The Indiana State women's
basketball team plays their lone Monday night game of the 2012-13 season this
week, hosting the Marshall Thundering Herd at 7:05 p.m. inside Hulman Center on
Monday, Nov. 12.
The game can be heard live on WIBQ 98.5 FM and on the Nelligan Sports Marketing
Radio Network as Brent Holl and Jimmy Kendall cover all the action on the
court. Fans can watch the game live online at GoSycamores.com through
SycamoreVision with a premium subscription.
A win over Marshall this Monday will move Indiana State to 2-0 on the season
and would mark the third time in the last four seasons that the Sycamores have
started a season with two consecutive wins. ISU also went 2-0 in 2009-10 and
2010-11.
Indiana State defeated Eastern Illinois last Friday to win their
fourth-straight season opener, as four Sycamores went into double figures in a
69-39 ISU victory. Junior Anna Munn led the scoring, tossing in 18 points in
Indiana State's 11th consecutive home victory over EIU.
A Little History - Marshall
Monday's game will be the third meeting between Indiana State and Marshall,
with the teams splitting the previous two games. Indiana State opened the
series with a 63-35 win during the 1972-73 season before Marshall won the next
matchup, 102-90, during the 1979-80 season. The Sycamores have not met a member
of Conference USA since the 2009-10 season when Indiana State fell 69-54 to SMU
in the final game of the Nassau Sunsplash Shootout in Nassau, Bahamas on Dec.
20, 2009.
Scouting The Thundering Herd
Marshall opened their 2012-13 season with a two-point victory at home over
Radford, earning head coach Matt Daniel a 65-63 victory in his first career
game as Marshall's head coach. The Thundering Herd went 16-14 last season,
tying for seventh place in Conference USA with a 7-9 mark in league play.
Despite returning three starters and nine letterwinners from last year's team,
Marshall was picked to finish 12th in the conference during the league's
preseason poll. Sophomore Shay Weaver led the team with 19 points off the bench
on Friday afternoon against Radford, while junior Suporia Dickens added 12
points. Weaver is MU's top returning scorer from last season after averaging
6.1 points per game as a freshman.
Game-by-Game - Marshall
Below is a quick look at the all-time series between Indiana State and
Marshall.
1972-73 vs. Marshall - W, 65-35 1979-80
vs. Marshall - L, 90-102
30-Point Win
Indiana State posted a 30-win over Eastern Illinois last Friday, topping
the Panthers 69-39 inside Hulman Center. ISU's win by 30 points was their
largest margin of victory since defeating Southern Illinois by 36 points
(93-57) on Feb. 25, 2011 and their largest in nonconference play since taking
down Southeast Missouri by 44 points (72-28) on Nov. 24, 2009.
Season Openers
With their 69-39 victory over Eastern Illinois last Friday, the Sycamores
improved to 15-16 in season openers dating back to the 1982-83 season. Indiana
State has now won their last four season openers dating back to the 2008-09
season, picking up wins over Kansas State (77-73), Furman (59-36), Detroit
(64-62) and Eastern Illinois (69-39).
Game-by-Game - Season Openers
Below is a quick look at the last 10 season openers for Indiana State.
Nov. 22, 2003 vs. North Texas - L, 73-86 Nov.
15, 2008 at Central Michigan - L, 83-84
Nov. 19, 2004 at Miami (Ohio) - L, 59-62 Nov.
14, 2009 at Kansas State - W, 77-73
Nov. 11, 2005 vs. Chattanooga - W, 74-53 Nov.
12, 2010 vs. Furman - W, 59-36
Nov. 15, 2006 at Iowa - L, 83-88 Nov.
11, 2011 vs. Detroit - W, 64-42
Nov. 11, 2007 vs. Ark.-Pine Bluff - W, 89-55 Nov.
9, 2012 vs. Eastern Illinois - W, 69-39
Home Openers
With their 69-39 victory over Eastern Illinois last Friday, the Sycamores
improved to 22-9 in their home openers dating back to the 1982-83 season.
