TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Indiana State begins its longest homestand of the season Sunday afternoon with an in-state showdown against Evansville inside Hulman Center. Sunday's game is the first of three straight at home for the Sycamores.
Sunday's game will tip at 2 p.m. and will be carried on ESPN+ with Adrian Madrid (play-by-play) and Brandon Oelrich (analyst) on the call. John Sherman will also have the radio call on WVIG-FM/105.5 The Legend.
Gameday Promotions
In partnership with the Vigo County School Corporation, Indiana State will welcome sixth-grade students from around the area for Sunday's game.
Sunday's game will also feature a halftime performance from Avon Jump Rope.
Last Time Out
Savannah White tallied a career-high 12 points Sunday afternoon as part of a balanced scoring effort for Indiana State, but the Sycamores were unable to overcome a slow start in a 65-52 defeat to Bradley inside Renaissance Coliseum
White also led the Sycamores with six rebounds and a career-high four assists, while
Keslyn Secrist added 12 points off the bench.
Mia Simpson scored in double-figures for the second straight game with 10.
Indiana State struggled from the field early on, hitting just three of its first 14 shots as Bradley opened up a seven-point lead after a quarter. The Sycamores clawed their way back within three early in the second but a scoring run followed for the home side as Indiana State faced a double-digit deficit at the half. Indiana State pulled within two possessions on multiple occasions in the last two quarters, using an inside and midrange game to inch closer. The Sycamores never got closer than five, though, as Bradley pulled away late.
Home Sweet Hulman
Indiana State begins its longest homestand of the season with Sunday's game, with the Sycamores playing three straight games inside Hulman Center in an eight-day span.
The Sycamores have played nine of their last 10 games away from home prior to Sunday's game. The upcoming stretch is the only time this season where Indiana State has back-to-back home weekends.
Three's Company
Indiana State leads the MVC in 3-point percentage during the first two weeks of league play, with the Sycamores shooting 46.4 percent from behind the arc against league foes.
The Sycamores have hit at least five 3-pointers in each of the first three MVC games, and have knocked down 20 treys against conference foes.
Bella Finnegan and
Keslyn Secrist are both shooting better than 40 percent from 3-point range in conference play and average 4.7 treys per game between them.
Rejected
Indiana State is the top shot-blocking team during conference play, with the Sycamores averaging five blocks per contest against MVC competition. The Trees have registered three or more blocks in each of the first three conference games this season.
Four different Sycamores rank in the top 20 in blocks per game against conference foes, including three in the top 10 in Chloe Willliams (1.5),
Savannah White (1.0) and
Bella Finnegan (1.0).
No Start, No Problem
Indiana State has received increased contributions from its bench in recent games, with the Sycamores tallying 22 bench points in each of the last two games. The Trees have scored 20-plus points off the bench in five of the last six games.
Indiana State has had a double-digit scorer off the bench in each of the last two games and five of the last six.
Mia Simpson scored in double-figures off the bench at Illinois State, while
Keslyn Secrist tallied double-digit points off the bench at Bradley.
Taking Advantage
Indiana State capitalized on Bradley's miscues in its most recent game, with the Sycamores scoring 16 points off 13 Bradley turnovers.
The Sycamores have tallied double-digit points off turnovers in 11 of the first 14 games this season, and are averaging 16.1 points off turnovers per game during the 2024-25 campaign.
Evansville At A Glance
Evansville enters Sunday's game at 4-10 overall and 0-3 in conference play. The Purple Aces are still in search of their first win away from home (0-7 away, 0-2 neutral).
Maggie Hartwig leads the Purple Aces with 16.9 points and 8.9 rebounds per game, while Camryn Runner adds 16.2 points, 4.8 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game. Julia Palomo is nearly averaging double-figures this season with 9.4 points per game and has also dished out 2.9 assists per contest. As a team, Evansville is one of the top free throw shooting units in the nation at 78.2 percent from the charity stripe.
Robyn Scherr is in her fourth season as head coach at Evansville and owns a 27-79 record with the Purple Aces. Scherr has a career record of 171-162 across stops at Roosevelt, Davenport and Evansville.
Series History Against Evansville
Indiana State is 44-22 all-time against Evansville, including a 24-9 mark in Terre Haute. The Sycamores swept the season series last year, winning 66-49 in Evansville and 69-66 in Terre Haute.
Last Meeting Against Evansville (Feb. 22, 2024)
Kiley Bess and
Chelsea Cain both registered double-doubles, leading Indiana State to a 69-66 win over visiting Evansville inside Hulman Center.
Cain was one of three Sycamores to finish with 14 points and also pulled down 10 rebounds. Bess finished with 12 points and a career-high 10 boards, while
Mya Glanton and
Ella Sawyer had 14 points apiece.
Indiana State trailed after the opening quarter, but layups from Bess and Sawyer started a 12-2 run to put Sycamores ahead for the remainder of the half. The Trees went into the locker room up 38-27 thanks to an 8-0 run to close the second quarter, but Evansville battled back in the second half. Indiana State led by 10 early in the third following baskets from Finnegan and Glanton, but Evansville halved the Sycamore lead by the end of the quarter. The Purple Aces rallied to take the lead midway through the fourth quarter, but each of the Sycamores' four double-digit scorers contributed to an 9-0 run which put the Trees ahead for good. Sawyer knocked down four late free throws and Evansville's last-second shot was off the mark to seal the series sweep for Indiana State.
Up Next
Indiana State's three-game homestand continues Thursday night against Southern Illinois, with tipoff from Hulman Center set for 7 p.m.
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