventh year of participation in the scheduling concept. The Sycamores are 3-3 in the original game as part of the Bracketbuster series, and are 2-3 in the return portion of the series the following year. ISU dropped both games to Buffalo in the first two seasons of its participation in Bracketbusters (03-04 & 04-05); swept Western Michigan (05-06 & 06-07); was swept by Miami (Ohio) (06-07 & 07-08); split with Murray State (07-08 & 08-09) and downed Toledo twice last year. Overall, ISU is 5-6 against Bracketbusters opponents.
Carl Richard's Buzzer Beater Against Creighton Featured On ESPN
Richard added 11 points and eight rebounds against Creighton, but saved his best for last as he hauled in a Jake Odum 3-point miss and hit a reverse over the shoulder lay-up as time expired to seal ISU's 61-59 victory over the Jays. The play has been featured this weekend on ESPN SportsCenter (garnering No. 2 status on the popular SportsCenter Top 10 Plays segment and was rated the No. 1 Fantastic Finish Of The Day). His play also was featured on ABC's Winner Bracket Program on Saturday, January 22.
Triple The Pleasure; Triple The Fun
Indiana State's triple overtime contest at Wichita State is believed to be the first in over 2,500 all-time Sycamore basketball contests to reach triple overtime. The Sycamores did play a four overtime contest against Butler on December 27, 1986, falling 95-92 -- which is a school record. The triple overtime contest versus the Shockers is first multiple overtime contest in league play for the Sycamores since taking an 85-84 double overtime victory at Northern Iowa in the 2008-09 conference opener. The game was the second overtime contest of the season for the Sycamores, with the other coming in the season's third game against Eastern Kentucky. Over the last five seasons, Indiana State is 10-6 in overtime contests.
Lotsa Boards
Indiana State recorded 51 rebounds in the triple overtime defeat at Wichita State, which is the most a Sycamore team has hauled in during one contest since tallying 54 caroms against Missouri State on Feb. 13, 1997 at home. The school record is 71 rebounds against Chicago State in December 1976.
Finding The Open Man
Through 14 league games, Indiana State has shown an ability to find the open man and it is being reflected routinely in the box scores as ISU is currently fourth in the league with a 13.3 assists per game average. In fact, ISU has posted double figure assist totals in 15 of its last 17 games, including a Valley-best 19 in the opener against Bradley and again against Northern Iowa. Freshman Jake Odum is averaging 4.9 assists per game in league play which is tied for the league lead.
Good Starter On The Battery
Indiana State is 10-2 this season when the Sycamores starting five outscores the opponent's starting five in a contest. ISU starters have bested their counterparts against UT-Pan American, Buffalo, DePaul, Oakland City, the home contest versus Bradley, Illinois State, Northern Iowa, at Drake, against Creighton and at Illinois State. The Sycamores' two losses this season when the starters outscore the opponents starters came in a triple overtime defeata at Wichita State and also the home court loss to the Shockers.
Valley Win Streak Reached Six
Indiana State rattled off six consecutive league victories earlier this year which is the most for the Sycamores since they tallied seven in a row during the 1999-00 MVC Championship season. ISU's 7-1 start to league play marked the first time the Trees have began MVC competition with as a good mark through seven games since that same season and is tied for the second-best start in Valley play behind the 1978-79 dream season which saw ISU start 7-0 en route to finishing the year undefeated.
Odum More Than "O.K." For ISU As A Freshman
Redshirt freshman Jake Odum has been more than just OK for the Sycamores this season as he is averaging 8.4 points per game so far. Additionally, he is leading the team with 97 assists and 45 steals. His 4.0 assists per game average is third in the MVC and is the best of any newcomer in the league so far this season while his 2.1 assist to turnover ratio is second in the league and is also the best mark of any Valley newcomer. Odum's 1.8 steals per game average is ranked first in the Missouri Valley Conference. In league games only, Odum's 4.9 assists is second in the league and his 2.2 steals per game are tops in the league. Odum set a new career high with nine assists (against just one turnover) in the 61-59 victory over Creighton. He also scored a career-best 22 points at Creighton.
Carter Top 12 In MVC Contests
In Valley play, senior Aaron Carter is the leader for the Sycamores in scoring with a 11.6 ppg average which is ranked 12th-best in the MVC.
