Box Score

EVANSVILLE, Ind. – Colt Ryan tied for the game-high with 19 points, but another second-half shooting drought helped Indiana State earn a 72-62 win over the University of Evansville men’s basketball team on Saturday evening at the Hulman Center.
 
Ryan led the Aces (11-8, 4-3 MVC) with 19 points while Ned Cox and Troy Taylor each finished the night with 11.  Taylor helped in all facets of the game as usual as he tallied a game-high 7 rebounds while tying Ryan for the team lead with five assists.  Leading the way for the Sycamores (12-6, 5-2 MVC) was Manny Arop, who matched Ryan’s 19-point total.  Jake Odum notched 17 on a 4-5 shooting night while knocking down nine free throws.
 
The Aces were strong out of the gate as they jumped out to a 9-2 lead, before hitting seven of its first eight attempts to grab a double-digit lead at 17-6.  Ned Cox began with three early buckets on his way to seven points.  With UE up 21-10, the Sycamores made their first run as Jake Odum finished off a 3-point play as ISU scored eight out of nine points to cut the gap to 22-18 inside of 10 minutes remaining in the half.
 
Troy Taylor finished an old-fashioned three-point play, but Indiana State kept the pressure on, getting within two points at 28-26.  A quick finish helped UE reestablish its lead at six points as Adam Wing knocked down a long jumper send the Aces to the half up 32-26.  Evansville shot 54.2% in the half while ISU was at 45.8%.  Jake Kitchell and Manny Arop combined to go 6-for-6 in the period for ISU while the rest of the team was just 5-19.
 
After missing all four 3-pointers in the opening stanza, the Sycamores connected on a pair over the first five minutes of the second half as RJ Mahurin knocked one down to cut UE’s 6-point halftime lead to just a pair at 36-34. Seconds later, Arop hit a pair of free throws to tie the game for the first time since tip (36-36).
 
Evansville’s offense began the half just 1-of-11 from the floor, but Taylor and Lewis Jones hit back-to-back buckets to get the offense back on track, but Kitchell continued his perfect day, hitting his fourth field goal in as many attempts to give Indiana State its first lead of the game at 44-42.  His bucket helped ISU begin the half 6-of-9 from the floor while UE was 4-21.
 
An 11-0 run, including seven by Arop, helped the Sycamores jump out to their largest lead at 49-42.  Colt Ryan ended the Sycamore streak with a pair of free throws with 6:43 remaining, ending a 5-minute scoreless drought.  The threes kept falling as a trey by Khristian Cummings helped ISU take its largest lead at 56-46.  Colt Ryan kept UE in the fold with five in a row of his own as his three with 4:45 remaining cut the gap back down to five at 56-51.
 
A dagger came with about three minutes left in the game.  Down by six, Ryan stole the ball, but missed a tough layup.  The Sycamores corralled the rebound and took it down the floor where Lucas Eitel knocked down a triple to make it a 62-53 lead.  The Aces began fouling the Sycamores to try and make their way back into it, but ISU was able to hold on for the 72-62 win.
 
For the first time this season, the Aces fell in a game where they outrebounded the opposition; UE had a 36-29 edge on the boards, falling to 7-1 when winning that statistic.  Shooting 59.1% in the second half, the Sycamores finished the night at 52.2%.  The Aces started the game with a 54.2% effort in the first half, but were just 10-of-35 (28.6%) in the second frame, finishing the night with an even 39%.  In the last two games, UE has combined to hit just 17 out of 64 second-half attempts, including two out of 18 three-pointers.
 
It is back to the Ford Center for the Purple Aces as they welcome in Bradley on Wednesday evening.  Tip will be at 7:05 p.m.