LEXINGTON, Ky. – Chloe Williams finished one rebound shy of a double-double Monday afternoon, but a slow start proved costly for Indiana State in an 89-72 loss to Eastern Kentucky in the EKU MTE at the Clive M. Beck Center.
 
Williams led Indiana State with 18 points, nine rebounds and five assists, while Bella Finnegan added 15 points and six rebounds off the bench. Keslyn Secrist had 12 for her 10th straight double-digit scoring game, while Deja Jones finished with 10.
 
A sluggish start for Indiana State saw Eastern Kentucky score the first 12 points and never relinquish the lead. The home side maintained a double-digit lead for most of the first half, with a poor shooting performance putting the Sycamores in a 44-26 hole at the half. Indiana State came out of the break firing with a 14-2 run, half of which came from Jones, to get within 46-40 early in the third, but never got closer. The Sycamores matched their season high of 26 points in the fourth quarter, including an 18-4 run in the middle of the final frame, but EKU's offense was too much to overcome for the Trees.
  
First Half
Eastern Kentucky opened the game on a 12-0 run, with the Sycamores going nearly five minutes without a basket before Finnegan hit a midrange jumper to get on the board. Finnegan and Saige Stahl added baskets to get the deficit down to single-digits, with Davina Smith and Stahl adding buckets in the later stages. Queen Ruffin and Savannah White each split a pair of free throws inside the last 90 seconds, but a hot-shooting first quarter from the home side saw the Trees down 27-12 after the opening 10 minutes.
 
Williams got things going in the second quarter with three baskets in the first five minutes of the frame, with Finnegan adding a jumper just before the midway point to cut the Sycamore deficit to 35-21. Two more baskets from Williams, who finished with 10 points in the second quarter, got the Trees closer, but Indiana State faced a 44-26 deficit at the half.
 
Second Half
Contrary to the start of the game, Indiana State came out on fire to start the third quarter. The Trees opened on a 14-2 run, with Jones contributing eight on a pair of 3-pointers and a layup, as Indiana State pulled within 46-40 less than three minutes into the period. EKU followed with a run of its own, though, as the Colonels went on a 15-2 run to extend their lead back out to double-digits. Finnegan added a late jumper, while Stahl knocked down a pair of free throws, but the Sycamores entered the fourth quarter trailing 63-46.
 
Eastern Kentucky opened the fourth on a 9-2 run to take its largest lead of the game at 72-48, but the Sycamores battled back. Four free throws from Secrist and a three-ball from Finnegan started an 18-4 run for the Trees, with Secrist and Ruffin tacking on baskets to whittle the deficit down. Baskets from Finnegan, Jones and Secrist, the latter's being a three, pulled the Sycamores within 10 at 76-66 just past the midway point of the quarter, but that was the closest the Trees got in the fourth. Williams added a pair of late baskets for the Blue and White, but Indiana State's 26-point fourth quarter wasn't enough in an 89-72 defeat.
 
News and Notes

• Indiana State finished with 30 points in the paint, marking the fourth time in the last five games that Indiana State had 30-plus paint points.
• Indiana State dished out 14 assists in Monday's game, with four different Sycamores having multiple assists.
• Indiana State's 20 bench points were the Sycamores' second-most in a game this season, behind only Sunday's 33 bench points.
• Indiana State outscored Eastern Kentucky 46-45 in the second half, with the Sycamores scoring 20-plus points in both the third and fourth quarters.
• Chloe Williams' nine rebounds and five assists both represented career highs, while her 18 points were tied for her second-most in a game in her career.
• Bella Finnegan's 15 points were the most by a Sycamore coming off the bench this season.
• All 10 players who saw the floor for Indiana State pulled down at least one rebounds, with nine of the 10 also getting into the scoring column.
• Monday's game was the first win for Eastern Kentucky in the series, with Indiana State now sporting a 4-1 record all-time against the Colonels.

 
Up Next
Indiana State wraps up its non-conference schedule Saturday at 2 p.m. at Purdue.
 
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