TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Indiana State wraps up the non-conference portion of its schedule Saturday afternoon when the Sycamores travel to West Lafayette to face Purdue inside Mackey Arena.
Saturday's game will tip at 2 p.m. and will be carried on BTN+ with J.J. Palmer (play-by-play) and Caleb Combs (analyst) on the call.
Last Time Out
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.
Off And Running
Indiana State produced its two highest-scoring games of the season in its two contests at the Eastern Kentucky MTE in Lexington. The Trees averaged 75 points per game against Northern Illinois and Eastern Kentucky, the program's best two-game stretch since the late stages of the 2022-23 season.
The Sycamores finished with 78 points in the opener of the Eastern Kentucky MTE against Northern Illinois, the most points in a game for Indiana State this season. Indiana State tallied 72 points against tournament host Eastern Kentucky.
Heating Up
Indiana State has scored 25-plus points in a quarter in three straight games, with the Sycamores putting up 26-point fourth quarters against both Eastern Illinois and Eastern Kentucky and a 26-point first quarter against Northern Illinois.
Indiana State's three highest-scoring quarters of the season have come in the last three games, with all four of the Sycamores' 25-point quarters this season coming in the last five games. The Trees had a 25-point third quarter at Southeast Missouri State as part of a double-digit comeback win.
Bella's Back
Indiana State guard
Bella Finnegan made her 2024-25 season debut in the first game of the Eastern Kentucky MTE, finishing with 12 points, two rebounds, one assist and one steal in 21 minutes against Northern Illinois.
The junior sharpshooter followed that with 15 points and six rebounds in 30 minutes against Eastern Kentucky, with the six rebounds being her second-most in a game in her career.
Finnegan led Sycamore returners with 9.6 points per game last season and has averaged 9.0 points per game for her career. She is the lone returning starter from the 2023-24 Sycamore lineup.
Attack The Line
Indiana State finds itself among the national leaders when it comes to getting to the free throw line this season. The Sycamores are 29th nationally with 21.3 free throw attempts per game, while the Trees' 15.5 free throws made per game ranks 20th in Division I.
The Sycamores have shot 72.8 percent from the line this season, a mark which ranks in the top half of the MVC. That number rises to 76.3 percent over the last six games. Indiana State has made 20-plus free throws in three games this season, while shooting 77 percent or better from the charity stripe in five of the last six contests.
The Trees had their best performance from the line in their game at Eastern Illinois, going 22-for-27 (81.5 percent) on free throw attempts against the Panthers. Indiana State also had 20-plus free throws against both Southeast Missouri State and Austin Peay.
Picking Up The Pace
Indiana State forward
Chloe Williams' last five games have represented the best five-game stretch of her career, with the Sycamore post player averaging 17.4 points per game in that span.
Williams has scored at least 17 points in four of the last five games, while shooting nearly 50 percent from the field in that span.
Williams leads Indiana State in scoring at 13.8 points per game and is second on the team with 6.7 rebounds per game, both marks which rank in the top 15 in the Missouri Valley Conference. She has scored in double-figures seven times in the last eight games, and has pulled down six or more rebounds nine times in the first 10 games.
Williams has done more than just score and rebound for the Sycamores, as her single-game career highs in assists (five at Eastern Kentucky), steals (five at Eastern Illinois) and blocks (five at Southeast Missouri State) have all come this season.
Purdue At A Glance
Purdue enters the weekend at 6-5 following a 67-51 road win over Miami (Ohio). Eight of the Boilermakers' first 11 games have been at home, with Purdue going 5-3 in those games.
Destini Lombard leads the Boilermakers in scoring at 13.2 points per game, whiel Reagan Bass adds 12.3 points and a team-leading 6.5 rebounds per game. Rashunda Jones leads Purdue with 3.0 assists per game, with Lombard also contributing 2.5 assists and 2.5 steals per game. Bass leads the team with 1.4 blocks per game.
Former Purdue All-American guard Katie Gearlds is in her fourth season at the helm of her alma mater and owns a 56-50 record as head coach of the Boilermakers. Gearlds previously was the head coach at Marian (Ind.) and has a career record of 285-100.
Series History Against Purdue
Indiana State is 17-12 all-time against Purdue, though the Boilermakers have won the last eight games in the series. Included in that mark for the Sycamores is a 5-7 record in West Lafayette.
This year's meeting marks the third straight season that Indiana State and Purdue have faced off on the hardwood.
Last Meeting Against Purdue (Dec. 20, 2023)
Six Indiana State players tallied six or more points, but a strong second half from Purdue sent the Boilermakers past the Sycamores, 79-63, inside Mackey Arena.
Bella Finnegan and
Keslyn Secrist led the Sycamores in scoring with 12 points apiece, while
Mya Glanton corralled a team-leading six rebounds.
Ella Sawyer and
Lily Niebuhr dished out three assists each, while Sawyer also recorded three steals for the Blue and White.
Purdue opened the game on a 10-0 run, but Indiana State battled back with strong shooting in the first half. The Sycamores knocked down 50 percent of their attempts from the field in the opening 20 minutes and kept the game within two possessions at the half, but Purdue outscored the Trees 26-12 in the third quarter to put the game out of reach. Despite a strong fourth quarter for the Blue and White, Indiana State dropped its second straight game.
Up Next
Indiana State opens Missouri Valley Conference play at home December 29 at 2 p.m. against Northern Iowa.
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