SETTING THE STAGE
Indiana State Basketball continues its 125th season as they hit the road in Missouri Valley Conference play on Sunday, February 23 against in-state rival Evansville with tip-off set for 2:00 p.m. (ET) inside the Ford Center. The game will be televised live nationally on ESPN3. The game will also be broadcast on WIBQ 97.9 FM as well as streamed (audio) on GoSycamores.com.
QUICK HITS
Indiana State has hit at least one 3-pointer in every game since December 20, 2008 against DePauw -- a span of 369 contests, which is the third-longest active streak in the Missouri Valley Conference.
Greg Lansing is just the second head coach in the history of the program to record at least 150 victories at the helm of the Sycamores as he owns 163. His career win total is second-best at ISU (and his 88 MVC wins is the most in the history of the program). He also owns the school record with five wins over nationally-ranked teams.
Indiana State's 189 made 3-pointers this season is the 12th-best mark in school history for a season. The school record of 270 was set during the 2017-18 campaign. The Sycamores reached double figure 3-pointers made for the third time this season (and first in league play) with 11 made in the 67-64 win over Northern Iowa on February 20.
A Win Evansville Would ...
• Be the 94th all-time victory against the Purple Aces and the sixth win in a row in the all-time series.
• Improve the Sycamores to 5-5 on the road against the Purple Aces in the last decade.
• Secure at least nine MVC wins in a season for the first time since the 2014-15 campaign when the Sycamores went 11-7.
The Indiana State Head Coach
Indiana State head coach Greg Lansing (South Dakota, 1990) is 163-153 (.516) overall in his tenth season as a head coach. He is 88-89 all-time in MVC games, including a 61-28 mark at home and a 27-61 record on the road. During his career, he is 99-41 in all home games, 44-85 on the road, 21-26 in neutral court contests and 52-40 in games decided by five points or less. With the Trees, Lansing is 13-14 in overtime games and 103-10 when holding teams to 63 points or less. Coach Lansing is 15-8 all-time against Evansville, and is 4-5 against the Purple Aces on the road. Lansing led the Sycamores to the postseason in each of his first four seasons at the helm (2011 NCAA, 2012 CIT, 2013 & 2014 NIT). Lansing is the second head coach to lead the Sycamores to the NCAA Tournament in their rookie campaign in the history of the program, with the other being Bill Hodges leading ISU to a 33-1 record and a Final Four appearance in the 1979 NCAA Tournament. Lansing was just the 14th rookie head coach in the history of the MVC to lead his team to 20 victories during their debut season. Lansing holds the school record for most victories over a nationally-ranked team (five) in the history of the program. Lansing is currently second on the Indiana State all-time coaching victories list with 163. His 88 MVC victories are a school record.
A Little History
Indiana State is in its 125th season of college basketball at the school. The Sycamores are 1,511-1,320 all-time on the hardwood. ISU is only the fifth Missouri Valley Conference team to record at least 1,500 all-time victories.
Television Particulars
The Sycamores game against the Purple Aces will be broadcast nationally on ESPN3 as well as the ESPN app.
Jordan Barnes Up To No. 3 On 3-Pointers Made List; Top 10 In 4 Major Career Categories
Indiana State senior Jordan Barnes owns 1,505 points in his career – which makes him the active career scoring leader at Indiana State. Barnes now has 268 3-pointers in his career and he is in sole possession of third place on the Sycamore Basketball career 3-point chart. He needs two more trifectas to tie Brenton Scott for second. His 1,505 career points ranks ninth in the history of the program and during the road win at Missouri State he passed two Sycamores who have their jersey retired at ISU -- No. 54 Duane Klueh & No. 22 Carl Nicks. With his first steal against Missouri State on Feb. 16, he became the first Sycamore in program history to reach the ISU all-time Top 10 in points, 3-point field goals made, assists and steals. Barnes is just the ninth Sycamore in program history to score at least 1,500 career points. His 1,505 career points scored is No. 9 at ISU, his 268 career 3-pointers is third, his 373 career assists are for ninth and his 130 steals are also ninth.
