MURRAY, Ky. - Indiana State men's basketball moved to 16-3, 7-1 MVC as Coach Josh Schertz's 50th coaching win at ISU in the victory against Murray State, 72-63.

Robbie Avila led the offense with 20 points on 7-for-12 shooting from the floor, knocking down 2-of-3 from behind the arc and going perfect at the free throw line, 4-for-4. Avila added seven rebounds and a game-high five assists. Ryan Conwell followed closely with 17 points, finishing 6-for-11 from the floor and 5-for-7 (71.43%) from deep. The sophomore added seven rebounds, playing all 40 minutes of the game. Julian Larry knocked down three triples en route to finishing with 13 points, a pair of rebounds, and four assists. Larry shot 5-for-7 from the field and 3-for-4 from three. Xavier Bledson tallied six points, seven rebounds, and four assists, while Jayson Kent grabbed a team-high eight rebounds.

Indiana State jumped out to a 7-1 lead, but Murray State quickly caught up and forced the game to go bucket-for-bucket until MSU took a five-point lead at the 4:37 mark. The Racers took its first lead, 8-7, at 15:42 in the first half. In the following 7 1/2 minutes, the game saw nine different lead changes and one tie, until the Racers used a short 6-0 run to take a 28-25 lead into half. Despite Indiana State committing 11 turnovers in the first 20 minutes, the Sycamore defense held the Racer offense to only two points off turnovers in that time.

The offense returned to its normal ways for the Sycamores in the second half, as the three-pointer kept the team within striking distance. ISU shot 9-for-15 (60%) from beyond the arc in the second half, compared to 4-for-14 (28.6%) in the first. Avila recorded 18 of his 20 points all in the second half; Conwell and Larry followed suit, recording nine and eight of their points in the half, respectively. Conwell (3-for-3) was perfect from three in the final 20 minutes.

Indiana State's first 4-of-5 made baskets in the second half were all three-pointers - two from Larry and one each from Conwell and Isaiah Swope. Swope's three-pointer was the spark for a 17-2 attack that broke the game open for the Sycamores, leading 53-43 with 9:21 left to play. Swope and Avila combined for 13 of the 17 points in the stretch, with Swope knocking down a pair of threes and Avila converting on back-to-back layups. Just inside five minutes to play the Racers switched to a press, but the Sycamores slowed the game down and committed just one miscue in the stretch.

Avila sealed the victory in the final three minutes of the game for ISU. The sophomore big man knocked down a three with 2:56 remaining, then scored six points in the last 1:07, converting on all four free-throw attempts to lead Indiana State to the 72-63 victory.

News & Notes

• Indiana State moved 16-3 and 7-1 in MVC action, tied for the league-best. This win marked Coach Schertz's best start in the MVC with a 7-1 record, beating least season's start of 6-1. The Sycamores' overall 16-3 record is the best start in the Coach Schertz era.
• The win at Murray State is Coach Schertz's 50th win as the head coach of the Sycamores. Following the game, his record at Indiana State stands at 50-36.
• Ryan Conwell tied his career-high in threes, knocking down five, and played all 40 minutes for the first time as a Sycamore.
• The starting five of Avila, Larry, Swope, Conwell, and Kent tallied 64 of the team's 72 points (88.89%).
• Indiana State pulled down 39 rebounds, the fourth-highest total of the season and the most since January 3 versus Evansville (40).
• Four Sycamores grabbed at least seven rebounds to record 29 of the team's 39 rebounds: Kent with eight and Avila, Conwell, and Bledson each with seven.
• Before bouncing back with a 47-point second half, ISU recorded the lowest-scoring half of the season of 25 points.

Up Next
The Sycamores travel to the University of Illinois Chicago to continue Missouri Valley play. The game is set to tip at 8 p.m. ET on Wednesday, January 24 on ESPN+ and 105.5 The Legend.

Follow the Sycamores
For the latest information on Sycamore Basketball, visit GoSycamores.com. You can also find the team on social media, including Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube. Fans can also receive updates on Sycamore Athletics by downloading the March On App from the both the App Store and the Google Play Store.