TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Three Sycamores notched double figures as they gritted their way to a 74-65 victory and series sweep over Illinois State on Friday evening inside Hulman Center. Indiana State improves to 16-7 overall and 6-6 in Missouri Valley Conference action.

Senior forward Chelsea Small led with 16 points while Racheal Mahan dropped in 14 points including eight from the free throw line. Senior guard Stephanie Wittman also contributed 11 points on seven baskets from the charity stripe.

Mahan also led ISU on the glass with nine rebounds while senior forward Jasmine Grier scooped up six to help overcome the Redbirds on the board, 34-27.

Both team shot well on the evening, with the Redbirds posting a 47.8 percent clip and Indiana State going 45.1 percent on the night.

Small, a Denver, Colo., native posted 11 of her 16 points in the first half as Indiana State led 40-32 at the break. She also tied a career-high three blocks to go along with a team-high four steals and added two assists. The Sycamores posted an impressive 51.9 field goal percentage in the first frame and led by as many as eight in the half.

Redshirt junior Cierra Ceazer added eight points off the bench along with a game-high four assists. Redshirt sophomore Joyea Marshall also notched five points and sophomore forward Rhagen Smith added four points.

The two teams kept it close with neither team leading more by four until the final four minutes of the half. Grier drained a 3-pointer with 4:18 to play which helped spark an 11-5 Sycamore run to close the half.

To open the second half, the Redbirds (1-22, 1-10 MVC) scored five straight points before Small found the back of the rim with 16:31 to play. Illinois State got within one on a pair of Octavia Crump free throws but Grier sparked the fire with an acrobatic offensive rebound on a missed triple for the putback.

Mahan worked it inside to help Indiana State extend its lead back up to five, but Illinois State continued to claw back as it came within one at the 10:35 mark.

With the Sycamores never truly pulling away, the matchup played out until the final minutes. Indiana State miscues allowed Illinois State back into the game as the Redbirds got within seven with 27 ticks remaining. Indiana State sank six of seven bonus shots in the final 34 seconds to help secure a victory.

Indiana State returns to its home court on Sunday afternoon as it hosts Southern Illinois at 2:05 p.m. It will mark the annual "Pink Out" game which raises awarness for breast cancer research and benefits the Susan G. Komen affilate of the Wabash Valley.

For the latest information on the Sycamore Women's Basketball team, make sure to check out GoSycamores.com. You can also find the team on social media including Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.