Jake LaRavia Hitting The Offensive Glass At A Record Pace
In Missouri Valley Conference games, freshman Jake LaRavia is third in the league in rebounding at 8.1 per game, which is just behind Northern Iowa's Austin Phyfe at 8.7 caroms as well as Loyola's Cameron Krutwig at 8.5 boards. In the offensive rebounding category, LaRavia is dominating the Valley by averaging 3.7 per game which is .8 ahead of UNI's Phyfe. LaRavia is looking to be the first player in the MVC to finish the season with more than a one offensive rebound advantage in that statistic since Illinois State's Dinma Odiakosa won the league title by 1.2 offensive boards in 2010. Southern Illinois' Rashad Tucker is the last MVC player to finish the season with an even four offensive boards per game. In 1997, Indiana State Hall of Famer Jim Cruse was good for 4.4 offensive boards per game. LaRavia is looking to join Cruse (1997), ISU Hall of Fame member Matt Renn (1999), Amani Daanish (2004) and Carl Richard (2011) as the only Sycamores to lead the MVC in offensive rebounding. LaRavia owns the Sycamores' only three double-doubles of the season. He set a new career high with 13 rebounds on February 8 at Bradley.
Evansville Is The Sycamores Oldest Rival
Indiana State will face off against in-state rival Evansville on Sunday for the 176th time in program history -- the most the program has ever faced another institution. ISU's 93 all-time victories against the Purple Aces is the most wins against a single opponent all-time. ISU is looking for their sixth consecutive victory over Evansville which would be the longest stretch of wins against the Purple Aces since they took seven in a row between February 12, 2000 and January 4, 2003.
Sycamores Set New Defensive Best In MVC Era Against Loyola Chicago
It was a night to remember on February 5, 2020 -- that's win the Sycamores limited Loyola Chicago to just 39 points -- the fewest the Sycamores have ever allowed in 43 seasons of Missouri Valley Conference play in a league game. That topped a 45-40 win over Evansville back in 2002 for the best defensive performance in the MVC era. It also was the fewest points allowed in all games since surrendering only 35 to Louisiana-Monroe back on December 21, 2011. The Sycamores continue to excel on the defensive end at home in league play by allowing an average of 49.6 points per game through six league home contests. ISU has allowed no more than 56 points to any league opponent at home this season.
Tyreke Key Reached 1,000 Point Club In Just 73 Games
Sycamore Basketball junior Tyreke Key posted 20 points on December 30, 2019 to go over the 1,000 career points scored milestone. Key reached the 1,000 point mark in just 73 career games which is the fourth-fastest pace in program history. Earlier this season, Indiana State junior Tyreke Key set a new school record in the Missouri Valley Conference era with 32 free throws made consecutively, which is also the 14th-best streak in the history of the league.
Sycamores Second In The MVC (10th Nationally) in 3-Point FG Percentage
The Sycamores have hit 189-of-491 attempts from 3-point range so far this season which equates to a mark of 38.5 percent. That number is not only second-best in the Missouri Valley Conference, but is 10th-best in the country. BYU leads the country at 42.2 percent.
Tre Williams First Sycamore To Start First Game As True Freshman Since 2008
When he took the court as part of the Sycamore starting lineup at Dayton, Tre Williams became the first true freshman at Indiana State to do so since the season opener of the 2008-09 campaign when Carl Richard did it. Williams has taken off since that first start and has reached double figures scoring in five of his last six games. In Richard's first game he scored seven points against Northern Illinois, why Williams owned six in his collegiate and starting debut against now nationally-ranked Dayton.
Greg Lansing Second On ISU Wins List With 163
Greg Lansing became just the second head coach in the history of the program to record at least 150 victories when he picked that milestone win on Sunday, November 24 in the Bahamas against Air Force. His 163 career victories rank second in the history of the program. In 2018, with the Sycamores' victory at home over Illinois State, he earned his 73rd career MVC victory which is a school record. Coach Lansing now only trails Duane Klueh who owns the school record with 182 career victories. He currently holds the school record with 88 all-time MVC regular season victories.
