TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Indiana State begins the 2024 calendar year on the road Thursday night, as the Sycamores head west to face Drake for a 7 p.m. tip.
Thursday's game will be carried on ESPN+ and 105.5 The Legend.
Last Time Out
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.
Lockdown
Indiana State's defense put together a lights-out performance in its conference-opening win over Evansville, as the Sycamores limited the Purple Aces to an 11-for-50 performance on their home floor. The Sycamores also kept Evansville's 3-point shooters at bay, as the Purple Aces were just 3-for-17 from distance.
Indiana State held Evansville below 31 percent shooting in all four quarters, with the 22 percent shooting clip being the lowest by a Sycamore opponent since the 2021-22 season opener against Stephens College (Mo.).
Post Player Presence
Indiana State's frontcourt provided a major boost in the Sycamores' win over Evansville, with
Chelsea Cain and
Mya Glanton leading the way for the Blue and White. Cain led all scorers with 20 points in the win, while Glanton had 13 points and 11 rebounds for her third double-double of the season.
Indiana State thrived with its two starting frontcourt players on the floor, as Glanton was plus-13 and Cain was plus-19 against Evansville.
Road Trippin'
Indiana State starts conference play on the road for the fifth time in the last six years, and the Sycamores open MVC play with five of their first seven away from home. The Trees open their conference slate with road games at Evansville, Drake and Northern Iowa before finally playing home games Jan. 11 against Murray State and Jan. 14 against Belmont.
Indiana State will also visit Southern Illinois and Missouri State in late January to close their stretch of five road games in its first seven MVC contests. Four of Indiana State's six conference wins last season came on the road, including a weekend sweep at UIC and Valparaiso in their opening conference road stretch of the 2022-23 campaign.
Balancing Act
Indiana State has found balance in its offense in recent weeks, with the Sycamores having four different players register 20-point games this season.
Kiley Bess (12.5 ppg),
Chelsea Cain (11.7) and
Bella Finnegan (10.7) are all averaging double-figure scoring for the season, while
Asia Donald,
Keslyn Secrist and
Chloe Williams have produced double-digit scoring games off the bench.
Mya Glanton also averages nearly 10 points per game to go along with eight rebounds per game.
Indiana State's balance has made it tougher for opponents to key in on any particular player. No Sycamore has led the team in scoring in back-to-back games this season.
Drake at a Glance
Drake enters Thursday's game at 8-4 overall and 1-0 in conference play. The Bulldogs defeated Southern Illinois 78-59 in their first MVC game, and also recorded a win over Iowa State this season.
Katie Dinnebier leads a high-powered Drake offense at 19.8 points per game, while Grace Berg (17.1), Anna Miller (11.3) and Taylor McAulay (11.0) all average double-figures. Miller averages a team-high 8.6 rebounds per game, while Dinnebier has dished out a team-high 64 assists. As a team, Drake averages nearly 83 points per game.
Allison Pohlman is in her third season as the head coach at Drake and led the Bulldogs back to the NCAA Tournament last season. Pohlman has a 50-28 career record as the Bulldogs' head coach, and was has been a member of the Drake coaching staff since 2007.
Series History Against Drake
Drake has a 62-24 advantage in the series and has won each of the last two meetings. Indiana State won the last meeting in Des Moines, 78-70, during the 2021-22 season.
Last Meeting Against Drake (Jan. 14, 2023)
Anna McKendree notched Indiana State's first points-assists double-double since 2006, but visiting Drake's high-powered offense led the Bulldogs past the Sycamores, 86-65, inside Hulman Center.
McKendree finished with 14 points and 10 assists, becoming the first Sycamore since ISU Hall of Famer Melanie Boeglin to notch a double-double with points and assists. She also led the Trees with six rebounds and four steals.
Del'Janae Williams led the Sycamores in scoring with 17, her third straight game in double-figures, while
Chelsea Cain added 15.
Drake jumped out to a 32-10 lead after 10 minutes and never looked back. Indiana State never quit, though, outscoring the visitors by one over the final 30 minutes. The Sycamores cut the deficit to 16 early in the fourth, but a 9-2 Drake run ended the hopes of a Sycamore comeback.
Up Next
Indiana State closes a five-game road swing Saturday afternoon at Northern Iowa, with tipoff scheduled for 3 p.m.
Follow the Sycamores
For the latest information on Sycamore Women's Basketball, visit
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