Indiana State University Athletics

TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Indiana State will host league-leading Drake, a team that recently extended its Missouri Valley winning streak to 25 games, as the Sycamores will see if the Bulldogs are overdosed on confidence in Valley action Sunday afternoon at the Hulman Center.
 
The Trees will be relying on strength and guidance when the action tips off at 2 p.m. The Valley on ESPN3 will have the broadcast while Luke Martin will have the call on the Sycamore Radio Network online and throughout the Wabash Valley.
 
Indiana State, a team that has won five of its last six games, remains in the middle of the back in the league standings. Started from the bottom now we're here, the Sycamores could move up the league leaderboard with a win.
 
SERIES HISTORY
Nobody really likes us except for us. That may be the motto for the Bulldogs, who are undefeated in Valley play currently, especially in this series. DU has a 54-22 advantage in the all-time series with an 18-15 lead in games played in Terre Haute.

THE LAST TIME
Drake 85, Indiana State 64 - Jan. 12, 2018 - Des Moines, Iowa
Wendi Bibbins recorded her second double-double of the year with 18 points and 10 rebounds but Indiana State's second half shooting went cold in an 85-64 loss at league-leading Drake Friday evening.
 
Indiana State (3-12, 1-3 Missouri Valley) trailed Drake by only nine points at halftime and shot a respectable, if not impressive, 42.8 percent from the field before intermission. But the break cooled off the hot hands from Terre Haute as the Sycamores shot only 23.8 percent in the third quarter and were outscored 22-12 in that frame.
 
That pushed Drake's lead to a 19-point advantage and the Bulldogs (10-7, 5-0) were able to coast towards their record 27th straight conference win.
 
But despite a 21-point loss to a team that moved to No. 20 in the Mid-Major Rankings this week, bright spots continued to shine through in what was just the second game in Keister's interim tenure. For the second straight game the Sycamores posted 20-plus offensive rebounds, a mark not achieved prior to the change. Also for the second consecutive game Indiana State registered more assists than turnovers, something that had only happened twice prior to the coaching change and only once against a Division I opponent.
 
LOOKING AT DRAKE
My team good, we don't really need a mascot. Well, even with a mascot (the Bulldogs), Drake has vaulted to 14th in the Mid-Major rankings and have won an impressive 34 consecutive Missouri Valley Conference games entering Sunday's contest.

If you think I'mma quit before I die dream on. Drake embodies that with two games this year going to multiple overtime periods - Creighton (108-100, 4OT) and Nebraska (89-84, 2OT).

A sharp-shooting team that can drain a bucket from anywhere, Drake is shooting .485 from the field this year with a .363 mark from beyond the arc. The Bulldogs set a MVC record with 20 made 3-pointers Friday night at Evansville.

I'm way up, I feel blessed. Way up in the national rankings, that is. The Bulldogs lead the nation in assists (549) and assists per game (22.9), rank 11th nationally in scoring offense (83.3 ppg)and 3-point field goals made (225) and 14th in 3-point field goals made per game (9.4).

THE KEI(STER) TO THE TURNAROUND
Credit the job of interim head coach Josh Keister. Since he took over the reins of the program on Jan. 2, the Sycamores have gone 5-2 and improved in almost every statistical category.
 

	Under	Under
Category	Wells	Keister	% Δ
Points Per Game	58	60.2	3.79%
Points Allowed Per Game	66.2	58.1	-12.24%
FG Percentage	0.355	0.358	0.85%
3FG Percentage	0.303	0.26	-14.19%
FT Percentage	0.645	0.673	4.34%
FT Made Per Game	9.8	11	12.24%
Rebounds Per Game	34.2	35.4	3.51%
Assists Per Game	10.9	11.8	8.26%
Turnovers Per Game	15.8	12	-24.05%
Turnover Margin	1.8	5.4	200.00%
Steals Per Game	9.9	9.7	-2.02%
Blocks Per Game	3.1	5.6	80.65%

WIN THE QUARTER
Since Josh Keister took over as the interim head coach of the Sycamores on Jan. 2, his message has been simple: Win the Quarter. Slowly but surely the team has responded and begun to win more and more quarters. Finally on Feb. 2, Indiana State pulled through as the Sycamores won (outscored their opponent) in all four quarters, a first for the team this season.
 
LAST TIME OUT
Northern Iowa 64, Indiana State 54
This Sycamore team seemingly refuses to quit. Indiana State pulled within three with less than three minutes to go and registered a season-high nine blocks but fell just short of claiming a comeback win in a 56-46 loss to Northern Iowa Friday night at the Hulman Center.
 
The Sycamores (8-14, 6-5 Missouri Valley) didn't make it easy on the visiting Panthers. UNI (12-11, 8-4) had a 19-point lead on the heels of a 22-0 run but that is when Indiana State's defense went into overdrive, holding the Panthers to just one field goal over the next 10 minutes as the Trees began to whittle away at the lead.
 
Northern Iowa would miss nine of their next 10 field goal attempts and commit four turnovers in that span as Indiana State would pull within five. 
 
The strong defensive effort by the Sycamores was led by Regan Wentland's season-high five blocks while her seven rebounds were the most for her in over a month. As a team, Indiana State registered nine blocks and nine steals in the game. The Sycamores lead the conference in steals and rank third in the 10-team league in blocks.
 
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.