DETROIT – Sycamore junior Essy Latu connected on six three-pointers on Sunday, just one short of the school-record, to lead Indiana State past the Detroit Mercy Titans, 84-79. The Sycamores improved their overall record to 1-1 while Detroit Mercy fell to 0-2.
 
Indiana State's 84 points were the most since an 86-82 overtime victory over Valparaiso on Jan. 18, 2019. Latu, a transfer from Central Wyoming College, led the Sycamore offensive effort with 21 points including a 6-for-12 mark from distance. The Brisbane, Australia native also tallied four rebounds, two assists and two steals.
 
Overall, five Sycamores crossed the double-digit point threshold including Latu (21), Sommer Pitzer (15), Hattie Westerfeld (14), Marie Hunter (13) and Jamyra McChristine (10). The Blue & White ended 31-of-56 from the field (55.4%), their best outing since Feb. 1, 2019 at Evansville, and 11-of-25 (44.0%) from long range. ISU also managed to spread the ball around well, tallying 20 assists, their most since Feb. 24, 2019 when they totaled 20 at #24/24 Drake.
 
A point of emphasis from the offseason, the Trees were dominant on the boards, holding a 38-23 advantage over the Titans. McChristine led the rebounding effort for the Sycamores, pulling down eight boards to go with two steals.
 
Defensively, the Sycamores forced Detroit Mercy into 17 turnovers while recording six steals. Latu and McChristine led ISU with two each.
 
The Titans were led by Kaela Webb who ended with 25 points on 7-of-13 shooting to go along with two rebounds.
 
Unlike Wednesday evening, there was no slow start for the Trees in Detroit. The first five field goals for the Sycamores all came from three-point range, including a pair each from Hunter and Latu, to give ISU the 15-7 lead at the media timeout. The first non-triple of the game came from a Caitlin Anderson pull-up at the 2:59 mark of the quarter. Ball movement kept the Sycamore momentum going, as the Blue & White totaled six assists in the first quarter, more than their total assists against Illinois, to help them to a 21-19 advantage.
 
Indiana State's offense didn't slow down entering the second quarter, managing to extend their lead to seven at 26-19. The Titans responded with a 5-0 burst of their own from 5:12-5:01. Back-and-forth it went as the Sycamores responded in-kind with five of their own, capped of by a fast break dish from Anderson to Hunter for three to make it 31-24.
 
Detroit, who connected on their first five long distance attempts of the period, utilized a 10-1 scoring run to claim a 40-39 lead at the 2:19 mark before Pitzer managed to connect on a three to end the outburst. The Sycamores, behind 58.6% from the field and 8-15 shooting from deep in the half, would claim a 46-44 lead heading into the break. It was the highest scoring total in a half for the Trees since Jan. 5, 2020 when they scored 48 in the second half at Bradley.
 
After going scoreless and finding herself in foul trouble during the first half, McChristine came out swinging to start the third quarter, picking up four quick points to help a slowing ISU offense. The defense for the Sycamores, however, forced the Titans to a 2-of-6 start from the field to take a 56-50 lead at the first media break.
 
The Titans responded with a 7-1 run to pull within one point at 57-56 with 2:13 remaining in the quarter. A Pitzer jumper brought an end to the run, but Detroit managed to tie the game at 59 before McChristine pulled-off five consecutive points to end the third frame and give the Sycamores a 64-59 lead going into the fourth quarter. McChristine tallied 10 points in the third quarter while ISU held Detroit to just 4-of-13 shooting.
 
There was no shortage of drama in the fourth quarter which featured five lead changes and four ties. A slow start offensively for Indiana State allowed for a 7-0 Detroit Mercy run to push the Titans into the lead, 66-64. After falling behind again, 68-66 with 7:42 remaining, the Trees responded with grit and used a 6-0 lead, capped off by a Westerfeld layup, to take the lead, 72-68.
 
With the game tied at 74-74 with just 3:50 remaining, Latu took over. The junior connected on back-to-back triples to push the Sycamore lead to 82-74 and put the final nail in the coffin of the Detroit comeback attempt, ultimately leading to the 84-79 victory.
 
Indiana State will be back in action the upcoming Friday, Dec. 4 when they host Murray State in their home-opener at 6 p.m. ET. The game will be streamed live on ESPN3.
 
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.