Ace Hunt
GoSycamores.com
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. -- Indiana State junior Matt Van Scyoc led four Sycamores who reached double figures scoring as the Sycamores cruised to a 95-36 exhibition victory over Rose-Hulman in the first-ever Jim Shaw Classic between the two schools. Coach Shaw spent 20 seasons at the helm of the Fightin' Engineers and earned a Master's Degree in Sports Administration in 1989 from Indiana State University.
A crowd of 3,321 fans was on hand for the victory. Van Scyoc used a 7-of-10 shooting effort, including a 4-of-6 mark from 3-point range to lead the way with 18 points. Brenton Scott was 5-of-11 from the field to score 13 points with five rebounds, three assists and five steals. Donovan Franklin was 5-of-8 from the field to score 12 points off the bench while Brandon Murphy added 10 points and five rebounds as he hit all four of his free throw attempts.
The Sycamores blazed the nets at a 39-of-72 clip for 54.2 percent, and hit 10 3-pointers in the contest. Indiana State held a 55-22 edge on the glass, led by seven rebounds off the bench from senior TJ Bell. Niels Bunschoten led the way with four assists as the Sycamores compiled 20 assists on 39 made field goals.
Indiana State held a 48-8 edge in the paint and a 30-3 edge in points off turnovers. The Fightin' Engineers had 17 miscues in the game. ISU was 13 offensive rebounds to score 15 points while ISU held a 24-0 edge in fast break points.
Redshirt freshman Bronson Kessinger made his much anticipated debut and scored eight rebounds with two rebounds and two assists in six minutes of action. Walk-ons Ethan Claycomb and Matt Deady got into the action as Deady scored four points and Claycomb added three in the victory.
The game started with four consecutive points from Everett Clemons before Collin Wojcik countered with a 3-pointer. ISU then scored seven points in a row for a 13-3 edge on a Scott jumper at the 15:08 mark. Franklin hit his first 3-pointer with 13:44 to go for the 16-5 lead. John Czarnecki hit a free throw with 7:04 left to cut the ISU advantage down to 26-9 before the Sycamores held serve for nearly seven minutes and scored 26 points in a row for a 52-9 lead late on a Van Scyoc 3-pointer. Wojcik scored late in the first half for RHIT as ISU led 52-11 at the break.
3-Pointers from Bunschoten, Van Scyoc and Scott staked the Sycamores to a 61-11 lead early in the second half. It was all part of a 19-0 run which gave ISU a 71-11 lead on a Kessinger lay-up with 15:22 on the clock. All told it was a 45-2 run over a 13 minute span which broke the game wide open.
The crowd came alive as the clock ticked under the nine minute mark on a steal and breakaway dunk from Terre Haute native Matt Deady. He also scored on a jumper with 35 seconds remaining for the 95-36 victory.
Trey Sykes scored seven points to lead Rose-Hulman.
Now the attention turns toward the regular season opener as the Sycamores open play on Friday, November 11 at Northern Illinois. Tip-off is set for 8:00 p.m. (ET).
