EVANSVILLE, Ind. – Chelsea Cain led all players with 20 points Saturday night and Mya Glanton registered her third double-double of the season, propelling Indiana State to a 66-49 win over Evansville in the conference opener for both teams.
 
Glanton had 13 points and 11 rebounds, while six different Sycamores had six or more points. Indiana State's defense played a major factor in the win, as Evansville shot just 22 percent from the field for the game.


Indiana State opened the game on an 8-0 run, thanks largely in part to Cain, and never looked back. The Sycamores held Evansville without a field goal for the first 10-plus minutes of the game and built a double-digit lead by the midway point of the second quarter. Indiana State further extended its lead with a 14-0 third-quarter run  and led by as many as 22 in the second half. The Trees weathered a late storm from Evansville, and a 7-0 fourth-quarter run for the Blue and White put away the conference-opening win for the Sycamores.
  
First Half
Cain opened the scoring with five early points, including a 3-pointer from the corner, as Indiana State stormed out to an early 8-0 lead. The Sycamores limited Evansville without a field goal for the entire opening quarter, and Finnegan later knocked down a three-ball from the wing to push the advantage to double-digits. Thanks in large part to stout defense, Indiana State took a 14-6 lead into the second quarter.
 
Indiana State kept adding to its lead early in the second, with Cain going on a personal 6-0 run to make it 20-10 just 90 seconds into the quarter. Baskets from Glanton and Donald, the latter's being part of a three-point play, made it 26-13 in favor of the Sycamores late in the quarter. Layups from Lily Niebuhr and Keslyn Secrist inside the last three minutes helped the Sycamores take a 30-17 lead into the intermission.
 
Second Half
Glanton opened the Sycamores' account in the third quarter with a pair of early baskets, and Secrist added a layup midway through to make it 36-24. Evansville got within eight, but a jumper from Cain at exactly the halfway point of the third quarter kickstarted a 14-0 run for the Sycamores. Asia Donald connected on a 3-pointer, and layups from Secrist and Cain tacked on to the Sycamore advantage. Glanton added a second-chance basket down low with just over a minute to go to make it 50-28, and Finnegan added on with a trey inside the final minute. Indiana State headed to the fourth quarter with a 53-32 lead.
 
Evansville clawed its way back in the fourth quarter, starting the final frame with a 13-2 to get within 55-45. Layups from Glanton and Ella Sawyer ended the run, and the Sycamores iced the game with a 7-0 run of their own. Baskets from Cain and Savannah White, the latter's coming as part of an old-fashioned three-point play, made it 64-46 Sycamores and essentially put the game out of reach. Sawyer added another basket for good measure, as the Trees closed out a 66-49 victory on the road.
 
News and Notes

• Indiana State overcame adversity on its way to a win, as the Sycamores were without Head Coach Chad Killinger (illness) and leading scorer Kiley Bess (ankle). Associate Head Coach Deidra Johnson served as the Sycamores' interim head coach.
• Indiana State had a commanding 38-12 advantage in points in the paint.
• The Sycamores' defense gave Evansville plenty of problems, as the Purple Aces were 11-for-50 from the field and 3-for-17 from 3-point range.
• Continuing a trend seen throughout the 2023-24 season, Indiana State was plus-13 in rebound margin. The Sycamores also pulled down 16 offensive rebounds and had eight second chance points.
• Indiana State tied its season-high of six blocks Saturday, with five different Sycamores recording at least one block in the game.
• All 12 players who were active for Saturday's game saw the floor, with eight of the 12 recording a positive plus/minus.
• Saturday's win snapped a two-game losing streak to Evansville for the Sycamores. Indiana State improved to 43-22 overall against the Purple Aces and 18-13 on the road against Evansville.
• Indiana State won its opening conference road game for the fourth straight season (2020-21 at Loyola Chicago, 2021-22 at Drake, 2022-23 at UIC, 2023-24 at Evansville). Three of those four wins came by double-digits, with the Sycamores winning those four games by an average of 12.8 points.

 
Up Next
Indiana State begins the 2024 calendar year on the road Thursday night at Drake, with tipoff set for 7 p.m.
 
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