Published: January 08, 2009 12:12 am         

Shots just don’t fall for ISU men against Drake

Sycamores play tough in loss against Drake Bulldogs

Des Moines, Iowa — Indiana State’s men’s basketball team was looking for improvement in several areas, and for the most part, succeeded at Drake on Wednesday.

Rebounding? Check. ISU outrebounded Drake 41-28, the only time the Sycamores have outrebounded a Division I foe by a double-digit margin. Turnovers? ISU had 16 turnovers, many late in the game when the outcome was no longer in doubt. ISU had more verve when it came to toughness.

ISU might have been tougher at the Knapp Center, but it still lost the war. The Sycamores shot 32.1 percent from the field and were 2 of 23 from 3-point range and their inability to hit shots determined their fate in a 69-50 loss.

“We finally get our guys to play more aggressive, I thought we competed, I thought our effort was good, and our execution was decent for the most part, but against a zone we did get it inside, but eventually, you have to hit some three’s,” ISU coach Kevin McKenna said. “You have to make some shots. If you go 2-for-23 you’re not going to win many games.”

Isiah Martin led ISU with 12 points and Carl Richard chipped in 11, but no other Sycamores could get going offensively. Despite the final margin, ISU was within eight-to-10 points of the Bulldogs for most of the second half, but its inability to get a shot to fall kept the Sycamores from breaking through. Many of the shots were open and were set up within the framework of the offense. Several open looks swirled around the rim, others clanked inside the cylinder, only to fall out.

“The effort was there, we outrebounded somebody. We played hard, we didn’t have as many turnovers, our shots just weren’t falling. I guess that happens sometimes,” Martin said.

ISU (3-12, 1-3) also hurt itself with untimely misses at the free throw line. Overall, the Sycamores were 14 of 24 at the line, many of the misses occurring at key junctures.

With Drake up 51-42 with 7:23 left, ISU’s last best chance to get in the game went by the boards when Aaron Carter missed the first two of three free throws after he was fouled on a 3-point attempt. Drake’s Adam Templeton hit a 3-pointer on Drake’s next possession and ISU never got within 10 again as it made just one field goal in the last 7 minutes, 23 seconds of the game.

“Free throws are a big part of things as far as keeping contact with the team, keeping pressure on them. It’s a lot easier to play with a 10-point lead than a five or six-point lead. We couldn’t keep the pressure on him by making enough shots or free throws. They were able to play comfortably for the last six or seven minutes,” McKenna said.

It was that way for the entire second half for ISU. With a five-point halftime lead, Drake came up empty on eight of its first 11 possessions, but ISU could only shave its deficit by one point as its own shots did not fall. Overall, ISU shot 26.1 percent in the second half and was 0-for-10 from 3-point range.

“Everytime we’d get a chance to get back in the game, we’d get an open shot and we wouldn’t make it. Then we’d give up a layup on the other end and they’d bump it back up,” McKenna said. “It’s a frustrating thing for our guys, but our effort was better, our intensity was better. We just couldn’t make shots.”

ISU came away relatively unscathed after a first half in which it shot 36 percent and trailed by as much as 10. The Sycamores were down 31-21 with 2:31 when it finished the half on a 5-0 run. Consecutive Drake turnovers gave ISU a chance to close in with an Aaron Carter 3-pointer and a Jay Tunnell 20-footer at the buzzer after ISU rebounded the second of two missed free throws to help the Sycamores close it to 31-26 at the break.

The surprise of the first half was Martin, who had 10 points at halftime. ISU did a good job working the ball into Tunnell in the lane, who found Martin for a few open looks, but Martin also hit an uncharacteristic 13-footer and had a dunk off a Tunnell miss.

“I knew I could do it, I was just waiting for that game where my offense would come back and this was that game. I’ll just have to carry it into Saturday,” Martin said.

Drake (12-4, 3-1) built its first half lead thanks to timely shots by Templeton, who scored nine of his 12 points before the break. Craig Stanley, who led all scorers with 15 points, hit the key shots in the second half for the Bulldogs. Josh Young notched his first career double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds.

ISU plays host to Illinois State on Saturday. It is Servpro Fan Appreciation Day as all unsold tickets are being distributed free to the public during Hulman Center business hours.



Indiana State 50

mi fg 3pt ft r a pf tp

Tunnell 30 1-1 0-3 5-8 10 2 2 9

Leitnaker 5 1-1 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 2

Reed 32 1-6 0-4 3-4 3 1 3 5

Marshall 37 1-7 1-4 1-2 2 3 1 4

Carter 22 2-5 1-2 2-4 4 1 2 7

Crawford 10 0-2 0-0 0-0 2 0 2 0

Martin 22 6-8 0-0 0-2 3 0 2 12

Printy 15 0-8 0-8 0-0 4 2 3 0

Richard 27 4-9 0-2 3-4 8 2 2 11

Totals 17-53 2-23 14-24 41* 11 17 50

Drake 69

mi fg 3pt ft r a pf tp

Heemskerk 17 2-4 0-0 2-2 5 1 3 6

Cox 30 4-8 1-3 1-1 2 1 2 10

Templeton 33 4-8 4-8 0-0 3 2 3 12

Stanley 30 5-8 1-1 4-4 0 3 3 15

Young 36 3-8 1-4 7-8 10 2 1 14

White 8 0-2 0-0 0-0 2 0 3 0

Baryenbruch 3 0-1 0-1 0-0 0 0 0 0

Eaddy 9 1-1 1-1 0-0 1 2 1 3

Parker 27 3-9 1-4 2-2 4 3 1 9

Hall 7 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 1 0 0

Totals 22-49 9-22 16-17 28* 15 17 69

Halftime score — DU 31, ISU 26. FG % — ISU .321, DU .449; 3P% — ISU .087, DU .409; FT% — ISU .583, DU .941. Steals — ISU 4 (Reed 2), DU 11 (Parker 5); Blocks — ISU 3 (Tunnell 2), DU 3 (Heemskerk, White, Parker 1). Turnovers — ISU 16, DU 9. (*) Includes team rebounds — ISU 5, DU 1. A — 4,217.

Next — ISU (3-12, 1-3) plays host to Illinois State on Saturday. Drake (12-4, 3-1) plays host to Wichita State on Sunday.