Indiana State has been even better in recent years, winning 10 of their last 11
and 17 of their last 21 in their first game of the season in Terre Haute.
Game-by-Game - Home Openers
Below is a quick look at the last 10 home openers for Indiana State.
Nov. 28, 2003 vs. Wright State - W, 102-52 Nov.
19, 2008 vs. Marquette - L, 53-77
Nov. 24, 2004 vs. Eastern Illinois - W, 83-56 Nov.
24, 2009 vs. SEMO - W, 72-28
Nov. 11, 2005 vs. Chattanooga - W, 74-53 Nov.
12, 2010 vs. Furman - W, 59-36
Nov. 21, 2006 vs. Eastern Illinois - W, 102-86 Nov.
11, 2011 vs. Detroit - W, 64-42
Nov. 11, 2007 vs. Ark.-Pine Bluff - W, 89-55 Nov.
9, 2012 vs. Eastern Illinois - W, 69-39
Dominant At Home
Thanks to the home-court advantage of Hulman Center, the Sycamores have
been dominant in Terre Haute over the past 11 seasons. Since the 2002-03
season, ISU has played 134 games inside Hulman Center, coming away with
victories on 104 occasions.
Under 61
Indiana State is 25-2 when holding their opposition under 61 points in
their three seasons with head coach Teri Moren, including a 1-0 mark this
season. During MVC games, ISU is 12-1 under head coach Moren when teams score
60 points or fewer. When teams go over 60 points against ISU in the last three
seasons, the Sycamores are 7-30.
First-Half Defense
The Sycamores allowed just nine points in the first half to Eastern
Illinois last Friday inside Hulman Center, taking a 36-9 advantage into the
locker room. The last time that Indiana State allowed nine points or less to an
opponent in a half came back on Dec. 28, 2002, when ISU took a 59-9 lead after
20 minutes over IPFW en route to a 96-28 victory inside Hulman Center.
Helping Out
Indiana State tallied 21 assists on 26 field goals against Eastern Illinois
last Friday, as five members of the roster tallied at least three assists each.
Senior Taylor Whitley led the team with five assists, while junior Anna Munn
and sophomores Jessica Valley and Natasha Zurek each added four and freshman
Kasey Johnson totaled three. The 21 assists as a team are tied for the
fourth-best total under third-year head coach Teri Moren, behind the program
record of 31 assists set against USC Upstate on Dec. 12, 2010.
Dominating The Glass
The Sycamores out-rebounded Eastern Illinois last Friday by a 47-31 margin
(+16), the second-best margin under third-year head coach Teri Moren. ISU's
rebounding advantage led to a 16-4 edge in second-chance points against EIU.
Indiana State's best margin on the glass under head coach Moren came back on
Feb. 25, 2011, when the Sycamores held a +17 edge (48-31) in a 93-57 win at
home over Southern Illinois.
Four In Double Figures
Junior Anna Munn led the team with 18 points against Eastern Illinois last
Friday, while senior Taylor Whitley (14), sophomore Travecia Franklin (12) and
Racheal Mahan (10) also went into double figures. Friday's win over Eastern
Illinois marks the third time in ISU's last four games dating back to last
season that Indiana State has had four scorers go into double figures. Munn
joined Deja Mattox, Brittany Schoen and Shannon Thomas in double digits against
Southern Illinois and Evansville in the final two regular season games from
last season.
Dishing It Out
With her five assists against Eastern Illinois last Friday, senior Taylor
Whitley broke into the Top 10 in program history for career assists, entering
Monday's game with 282 for her career. The Geneva, Ill., native, passed JoDee
Rigel (278 -- 1977-81) and Barbara Graves (280 -- 1979-83) against the Panthers
and currently sits in a tie with Tracy Johnson (282 -- 1978-82) for eighth in
Indiana State history. Kim Darner (286 -- 1988-92) and Amy Walker (379 --
1991-95) hold down seventh and sixth place in Indiana State history,
respectively, for career assists.
