SHINING SYCAMORES

Basketball's Lucas Eitel

By Kevin Jenisen

When you become used to a supporting cast of teammates that you have been playing with for years, the loss of a teammate can make it seem like you are quite alone on the basketball court.

That feeling is even deeper when that teammate is your twin brother. Indiana State junior guard Lucas Eitel knows that feeling all too well. For his entire life he had his twin brother, Logan, on the court with him including the first two seasons at Indiana State but then Logan left the team to pursue the ministry.

“He still comes in and practices ever once in a while and also comes and hangs out with the team,” Lucas said of his twin brother. “I still live with him and am around him all the time but it is different not playing with him on the court.”

It has been a bit of an adjustment for Lucas but he is still doing what he has done all his life … playing basketball.

“I think that just having a twin brother around that you have always played with made us both better on the court,” Lucas said. “He still thinks he can take me.”

The twins, who grew up in Marshall, Ill., caught the eye of Sycamore head coach Greg Lansing while playing for the Marshall Lions. The desire to play at Indiana State and the proximity of the school to their home was key in their decision to be a part of the Sycamore basketball program.

“I have always been somewhat of an Indiana State fan,” Lucas said. “Coach Lansing really came after us and asked us to be a part of the program. We saw an opportunity to be part of a program that was close to home so we really wanted to come to Indiana State.”

While basketball may be what brought Lucas to Indiana State, it is not the only important part of his collegiate life. He is also a math education major and very active in campus ministry. He sees a future where he will be teaching children a skill they need and coaching basketball in middle school or high school.

“I have always had a passion for coaching and math education has kind of been my way into it,” Lucas said. “I want to coach basketball in high school or at the middle school level.”

Lucas switched to math education after his freshman year.

“I spent a summer in Orlando and a couple of my buddies were math education majors and were saying how they also wanted to coach,” Lucas said. “Math has always been something that I have been good at, better than some other areas anyway. The more I thought about it, the more I thought about the impact that I could have as a teacher and just being able to coach. That would be a cool opportunity for me.”

Another important aspect of Lucas’ life is his faith. Twin brother Logan stopped playing basketball because he wanted to pursue the ministry and just put his time into different areas. That thought has also crossed Lucas’ mind.

“I am still actively involved in our ministry on campus,” Lucas, a member of the Disciples of Christ, said. “It has really affected me. I became a Christian my freshman year when I got to campus so that is the biggest part of my life, even bigger than basketball.”

Lucas spent a couple of summers in Orlando with his ministry and firmly believes that his work is the biggest part of his life right now.

“I even try to keep basketball within that,” Lucas said.

There may have been a bit of divine intervention earlier this season when Indiana

State defeated High Point in the Hulman Center and Lucas didn’t miss a shot he took. The junior guard ended up making 9-of-9 from the field including 7-of-7 from three-point range and scoring a career high 25 points in his first collegiate start.

“It was just one of those games when it just kept going in,” Lucas said. “I didn’t really think about it much. I do remember going into halftime thinking that I haven’t missed yet and then I just told myself that I had to keep doing what I’m doing and if I get a good shot, I’m going to keep taking them. If they happen to fall, they will. Before then and since then I have taken the same shots that just haven’t gone in. You just come to expect every shot will go in. I am hoping to have more games that like this season.”

Shining Sycamores: Football's Michael Mardis