63 Is The Magic Number
The Sycamores win by the score of 68-39 on February 5, 2020 against Loyola Chicago was ISU's ninth this year in which they held an opponent to 63 points or less and earned the victory. Under 10th-year head coach Greg Lansing, the Sycamores are 103-10 when allowing less than 63 points to the opposition (including a 25-0 mark when holding teams to 53 or less).
Good Starter On The Battery
Indiana State's starting five has outscored the opposition's top five 18 times this season and have earned the win 15 times in those situations. Under 10th-year head coach Greg Lansing, the Sycamores are 112-31 when the ISU starting five scores more than their opponent's starters.
Sycamores Secure Program Win No. 1,500 Against North Dakota State
Indiana State picked up historic win No. 1,500 in program history with a 71-60 victory over North Dakota State on December 3, 2019. Among the current membership only Bradley, Illinois State, Missouri State, Southern Illinois and Indiana State have won as many as 1,500 games in their program's history.
Sycamores Enjoy Two Wins And Runner Up Finish At Junkanoo Jam
The Sycamores traveled to beautiful Bimini, Bahamas last week for the 2019 edition of the Junkanoo Jam and came away with a runner-up finish as well as a 2-1 record. ISU has enjoyed great success in MTE play under 10th-year head coach Greg Lansing as the Sycamores have now earned 15 victories, including third place finishes in recent years during the Advocare Invitational, Hawaiian Airlines Diamondhead Classic and Paradise Jam. ISU finished as the runner in 2018 at the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Classic and the 2019 Junkanoo Jam.
Indiana State With A Pair Of Top 10 Career Scorers In Their Respective High School States
A pair of Indiana State players in Tyreke Key and Cooper Neese are in the Top 10 in career scoring in both of their respective home states. Key finished his career at Clay County High School in Celina, Tenn., with 3,287 points scored which is 10th most in the history of the state of Tennessee. As a senior, he set the Tennessee High School record for most points scored in a season, breaking a 25-year old record held previously by Kentucky legend Tony Delk. Cooper Neese, who will sit out the 2017-18 season serving his year-in-residence as a transfer, enters his Indiana State career having scored 2,496 career points at nearby Cloverdale High School which is seventh-best in the Indiana High School Basketball history.
Sycamores Tally School Record Fifth Victory Over Nationally-Ranked Team Under Lansing
Indiana State ended a skid of nine losses to nationally-ranked teams when No. 15/16 Butler fell inside Hulman Center on December 7, 2017 by the score of 72-71. Coach Lansing has led the Sycamores to a school-record five victories against nationally-ranked teams during his time at the helm of the program. He passed Bill Hodges (head coach of the Dream Team in 1978-79) and Royce Waltman (head coach of the Sycamores during back-to-back NCAA Tourney trips in 2000 & 2001) for the most in program history with the win over Butler. It was just the second victory for the Sycamores under Lansing at home against a nationally-ranked team and the first overall since a win at No. 21 Notre Dame in 2013.
Greg Lansing Inducted Into Iowa High School Basketball Hall Of Fame
Indiana State head coach Greg Lansing was inducted into the Iowa High School Athletic Association Basketball Hall of Fame as part of their 2016 class. Lansing and the other selected inductees were honored individually at halftime of the Iowa Class 4A State Championship Game at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines on March 12. The IHSAA Basketball Hall of Fame is the highest honor the Iowa High School Board of Control can bestow on a high school coach or former player. Lansing graduated from Harlan High School in 1986, where he was coached by his father Dave, who was inducted into the IHSAA Basketball Hall of Fame in 1999 as a coach. The Lansing father/son combination of Dave and Greg are just the 10th father/son duo to both be inducted into the Hall of Fame since 1969.
Up Next
The Sycamores play their final road MVC contest of the regular season on Wednesday, February 26 as they travel to Southern Illinois. Tip-off from Carbondale is set for 8 pm (ET).
