TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Indiana State opens play at Hoops in the Heartland Thursday evening when it takes on in-state foe Evansville in the first game of the day at the TaxSlayer Center. Tipoff between the Sycamores and Purple Aces is set for 5 p.m. and will be carried live on ESPN+ and 105.5 The Legend.
 

2022 Hoops in the Heartland Opening Round - vs. (9) Evansville
Date	Thursday, March 10 | 5 p.m. ET
Location // Venue	Moline, Ill. // TaxSlayer Center (9,200)
Preview Info	Indiana State Notes // Evansville Notes
Live Stats	Live Stat Feed
Watch	ESPN+
Listen	105.5 The Legend
Social Media	@IndStWBB // @IndStAthletics
Game Day Guidelines	Hoops in the Heartland Tournament Central

 
Conference Honors
Indiana State junior guard Del'Janae Williams and freshman forward Arianna Smith were recognized Wednesday by the Missouri Valley Conference following the completion of the regular season. Williams earned Honorable Mention All-Missouri Valley Conference honors and also landed on the MVC All-Defensive Team, while Smith made the MVC All-Freshman Team.
 
Williams finished the season as Indiana State's leader in points (12.6), assists (2.7) and steals (2.0), ranking inside the top 15 in the Valley in all three categories.
 
Smith averaged 6.9 points and 4.5 rebounds this season, numbers that have improved during conference play to 7.5 points and 4.9 boards. She is averaging 10.6 points per game over the last five games.
 
Last Time Out
Del'Janae Williams had 17 points Saturday afternoon, including a game-high 3 3-pointers, but visiting Drake shot over 60 percent from the floor in the second half to defeat Indiana State, 86-71, inside the Hulman Center.
 
Natalia Lalic and Arianna Smith scored 12 points apiece, while Marie Hunter had nine points and a team-high five assists in her final home game.
 
Indiana State got off to a hot start for a second straight game, leading by as many as 18 midway through the second quarter. Despite a strong start to the third quarter, the Sycamores couldn't keep pace with Drake over the final 20 minutes, as the Bulldogs had 56 points in the second half to win their fifth straight.
 
A Closer Look at Evansville
Evansville enters the tournament seeded ninth after finishing the regular season at 8-21 overall and 2-16 in conference play.
 
The Purple Aces feature a pair of all-conference honorees in Abby Feit (First Team) and JeNaiya Davis (Honorable Mention). Feit averages 14.8 points and 8.9 rebounds per game, while Davis leads the team in scoring at 15.3 points per contest. Myia Clark (12.3) is also averaging double-figures for the Aces.
 
Davis had a game-high 20 when these teams last met in Evansville, while Clark had 19 and Anna Newman had 10. Those three combined for 49 of Evansville's 58 points in that game.
 
Series History Against Evansville
Indiana State has a 41-20 lead in the all-time series, and has won the only neutral-site meeting between the schools. The Sycamores and Purple Aces split the season series this season, with each team winning on its home court.
 
Del'Janae Williams had a game-high 21 points, along with five rebounds, five assists and five steals in Indiana State's 69-51 win over Evansville in Terre Haute. Williams led the Sycamores with 15 points in ISU's 58-56 loss in Evansville, a game where the Sycamores led by as many as 18.
 
Finding Balance
Indiana State has found balance in the starting lineup over the past two weeks. The Sycamore starting five of Mya Glanton, Marie Hunter, Natalia Lalic, Arianna Smith and Del'Janae Williams has scored at least six points apiece in three of the last four games, including both games last week against Northern Iowa and Drake.
 
Out of the Gates
Indiana State has jumped out to double-digit leads in the first half of each of its last two games. The Sycamores shot 50 percent or better from the floor in the opening 20 minutes against both Drake and Northern Iowa, while forcing both opponents into 12 or more turnovers in the first half.
 
Despite jumping out to large leads, Indiana State didn't have a marquee first-half scorer in either game, with five different Sycamores scoring five or more points in the opening half against both Northern Iowa and Drake.
 
Back on Track
After being held scoreless in Indiana State's final road game of the season at Missouri State, junior guard Del'Janae Williams responded with a pair of double-figure outings to close the regular season.
 
Williams led the Sycamores in scoring in both games last week, finishing as one of three Indiana State players with 10 points against Northern Iowa before closing the regular season with 17 against Drake. She knocked down four 3-pointers across the two games, while also adding five assists, five rebounds, four steals and a block in the two contests.
 
Balanced Attack
Indiana State's offense doesn't necessarily have a marquee scorer, but that plays to the benefit of the Sycamores. Nine different players have led the Sycamores in scoring in a game this season, with Del'Janae Williams having a team-high 10 games as the Sycamores' leading scorer.
 
Up Next
The winner of Thursday's game will play in the first quarterfinal Friday afternoon at 1 p.m. against top-seeded Southern Illinois.
 
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.