The Indiana State women's basketball team begins their
run in the 2012 State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Women's Basketball
Tournament on Friday night, when the sixth-seeded Sycamores take on
third-seeded Wichita State at 9:35 p.m. (ET) from inside The Family Arena in
St. Charles, Mo.
All of Indiana State's games in the 2012 State Farm MVC Tournament can be heard
live on ESPN Radio 92.7 FM with Brent Holl and Ace Hunt calling all the action
on the court. The opening two rounds of the tournament are available on Valley
Live with the semifinals and championship game being broadcast on the MVC-TV
Network.
The Sycamores are riding a three-game winning streak into the tournament,
topping Wichita State on Senior Day in Terre Haute (63-51, Feb. 26) before
winning at Southern Illinois (69-46, March 1) and Evansville (58-47, March 3)
to close out the regular season.
A
Little History
The
2012 State Farm MVC Tournament marks the 19th time that the Sycamores are in
the conference tournament, holding a 12-18 all-time record. ISU is 3-4 in the
tournament since being moved to the neutral site in St. Charles, Mo. ISU has
won at least one game at the conference tournament in each of the last two
seasons. ISU, along with Bradley and Wichita State, is one of just three teams
to never win the conference tournament.
Last Season At The State Farm MVC
Tournament
The Sycamores entered last season's tournament as the seventh seed,
finishing the regular season at 8-10 in the MVC. ISU topped #10 Southern
Illinois in the opening round, 83-68, before upsetting second-seeded Illinois
State, 80-51, in the quarterfinals. ISU faced #3 Missouri State in the
semifinals and fell behind 43-28 before hitting 10 second-half three-pointers
to fight back in the second half. MSU went on to defeat ISU, 84-79, as ISU set the
tournament record for three-pointers in a single tournament (31-for-66).
Against The Field
Below is ISU's record against their competition in the State Farm MVC
Tournament field:
Record Last Win Score
Bradley 1-1 2004-05 83-59
Creighton
1-4 2005-06 73-51
Drake
1-3 2004-05 79-66
Evansville
1-0 2005-06 81-65
Illinois State
2-3 2010-11 80-51
Missouri State 0-4 -
- - - - -
UNI
2-0 2002-03 83-54
Southern Illinois
2-2 2010-11 83-68
Wichita State 2-0 2002-03 81-60
Whitley Named To 2011 MVC All-Tournament Team
After
leading ISU with 66 points over their three games in the conference tournament,
junior Taylor Whitley received a spot on the 2011 MVC All-Tournament Team.
Whitley is the first Sycamore to be named to the All-Tournament Team since the
2005-06 season.
Schoen Sets Indiana State Three-Point
Record
Senior Brittany Schoen became the all-time leader in three-pointers at
Indiana State on Sunday, Feb. 19, at Creighton, passing Kelsey Luna with her
264th career triple. The ISU senior enters the conference tournament in second
place in MVC history with 274 career three-pointers, needing 21 more to break
Dayna Finch's (Creighton) MVC record of 294. Schoen holds the MVC record for
three-point shots attempted, putting up 812 attempts for her career.
Crashing The Boards
Senior Shannon Thomas pulled down 13 rebounds at Evansville in the regular
season finale, breaking Amy Hile's Indiana State record for career rebounds.
Entering the conference tournament, Thomas has totaled 924 rebounds for her
career, averaging 9.0 rebounds per game this season and 7.5 boards per game for
her career. The Springboro, Ohio, product sits in 10th place in MVC history,
needing six more to pass Megan Neuvirth of Creighton (929 -- 2006-10) for ninth
place within the league.
Buckets, Boards And Blocks
Senior Shannon Thomas pulled down her 900th career rebound on Friday, Feb.
24, against Missouri State, becoming the only player in MVC history to tally
over 1,000 points, 900 boards and 200 blocks for her career. Thomas ranks 14th
in ISU history with 1,247 career points, while checking in 10th in MVC history
with 924 rebounds and fifth with 213 blocked shots.
Sending It Back
Senior Shannon Thomas is the career leader in blocked shots at ISU,
entering the conference tournament with 213 career rejections. The Springboro,
Ohio, product sits in fifth place in MVC history and needs six more to pass
Tammi Blackstone of Drake (218 -- 1996-2000).
Thomas, Mattox Named All-MVC
Indiana State seniors Shannon Thomas and Deja Mattox both received
All-Missouri Valley Conference honors this season, with Thomas earning second
team all-conference while Mattox was named honorable mention. Thomas, also a
second team all-conference pick last season, leads the team by averaging 12.6
points and 9.0 rebounds per game for the season. Thomas has tallied 12
double-doubles this season, ranking second in the conference and 29th in the
NCAA behind the national and MVC leader Rachael Hackbarth of Drake. Mattox
leads ISU by averaging 13.9 points per game in league action, topping the
conference in three-point field-goal percentage (43.6%, 48-for-110) while
ranking second in free-throw percentage (86%, 74-for-86). Mattox has shot even
better at the charity stripe during MVC action, going 47-for-52 (90.4%) at the
line in her 17 league games.
Four Sycamores Earn Scholar-Athlete
Selection
The Indiana State women's basketball team placed four members on the 2012
Missouri Valley Conference Women's Basketball Scholar-Athlete team this season.
Senior Shannon Thomas led the way with a first team selection, with senior Deja
Mattox and sophomore Anna Munn both earning second team honors while redshirt
sophomore Andrea Rademacher was named honorable mention. Indiana State received
the second-most selections to the MVC Scholar-Athlete Team, with Bradley's five
picks leading the conference.