Mahan Posts Double-Double
Sophomore Racheal Mahan scored 10 points and pulled down 10 rebounds in
Indiana State's victory over Eastern Illinois last Friday, the Mansfield, Ohio,
native's first career double-double. Mahan's 10 rebounds were also a career
high, as the ISU forward had previously grabbed nine rebounds in her first
career start at Illinois State on Feb. 3, 2012.
Stat Sheet Stuffer
Sophomore Jessica Valley made her first collegiate start last Friday
against Eastern Illinois and turned in an all-around performance. The
Lafayette, Ind., native, led the team with a career-high 12 rebounds while also
adding four points, four assists, two steals and one block in 33 minutes on the
court.
Bench Production
Sophomore Travecia Franklin tossed in a career-high 12 points in 24 minutes
off the bench last Friday against Eastern Illinois, going 5-for-6 from the
field and 2-for-2 at the free-throw line. The Columbus, Ohio, native's, 12
points off the bench were the most for a Sycamore since Racheal Mahan went for
12 points and five rebounds against Drake on Jan. 22, 2012.
Top 40
Indiana State ranked 37th nationally in three-point field-goal percentage
last season, knocking down 34.2% (194-for-568) of their shots from beyond the
arc in 2011-12. Deja Mattox (.438, 49-for-112) and junior Anna Munn (.381,
53-for-139) led the charge for ISU, as Mattox led the league and Munn placed
fifth in the conference, respectively.
Tough Competition
Last season, the Sycamores held the second-best strength of schedule ranking
among teams in the MVC, playing the 90th toughest schedule in the country. Of
Indiana State's 12 nonconference opponents, six entered their league tournament
as one of the top three seeds.
On A Good Pace: Part I
Senior Taylor Whitley enters Monday's game with 789 career points, needing
to average 7.5 points per game in her senior season to become the 26th member
of the 1,000 Point Club at Indiana State. The Geneva, Ill., product averaged
7.6 points per game as a freshman and 12.1 points per game as a sophomore
before totaling a 7.5 points per game average as a junior following an
early-season knee injury.
On A Good Pace: Part II
Junior Anna Munn has knocked down 99 three-pointers in her time at Indiana
State, a pace that puts the junior guard on her way to enter the Top 10 in the
career rankings. Munn is just 24 threes away from 10th place, held by Georgia
Bottoms (123 -- 1993-98). The Indianapolis native knocked 53 three-pointers
last season, ranking second on the team.
Replacing A Big Three
Indiana State will look to replace the scoring of Deja Mattox, Brittany
Schoen and Shannon Thomas this season, three Sycamores that finished their
careers in 2011-12 as members of the 1,000 Point Club. ISU also replaced three
1,000-point scorers following the 2005-06 season, going 19-11 overall and 12-6
in the MVC that season.
Sycamores Tabbed Seventh In MVC
Preseason Poll
In the annual preseason poll voted on by the head coaches, sports
information directors and a media panel from around the Missouri Valley Conference,
the Indiana State women's basketball team has been picked seventh in the league
heading into the 2012-13 season as announced by the league office today (Oct.
29).
The Creighton Bluejays, the 2012 MVC Tournament champions, were picked to win
the league this season, receiving 26 of the 40 first-place votes and 382
points. Wichita State (12 first-place votes, 347 points), Illinois State (two
first-place votes, 323 points), Northern Iowa (272 points) and Missouri State
(265 points) round out the top-half of the league.
Bradley (144), Indiana State (135), Southern Illinois (123), Drake (121) and
Evansville (119) complete the poll, as just 25 points separated sixth place and
10th place in the preseason standings.
On To The Next One...
Indiana State plays their next two games on the road, beginning with a trip
to Bloomington, Ind., to face the Indiana Hoosiers on Friday, Nov. 16. The
Sycamores remain on the road on Tuesday, Nov. 20, taking on IUPUI in
Indianapolis.
The Sycamores return home again on Sunday, Nov. 25, as the men's and women's
basketball programs will host a doubleheader inside Hulman Center. The men's
team plays High Point at 1:00 p.m. before the women's team tips off at 4:00
p.m. against Belmont.
