TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Indiana State kicks off a three-game road trip Sunday afternoon when it heads to Northern Iowa for a 3 p.m. tip. The game will be carried on ESPN+. No radio stream will be available.
Last Time Out
Indiana State was unable to sustain its strong start Wednesday evening, as the Sycamores fell to visiting Evansville 68-66 inside Hulman Center.
Bella Finnegan led the Trees with a career-high 17 points, all of which came in the second half.
Del'Janae Williams and
Anna McKendree finished with 14 points apiece, while
Chelsea Cain added eight points and eight rebounds.
Similar to the previous meeting this season, Indiana State quickly jumped out to a double-digit lead in the first quarter and led 24-10 after the opening 10 minutes. Evansville rallied back to take the lead in the third quarter, though, as Indiana State's strong start fizzled. The Sycamores retook the lead midway through the fourth but a late run for the visitors was enough for them to prevail. Indiana State had a chance to win at the buzzer, but Williams' 3-point attempt was off the mark.
Road Warriors
Indiana State has found success on the road during conference play, as three of the Sycamores' four MVC wins have come away from home. Included in those are a pair of wins in which the Trees overturned early deficits.
The Sycamores trailed by 11 at Valparaiso before coming back to win 66-58, and also trailed by seven at Bradley before going on to win 71-60. Indiana State used season-best performances to win both of those games, as
Del'Janae Williams had 25 points against Valpo and
Mya Glanton had 21 points against Bradley.
Milestone Watch
Two members of the Indiana State women's basketball programs are nearing career milestones, with one also occurring earlier this season.
Chelsea Cain hit 1,000 points for her collegiate career with a layup in the first quarter at Evansville. Cain scored 857 points in three seasons at Nicholls State and has 227 points for the Sycamores this year, giving her 1,084 career points.
Del'Janae Williams is also closing in on 1,000 career points, as she is currently 31 points away from reaching the milestone. Williams would become the 29th player in program history to accomplish the feat and the first since the 2014-15 season.
Head coach
Chad Killinger is also nearing a career milestone on the sidelines, as the Sycamore leader needs just one wins to reach 300 for his head coaching career.
Freshmen Stepping Up
Indiana State has just two freshmen on the roster this season, and both of them have come through in big ways in recent weeks.
Bella Finnegan has been a mainstay in the starting lineup since the season flipped to conference play, and has averaged 6.6 points and 2.4 rebounds per game this season. Finnegan had a career-best 17 points against Evansville, all of which came in the second half.
Lily Niebuhr played 20-plus minutes in back-to-back games for the first time in her career last week, earning 26 minutes against Murray State and 21 minutes against Evansville. Niebuhr averaged 3.5 points and 5.5 rebounds per game in those contests, with a career-high five points against Evansville and a career-high six rebounds against Murray State
Lone Opportunity
With three new members in the MVC this year, the league opted for a 20-game conference schedule and, with that, came some adjustments. Indiana State plays everyone home-and-away this season, with the exception of Drake and Northern Iowa.
Sunday's matchup between the Sycamores and Panthers is the only meeting between the teams this season.
Northern Iowa at a Glance
Northern Iowa enters Sunday's game at 14-6 overall and 9-2 in MVC play. The Panthers are coming off a 49-47 win over rival Drake, in which Maya McDermott hit a buzzer-beater to win the game.
Grace Boffeli leads the Panthers in scoring and rebounding at 15.8 points and 8.6 boards per game. McDermott (14.6) and Emerson Green (10.9) are also averaging double-figure scoring for UNI, with McDermott also dishing out a team-leading 66 assists.
Now in her 16th season at the helm, Northern Iowa head coach Tanya Warren is the longest-tenured head coach in the MVC and has built the Panthers into a perennial conference title contender. Warren is three wins shy of reaching 300 career victories, all of which have come at Northern Iowa.
Series History Against Northern Iowa
Indiana State owns a 42-39 in the all-time series, though Northern Iowa has won each of the last four meetings. Indiana State's last win in Cedar Falls came in the 2013-14 season.
Last Game Against Northern Iowa (Mar. 3, 2022)
Indiana State had three players score in double-figures, but visiting Northern Iowa outlasted the Sycamores, 61-55, inside Hulman Center.
Arianna Smith,
Marie Hunter and
Del'Janae Williams each had 10 points for the Sycamores, while
Tonysha Curry had a team-high eight rebounds and a game-high five assists. Williams, Hunter and
Mya Glanton all grabbed five boards.
Indiana State shot 50 percent from the field in the first half and built a 14-point lead at the halftime break, but a slow third quarter proved costly for the Blue and White. Northern Iowa outscored the Sycamores 26-4 in the third to overturn Indiana State's double-digit lead and led by as many as 13 early in the fourth. Indiana State managed to tie the game late in the fourth quarter, but the Panthers used a 7-2 run inside the last two minutes to escape the Hulman Center with a win.
Up Next
Indiana State continues its three-game road trip Friday at Murray State, with tipoff slated for 7 p.m.