Three Over 1,000
All three of ISU's seniors this season have joined the 1,000 Point Club
this season, with Shannon Thomas (Dec. 20 at Chicago State), Brittany Schoen
(Jan. 29 at Wichita State) and Deja Mattox (Feb. 26 vs. Wichita State) joining
the select group. The only other time ISU had three teammates in the club was
at the end of the 2005-06 season when Melanie Boeglin, Lisa Verhoff and
Stephanie Lisch all surpassed the total.
1,000 Point Club (Part I)
Senior Shannon Thomas became the 23rd member of the 1,000 Point Club at
Indiana State when she scored a career-high 31 points in ISU's 67-59 victory on
the road at Chicago State. Entering the conference tournament, the senior
center checks in with 1,247 career points. Thomas currently sits in 14th place
for points scored at Indiana State, needing 28 more points to pass Amy Amstutz
(1,274 -- 1996-99) for 13th at ISU.
1,000 Point Club (Part II)
Senior Brittany Schoen became the 24th member of the 1,000 Point Club at
Indiana State, as her 20-point effort at Wichita State on Sunday, Jan. 29,
pushed her career total to 1,013. Schoen's 20 points were a season-high for the
senior, as she tossed in five three-pointers for game. The ISU senior currently
sits in 20th place in ISU history with 1,106 career points, needing seven more
to pass Trish Porter (1,112 -- 1972-76) to move into 19th.
1,000 Point Club (Part III)
Senior Deja Mattox became the 25th member of the 1,000 Point Club at
Indiana State on Senior Day, knocking down a three-pointer in the first half
against Wichita State on Sunday, Feb. 26. Mattox led the team with 17 points in
their Senior Day victory over the Shockers and enters the conference tournament
with 1,042 points. The ISU senior ranks 22nd at ISU and needs 39 more points to
pass Tammy Hammel (1,080 -- 1983-87) for 21st place.
Under 61
Indiana State is 24-2 when holding their opposition under 61 points in
their two seasons with head coach Teri Moren, including an 12-2 mark this
season. During MVC games, ISU is 12-1 under head coach Moren when teams score
60 points or fewer. When teams go over 60 points against ISU in the last two
seasons, the Sycamores are 7-29.
Tough Competition
Entering the weekend, the Sycamores hold the second-best strength of
schedule ranking among teams in the MVC, playing the 84th toughest schedule in
the country. Of Indiana State's 12 nonconference opponents, six entered their
conference tournament as one of the top three seeds.
Déjà Vu
Senior Deja Mattox leads the team by averaging 13.9 points per game in MVC
play, including a career-high of 31 points against Missouri State on Friday,
Jan. 27. Mattox has scored at least 10 points in 13 of her 17 games in league
play, including three games of at least 20 points. The ISU senior ranks eighth
in the MVC in league-only scoring this season.
Dishing It Out
Junior Taylor Whitley has racked up 276 assists in her three seasons at
Indiana State, ranking 11th in ISU history. The ISU junior has a chance to move
up the ISU ranks quickly, needing just three more assists to break into the Top
10. JoDee Rigel (278 -- 1977-81) is 10th at ISU in career assists, with ninth
place being held by Barbara Graves (280 -- (1979-83) and eighth place going to
Tracy Johnson (282 -- 1978-82).
Stepping Up In Valley Play
After scoring just 11 points in nine games during the nonconference season,
freshman Racheal Mahan has stepped up her game during MVC play. In ISU's 18 league
games, the Mansfield, Ohio, native is averaging 5.1 points and 3.8 rebounds per
game.
More Than Half
Senior Brittany Schoen has pushed her career total for triples to 274 this
season while fellow senior Shannon Thomas has upped her blocked shots count to
213. Both of those totals rank higher than the rest of the 2011-12 Sycamores
put together, as the remaining roster checks in with 269 treys and 97
rejections. Senior Deja Mattox is second to both of her fellow seniors in each
category, totaling 128 three-pointers and 38 blocks for her career.
Money At The Line
Sophomore Anna Munn hit 22 consecutive free-throws to start the conference
season, going without a miss at the charity stripe from Dec. 22 through Feb.
24. Munn leads the team by shooting 90.7% (49-for-54) at the line this season.
Double-Doubles (Part I)
Senior center Shannon Thomas recorded her 30th career double-double on
Saturday, March 3, at Evansville, scoring 12 points and pulling down 13
rebounds. In those 30 games that Thomas has went over 10-and-10, ISU has gone
18-12 overall and 14-6 in conference/tournament play. ISU is 7-5 this season
when Thomas records a double-double.
Double-Doubles (Part II)
Both senior Deja Mattox and sophomore Anna Munn recorded their first career
double-doubles this season, becoming the first members of the team other than
senior Shannon Thomas to post 10-and-10 since the 2009-10 season when Kelsey
Luna went for 17 points and 10 rebounds against Missouri State on Feb. 2, 2010.
Mattox went from 12 points and 10 rebounds against Butler on Tuesday, Dec. 6.
Munn has two double-doubles this season, tallying 15 points and 10 boards on
Wednesday, Nov. 30, against UT Martin and 12 points and 12 rebounds against
Illinois State on Friday, Jan. 6.
Mattox Ties School Record For
Three-Pointers At Missouri State
Senior Deja Mattox knocked down her first six three-point attempts on
Friday, Jan. 27, at Missouri State, finishing the game at 7-for-10 from long
range. Mattox's seven treys tied the school record for single-game
three-pointers, the 10th time that the feat has been accomplished. Fellow
senior Brittany Schoen knocked down seven last season at Drake.
Friday, Friday
Indiana State missed Thursday night at the State Farm MVC Tournament for
the first time since the 2008-09 season with their sixth place finish this
season. The last time ISU missed the opening round of the tournament, the
Sycamores were the fifth seed and fell to fourth-seeded Bradley, 70-49.
