TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Indiana State continues its four-game road swing at the GATA Turkey Throwdown hosted by Georgia Southern this weekend as the Sycamores make the trek to Hanner Fieldhouse on Friday and Saturday afternoon.
 
Friday will see the Sycamores take on Jacksonville State on the first day in Statesboro, Ga. with live stats provided for the 3:30 p.m. contest. Saturday's contest will feature Indiana State taking on host Georgia Southern at 3:30 p.m. with the game set to be carried live on ESPN+.
 
Recapping Wednesday
The Sycamores enter the weekend coming off a Wednesday afternoon loss at Western Kentucky. 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 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 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.
 
About Jacksonville State
Jacksonville State enters the GATA Turkey Showdown with a 2-2 overall record on the season with wins over Auburn-Montgomery and Samford on the season. The Gamecocks are coming off a tough loss this past Sunday against Vanderbilt, 71-61.
 
Imari Martin leads two Jacksonville State players averaging double-digits on the season with 13.3 points, while hitting a team-high 11 three-pointers on the year. NeKiyah Thompson is also in double-digits with 10.5 points per game and has contributed 11 of the team's 43 assists on the year. Kennedy Gavin is the primary rebounder with 9.5 points and 8.0 rebounds per game.
 
Defensively, Shawnta Shaw and Kyra Williams are the team leaders combining for 10 of the team's 30 steals in a balanced effort that has 10 different JSU players in the statistical column. Thompson and Gavin both have two blocks apiece.
 
About Georgia Southern
Georgia Southern entered the Thanksgiving weekend with a 3-1 overall record prior to their Monday night contest against San Diego Christian. The Eagles won their first three games of the year against Auburn, Fort Valley State, and FIU, prior to falling on the road at San Diego State this past Saturday.
 
The Eagles have three players averaging double-digits in the scoring column this season with Mya Burns (13.0), Terren Ward (11.0), and Eden Johnson (10.3) leading a balanced attack averaging 76.25 points per game. Johnson is the team's rebounding leader with 9.5 rebounds per game, while Burns has been the primary outside threat with seven three-pointers on the year.
 
Ja'nya Love-Hill has been the team's assist (11) and steals (8) leader, while Johnson patrols the paint with eight of the Eagles 24 blocked shots so far this season.
 
Series Review – Jacksonville State/Georgia Southern
Jacksonville State and Georgia Southern are both included among the five first-time opponents for the Sycamores in the 2021-22 season. Indiana State has not faced off against either the Gamecocks or the Eagles prior to this weekend's tournament.
 
First-Time Opponents/Non-Conference Schedule
Indiana State's 2021-22 non-conference schedule will feature an even blend of familiar faces and newcomers to the floor this season as the Sycamores will face-off against five first-time opponents, while also taking on six familiar foes this year. Indiana State boasts an overall winning record (56-36) record against their non-conference slate this year with their longest running rivalry coming against Eastern Illinois (38-24). ISU also boasts an all-time winning record against five of the six familiar teams on the non-conference schedule including a win in their lone contest against Nebraska back in 1994.
 
Out of the five newcomers on the 2021-22 schedule include home games against the home opener against Stephens (Mo.) and the December 14 contest against Illinois Chicago. The Sycamores will travel to IPFW on December 20 in their final game prior to the holiday break, while ISU will take on both Jacksonville State and Georgia Southern in the GATA Turkey Showdown held over Thanksgiving Break in Statesboro, Ga.
 
Additional home games for the Sycamores this season include a November 17 home date against Eastern Illinois, December 4 against Western Michigan, and December 14 against Illinois Chicago. The Sycamores head to Saint Louis (Nov. 14), Western Kentucky (Nov. 24), Chicago State (Dec. 1), and Nebraska (Dec. 11) to wrap up the non-conference portion of the schedule.
 
Preseason Poll
Indiana State was selected ninth overall in the Missouri Valley Conference preseason women's basketball poll as announced by the conference office on Tuesday morning. The Sycamores received 102 total points in the poll as voted on by the conference's coaches, sports information directors, and media.
 
The Sycamores return four starters from last season's team that finished 5-15 overall with a 2-12 mark in MVC play. Sommer Pitzer, Caitlin Anderson, Marie Hunter, and Adrian Folks return to account for 83.6% of the starting five scoring output on the year, while nine returners overall highlight the roster coming into the 2021-22 season.
 
Missouri State was tabbed as the preseason favorite in the MVC with the Bears receiving 362 points and 35 first-place votes. Drake (two first-place, 316 points) and Northern Iowa (three first-place, 298 points) round out the top-three in poll.
 
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.