SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Indiana State got down early and put up a late fight Sunday afternoon at Missouri State, but could never fully overcome its deficit against the Bears as the Sycamores suffered their second-straight loss in Valley play, 64-62.
 
Indiana State (13-6, 6-2 MVC) trailed by 13 points midway through the second half but outscored Missouri State (9-9, 5-3 MVC) 10-4 in the last 1:10 of play to fall by just two points.
 
The Bears lit it up early from deep, shooting 5-of-7 beyond the arc in the first seven minutes. They made five straight threes after missing their first two attempts, and the fifth triple in that sequence put the Bears up by double digits at 21-11 with 13:10 to go in the first half.
 
Indiana State responded with a 6-0 run to pull within four at 21-17 and Cooper Neese later nailed a 3-pointer off an assist from Julian Larry to cut the deficit to one point at 23-22, but the Bears responded with two more buckets to go back up by five.
 
Back-to-back Sycamore triples cut Missouri State's lead to 32-30 with 3:25 left in the opening frame, and after trailing by 10 midway through the first half, Indiana State trailed by just four points at 35-31 going into the break.
 
Missouri State opened the second half with a pair of buckets to go up 39-31 at 17:45, and the Sycamores did not score until 16:34 in the frame on Trenton Gibson's and-1. The Missouri State lead reached a game-high 13 points at 52-39 with 10:26 left in the second half.
 
The Sycamores kept themselves in the game, using an 8-2 run over the next four minutes to make it 54-47, and later cut their deficit all the way down to one point with a 7-0 run that made it 60-59 with 31 seconds to go. The Bears knocked down a couple free throws to put the Sycamores down 62-59, and Indiana State had multiple chances to tie things up but missed a couple threes in the last 11 seconds. Missouri State would hit another pair of free throws with four seconds remaining to go up 64-59, and Neese drilled a shot from the logo with 0.7 left on the clock to make it a final score of 64-62.
 
Inside the Numbers

• Both teams shot 12-24 in the first half, but Missouri State hit six threes and five free throws compared to ISU's four triples and three free throws in the frame.
• Indiana State narrowly outshot the Bears 49.0 percent to 38.5 percent overall from the field in the game, but the Sycamores shot just 6-of-23 from three and 8-of-14 from the free throw line. The Bears were 16-of-17 from the free throw line.
• Indiana State faced some foul trouble as Cameron Henry, Robbie Avila, and Courvoisier McCauley each picked up four fouls.
• After getting down by 13 at 10:26 in the second half, Indiana State outscored Missouri State 23-12 in the last 8:57 and 10-4 in the last 1:10 of the game.
• Cameron Henry led the way for the Sycamores with a team-high 17 points and five rebounds. He shot 6-of-6 from the field with a season-high and Valley-high 3-of-3 from deep.

News & Notes

• Missouri State's 13-point lead in the second half was Indiana State's largest deficit in Valley play this season.
• Indiana State did not lead at all in the game for first time this season. It was the first time the Sycamores have not held a lead at any point in a game since Jan. 30, 2022 at Bradley. ISU lost that game 67-52.
• Xavier Bledson made his first appearance since Dec. 29 against Evansville and tied his season-high three steals alongside four points and two assists.
• With Indiana State's loss, there is now a three-way tie for first place in the Missouri Valley Conference as ISU joins Southern Illinois and Belmont with a 6-2 record in league play.
• Indiana State is now 6-35 on the road against Missouri State, and after starting off 6-0 in Valley play, the Sycamores have lost two straight while snapping their three-game Valley road win streak.

Up Next
The Sycamores return home to host Bradley Wednesday, Jan. 18 at 7 p.m. ET.
 
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