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Indiana State University Athletics

WKU Recap
65
Indiana St. ISU 1-3,0-0 MVC
83
Winner Western Ky. WestKy 3-3,0-0 C-USA
Indiana St. ISU
1-3,0-0 MVC
65
Final
83
Western Ky. WestKy
3-3,0-0 C-USA
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Indiana St. ISU 16 24 14 11 65
Western Ky. WestKy 24 12 26 21 83

Game Recap: Women's Basketball | | Seth Montgomery | GoSycamores.com

Balanced effort not enough for Sycamores in Wednesday loss to Western Kentucky

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – Indiana State was unable to keep up with the outside shooting of host Western Kentucky on Wednesday afternoon as the Sycamores fell on the road at E.A. Diddle Arena, 83-65.
 
The Sycamores (1-3) held the 40-36 halftime lead thanks to a frenetic second quarter that saw Indiana State score 24 points in the 10-minute span led by Del'Janae Williams' nine-point quarter. However, the Hilltoppers (3-3) utilized a 19-4 stretch that spanned the third and fourth quarters and were aided by a trio of Alexis Mead three-pointers in the non-conference win.
 
Indiana State had nine players in both the scoring and rebounding column in suffering their third loss in the 2021-22 season. Freshman forward Arianna Smith paced the Sycamores with a career-high 11 points, while Williams added nine points and five rebounds. Marie Hunter and Essy Latu added eight points apiece for ISU in the loss.
 
Western Kentucky was led by Alexis Mead's 25 point performance, while Meral Abdelgawad added 21 points to highlight three Hilltoppers in double-digits in the WKU win. Overall, WKU shot 13-of-28 from the three-point line and converted 8-of-13 from behind the arc in the second half in the matchup.
 
First Half
The first half was played at a frenetic pace as the Sycamores turned on the pressure midway through the first quarter. The Hilltoppers took advantage of an early 7-0 run spurred on by a Meral Abdelgawad three-pointer on their way to going up 13-5 early. The WKU advantage reached double-digits at 23-13 following a pair of Hope Silvori free throws at the 0:54 mark in the first quarter, but the Sycamores scored three of the final four points of the quarter to trail 24-16.
 
The second quarter belonged to Del'Janae Williams as the Sycamores' junior guard was all over the court in the 24-point explosion. Williams recorded back-to-back steals and layups in a 10-second span to narrow the WKU lead down to 28-22, while her three-pointer at the 4:55 mark cut the gap down to 31-27.
 
The Sycamores continued to battle aggressively downlow hitting six free throws on their way to making it a 36-35 contest, before Natalia Lalic drilled a three-pointer from the right wing to give ISU the 38-36 lead with 29 seconds left in the half. Tonysha Curry cleaned up the glass on the final play of the half with her put-back before the buzzer giving Indiana State the 40-36 edge heading into the break.
 
Second Half
The Hilltoppers took advantage of key outside shooting in the third quarter on their way to retaking the lead. Abdelgawad scored five straight to answer an early Essy Latu three-pointer and tied the game up at 47-47. Alexis Mead also converted a pair of three-pointers in the frame as WKU went on an 8-0 stretch late in the quarter before Mya Glanton's short-corner jumper ended the run and sent the teams into the fourth quarter with ISU trailing 62-54.
 
WKU scored 11 of the first 13 points in the final quarter to extend their lead to 17 with a Mead three-pointer putting the score at 73-56. The Sycamores battled the rest of the way with Marie Hunter scoring the final six points in the loss.
 
Inside the Statistics
  • Indiana State shot 40.3% from the floor, 33.3% from the three-point line, and 83.3% from the free throw line in the loss.
  • Western Kentucky was 51.1% from the floor, 46.4% from the three-point line, and 75.9% from the free throw line in the win.
  • The Sycamores won the rebounding battle, 34-31, and posted 18 offensive rebounds that led to 16 second-chance points.
  • The Sycamores also outscored the Hilltoppers 34-20 on points in the paint and 32-15 in bench scoring.
  • The Hilltoppers converted 22 of 29 free throws in the win.
News & Notes
  • Arianna Smith recorded her first collegiate double-digit scoring game with a team-high 11 points on 5-of-8 shooting. The freshman forward made her mark with seven points in the first quarter and added four rebounds and two steals in a career-high 24:00 minutes.
  • Wednesday marked the second game this season Indiana State had at least nine players score and record a rebound in the same game,  joining the season-opener against Stephens (Mo.).
  • Adrian Folks' double-digit scoring streak to start the season was snapped as the junior forward finished with six points and four rebounds.
  • Essy Latu's eight points were a season-high for the senior, while her two three-pointers also marked a 2021-22 high.
  • Indiana State's 18 offensive rebounds were a season-high.
  • The Sycamores fall to 1-4 all-time in the series against Western Kentucky.
Up Next
Indiana State remains on the road for the start of the GATA Turkey Throwdown held on November 26-27 at Hanner Fieldhouse in Statesboro, Ga. The Sycamores will take on Jacksonville State on Friday afternoon with tipoff set for 3:30 p.m. ET. Saturday's game against host Georgia Southern will also start at 3:30 p.m. ET and is slated to be carried on ESPN+.
 
Follow the Sycamores
For the latest information on Sycamore Women's Basketball, visit GoSycamores.com. You can also find the team on social media, including Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube. Fans can also receive updates on Sycamore Athletics by downloading the March On App from the both the App Store and the Google Play Store.
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