TREVISO, Italy – Former Indiana State women's basketball standout Natalia Lalic has signed a professional contract with Nuova Pallacanestro Treviso in Italy.
 
"I'm very excited for the opportunity to continue my career professionally," Lalic said. "It feels a little surreal, especially after my injury, but I'm blessed to have so many people who believe in me. I really enjoyed my time at Indiana State. It's why I took my fifth year and came back. Playing under Coach Killinger really expanded my game and brought the love for basketball back to me, and I think that's really helped me get to where I am now."
 
Lalic recently wrapped up her collegiate career with the Sycamores in March, becoming an important part of the Sycamore rotation under head coach Chad Killinger. She had a pair of 20-point outings in the Blue and White, including in a memorable 78-70 road win over Drake during the 2021-22 season that saw her score 12 points in the fourth quarter as part of a double-digit comeback. Lalic scored a career-high 22 points in a home win over Central Michigan last season, while she grabbed a career-best seven rebounds in Indiana State's 2022 MVC Tournament First Round win over Evansville. Lalic's versatility and ability to guard multiple positions allowed her to thrive in Killinger's system, as she lined up at guard and forward spots during her time in Terre Haute.
 
"I'm ecstatic for Nat to get this opportunity," said Indiana State head coach Chad Killinger. "Her injury last year was a lot for us to try to overcome and had she not missed the majority of the season, I think we would have finished with a winning record. I kind of jokingly described her as our 'swiss army knife', but she truly did fill that kind of role for us. She could play three different positions and the way she expanded her game after our arrival was fun to watch. Before we got here, she was pigeonholed into being 'just a shooter' with a two-dribble limit and over the past two seasons turned herself into someone who could bring the ball up the floor to trigger our fast break and was a threat to get to the rim or knockdown the mid-range jumper in the half court."
 
One of the top 3-point shooters in the MVC during her career, Lalic knocked down 63 treys in her career while connecting on 33 percent of her attempts from behind the arc over the last two seasons. She was on her way to setting career-highs across the board in the 2022-23 season before a season-ending injury, as she was averaging 9.0 points and 2.2 rebounds in 21 minutes per game.
 
A three-year letterwinner at Indiana State, Lalic finished her Sycamore career with averages of 6.0 points, 1.8 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game while knocking down 1.2 3-pointers per game. She started 32 of the 53 games she appeared in.
 
"She deserves all the credit in the world for being in a position to play professionally coming off of an injury season and she has worked hard to prove that she's on track to be cleared," added Killinger. "I had some really good conversations with scouts overseas, and her great character and the fact that she is the consummate team player were definitely factors in their decision to offer her a contract."
 
Lalic is the 18th Sycamore to sign a professional contract and second Sycamore in as many years to ink a pro deal after Marie Hunter signed a contract last season to play in Switzerland. She is also the second Sycamore who played under Killinger to continue her career in the professional ranks.
 
"I'm really excited to learn," Lalic said. "I'm one of the youngest players on the roster and one of the only ones without previous experience in the European leagues, so I think it's going to improve my game and knowledge of everything so much. I'm just excited to get there and learn from my coaches and teammates."
 
Lalic will report to the team in late August for preseason camp, with the regular season slated to begin in mid-October.
 
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