NORMAL, Ill. – Chelsea Cain recorded her first double-double in an Indiana State uniform Friday night, but Illinois State's 3-point barrage was too much to overcome for the Sycamores in a 78-68 defeat inside Redbird Arena.
 
Cain finished with 16 points and a season-high 11 rebounds, becoming the second Sycamore to record a double-double this season. Del'Janae Williams also had 16 points as she inches closer to the 1,000-point mark for her career, while Caitlin Anderson added a season-high nine off the bench.
 
Indiana State hit four 3-pointers in the first quarter as the Sycamores jumped out to an early lead. Illinois State responded, though, as the Redbirds got hot from behind the arc to take a nine-point lead at the break. The Sycamores made a second-half charge, cutting their deficit to two on multiple occasions behind 23 second-half points from Cain, Williams and Hattie Westerfeld, but a pair of fourth-quarter 3-pointers for the home side proved to be daggers
 
First Half
Early baskets by Cain and Williams, the latter's being a 3-pointer, gave Indiana State a 5-2 lead, and Anna McKendree hit a trey from the top of the key to tack onto the lead. Cain converted a three-point play to give the Trees their largest lead of the contest at 11-6 midway through the first, and Bella Finnegan hit a 3-pointer to keep the Sycamore lead at five. Williams added another triple late in the quarter, but Illinois State closed strong to take a 20-17 lead after the opening 10 minutes.
 
Williams continued her strong start with a 3-pointer to even the score at 20-all early in the second, but a quick 6-0 Redbird run gave the home side a lead it wouldn't relinquish. McKendree knocked down her second three-pointer in the game to cut it to 29-26, but that was the last time it was a one-possession game in the first half. Illinois State led by as many as 12 late in the second, but four points from Anderson inside the last two minutes cut the Sycamore deficit to 46-37 at the intermission.
 
Second Half
Indiana State came out of the locker room strong, quickly cutting its deficit to four following baskets by Anderson and Westerfeld. Baskets by Cain and Williams in the middle stages of the third, along with a pair of Anderson free throws, made it a two-point game at 52-50 just after the media timeout. Westerfeld converted a three-point play inside the final minute to make it 56-53, but a four-point play for the Redbirds gave Illinois State a 60-53 advantage heading to the fourth.
 
Baskets by Cain, Williams and Westerfeld inside the first 2:30 of the fourth helped the Sycamores trim their deficit down to 63-59. Finnegan and Cain hit field goals midway through the period to make it a 65-63 game, but that was the closest the Sycamores got. Illinois State closed on a 13-5 run and, despite a late 3-pointer by Williams, held on to win 78-68.
 
Inside the Numbers

• Indiana State was plus-10 on the glass (40-30), including 15 offensive rebounds. The Sycamores turned those into 18 second chance points, their most in a game since the season opener against Saint Louis.
• Indiana State had a 16-11 advantage in bench points, with Caitlin Anderson (nine) and Hattie Westerfeld (seven) combining to score all of those points.
• Indiana State got within two points despite going 1-for-9 from distance in the second half. The Sycamores hit six of their 12 3-pointers in the first half.
• Indiana State's 88.2 percent clip from the free throw line (15-for-17) was its best this season.
• Entering Friday's game, the Sycamores had the top 3-point defense in the MVC during conference play, but Illinois State hit 14 treys against Indiana State. The 14 3-pointers were the most allowed by the Sycamores since Green Bay hit 14 on Dec. 9, 2006.

 
News & Notes

• Del'Janae Williams has scored in double-figures in four straight games, averaging 17.8 points per game during that span. Williams is closing in on the 1,000-point mark for her career, as she is 90 points shy of reaching the milestone.
• Chelsea Cain has scored in double-figures in four of the last five games, averaging 15.6 points per game during that span. Cain also averaging 5.4 rebounds per game during that stretch.
• After going the first 14 games without a player notching a double-double, Indiana State has had one in each of the last two games. Anna McKendree had 14 points and 10 assists against Drake last weekend, while Chelsea Cain had 16 points and 11 rebounds in Friday's game.
• Indiana State has lost three straight games for the first time this season.

 
Up Next
Indiana State closes its road trip Sunday afternoon at Bradley with tipoff set for 3 p.m.
 
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