Printy Moving Up Indiana State 3-Point List
Indiana State junior Jordan Printy currently has 129 career 3-pointers and has passed Marcus Howard & Marico Stinson's 125 for sixth on the ISU all-time list with his trey at Illinois State. Printy is one of just 14 Sycamores in the history of the program to hit at least 100 3-point field goals in a career. Printy now needs two more 3-pointers to move into the Sycamores' Top 5 all-time list as Greg Thomas (1990-93) finished his career with 130 triples.
63 Is The Magic Number
Indiana State is a perfect 10-0 on the season when allowing less than 63 points to the opposition (including a 5-0 mark when holding teams to 53 or less). ISU's best defensive effort this season that was not rewarded with a victory came on the opening weekend when 64 points allowed in overtime against Eastern Kentucky and another 64 point defensive showing at Evansville. The Trees have held each of their last five opponents below the magic number of 63.
Isiah Martin Ranks Highly For Career Blocked Shots
Indiana State junior Isiah Martin now has 127 blocked shots in his career following his posting of one against at Illinois State. His current total of 127 blocks ranks in a tie for second all-time in the history of the program as he recently tied Djabril Kante for second (127). The Indiana State school record is 168, set by DeCarsta Webster from 1975-78. Martin needs 41 more to catch Webster for first place. For the season, Martin is averaging 0.9 blocked shots per game and is one of two Sycamores to rank in the Valley's Top 10. Myles Walker's 1.0 blocks per game average is third in the league while Martin's 0.9 is seventh. As a team, Indiana State is averaging 4.5 blocked shots per game which is the best in the league. ISU had a season-best 10 blocked shots against Bradley, it most since recording 11 against Evansville during the 2008-09 campaign.
King Of The Four-Point Play
Indiana State senior 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, seven times in his Sycamore career, including one against Purdue earlier this season which gave the Trees a brief 31-29 lead just before halftime. Carter posted a pair as a sophomore and had four last year, including one with 3:42 to play in the first half against Drake. Carter converted two in one game last season at Missouri State as part of a 24-point second half comeback for Indiana State. During his career, Carter has been fouled in act of shooting a 3-pointer a total of 14 times.
Prince Of Wales Of The Four-Point Play
Indiana State redshirt freshman RJ Mahurin may not be the Sycamores' King Of The Four-Point Play, but he is currently can be considered the Prince Of Wales. Mahurin has posted two 4-point plays this season, one each in ISU's last two games against Drake and Bradley. His two 4-point plays have each come in the first half of the two contests in which he has been fouled while stepping out for a 3-pointer, has been fouled and has converted the ensuing free throw. Mahurin was fouled on a 3-point attempt against Illinois State, and made all three of his free throws.
Sycamores Sign Devonte Brown & Justin Gant
Indiana State basketball head coach Greg Lansing landed two in his first official recruiting class during the Early Signing Period as Devonte Brown & Justin Gant inked a national letters of intent and will join the Sycamore program next season as incoming freshmen.
Brown is a native of Killeen, Texas where he is a senior guard for Killeen Ellison High School. He is 6-3, 185 and averaged 15 points, seven rebounds, four steals and three assists per game at Ellison during his junior season, one year after he earned a starting role for the Screaming Eagles. Brown played shooting guard for 22-11 Ellison last season, leading it to the Texas 5-A playoffs as Killeen's best team in that class. Brown will switch and play point guard during his senior season at Ellison.
Gant is a 6-8, 210 power forward who has been a three-year starter for head coach Todd Woelfle at Terre Haute North Vigo High School. Gant was third in the Metropolitan Interscholastic Conference in scoring, averaging 17 points per game for the 17-7 Patriots. Gant averaged 17 on a team that scored 50 points per game, one of the best percentages among MIC leaders as far as percentage of points he provided for his team. He also averaged 8 rebounds per game. He played AAU basketball for the Spiece Select 2011 team. Gant averaged 16 points and 10 rebounds per game for Spiece. He also played for the Indiana Elite team between his sophomore and junior seasons at North.
Up Next
Indiana State returns to action on Wednesday, February 16 when the Sycamores travel to Southern Illinois. Tip-off from SIU Arena is set for 8:05 p.m. (ET). It marks the first of two meetings with the Salukis this season for the Sycamores.
