Skip To Main Content

Indiana State University Athletics

Avila - UNI Recap 3.9
72
UNI UNI 19-14,12-8 MVC
94
Winner Indiana St. INS 28-5,17-3 MVC
UNI UNI
19-14,12-8 MVC
72
Final
94
Indiana St. INS
28-5,17-3 MVC
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
UNI UNI 33 39 72
Indiana St. INS 44 50 94

Game Recap: Basketball | | Seth Montgomery | GoSycamores.com

ISU headed to Championship Sunday in Arch Madness; Face Drake for the tournament title

ST. LOUIS, Mo. – No. 1 Indiana State is heading to the 2024 Arch Madness Championship game as the Sycamores took down No. 4 Northern Iowa in a convincing fashion with a 94-72 win on Saturday afternoon.
 
The Sycamores (28-5) hit six of their first seven three-pointers to build an early double-digit lead and Indiana State never relented in taking their second win of the season over UNI (19-14). Robbie Avila hit four of ISU's first five three-pointers during the opening stretch to finish with 21 points, while Ryan Conwell added 20 points and 13 rebounds in the Sycamore win.
 
Indiana State advances to the Arch Madness title game for the sixth time in program history and first since 2014 as the Sycamores take on No. 2 Drake. It marks the first time Indiana State and Drake will face each other in the championship's final game and sixth different opponent ISU will have faced in the championship game in program history.
 
The Sycamores and the Bulldogs split the season series with each team winning at home in 2024. Drake took the opener in Des Moines, 89-78, while ISU returned the favor inside the Hulman Center on February 3, 75-67.

The Sycamores (28-5) hit six of their first seven three-pointers to build an early double-digit lead and Indiana State never relented in taking their second win of the season over UNI (19-14). Robbie Avila hit four of ISU's first five three-pointers during the opening stretch to finish with 21 points, while Ryan Conwell added 20 points and 13 rebounds in the Sycamore win.
 
Indiana State advances to the Arch Madness title game for the sixth time in program history and first since 2014 as the Sycamores will take on the winner between No. 2 Drake and No. 3 Bradley.
 
Four of ISU's starters finished in double-digits with Julian Larry (17 points, seven assists) and Isaiah Swope (15 points, 5-of-7 three-pointers) joining Avila and Conwell in the category. Jayson Kent narrowly missed out on his second double-double of the tournament finishing with nine points and nine rebounds.
 
The Sycamores set the tone early in the contest hitting seven of their first 10 three-pointers and 10 of their first 14 baskets in building an early 27-15 lead following Swope's third three-pointer of the game at the 12:02 mark. Indiana State's lead hit 19 points at 34-15 following an Avila layup with 9:01 to play in the first half as the Sycamores continued to pressure the Panthers early.
 
UNI battled back bringing the game to within single digits at 41-33 with 1:44 left in the first half on a Cole Henry pull-up jumper in the paint ending an 18-7 run as the Panthers fought their way back into the contest. The Sycamore lead hit double-digits as the clock expired with Conwell connecting on a turnaround jumper in the paint to send ISU into the locker room with the 44-33 lead.
 
Indiana State set the tone out of the gate in the second half scoring nine of the first 11 points on their way to building a 53-35 lead on Avila's layup with 15:54 to play. The lead hit 20 points for the first time on a Swope fast-break three-pointer at 62-42 as ISU continued to pressure the Panthers defense from the outside.
 
Larry took control of the game late with a six-point stretch to give ISU a 90-60 lead with 2:43 remaining, and Jade Daughtry and Aaron Gray both scored late to cap the game and secure the 94-72 win over the Panthers.
 
The Sycamores hit 57.4% (35-61) from the floor including 63.3% (19-of-30) in the second half in a dominant shooting display at the Enterprise Center. ISU hit 15 three-pointers in the game with all five starters connecting from deep in the win.
 
Xavier Bledson added four points, five assists, and a rebound off the bench, while Jake Wolfe contributed four points and two rebounds in the Indiana State attack.
 
Jacob Hutson paced UNI with 21 points on 9-of-15 shooting, while Bowen Born added 12 points and four assists. Nate Heise was also in double-digits with 10 points.

News & Notes
  • Indiana State won its 28th game, the program's second-most wins in program history. 
  • The Sycamores shot 51.7% from deep, the second-best mark of the season.
  • Ryan Conwell recorded his fifth double-double with 20 points and 13 rebounds. His 13 rebounds is also his career high. Conwell has three double-doubles in the last five games. In the last five games, Conwell is averaging a double-double with 19.4 PPG and 10 RPG. In the past 10 games, he has had eight games with 15+ points.
  • Isaiah Swope logged his second-best shooting game from three, making 5-of-7 and 71.4%.
  • In the past 10 games, Robbie Avila has had six games with 20+ points, scoring 21 in Saturday's win.
  • Julian Larry in the past 10 games has averaged 10.1 PPG and 6.9 AST/G. He shot 6-for-9 in the win.
  • Jayson Kent recorded eight of his nine rebounds in the second half.
  • Jake Wolfe has nearly doubled his RPG number in the MVC Tournament. Entering the week, he averaged 1.7 RPG and has averaged 3.5 RPG through the two wins.
Up Next
The Sycamores take on Drake in the 2024 MVC Tournament Championship on Sunday with a 2:10 p.m. ET tipoff.

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.
Print Friendly Version