TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Four players reached double figures on Saturday as the University of Evansville men's basketball team picked up its first Missouri Valley Conference win of the season taking down Indiana State by a final score of 72-69 inside the Hulman Center.

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Box Score

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Leif Moeller and AJ Casey scored 17 points apiece to lead the Purple Aces. Josh Hughes scored 14 while Alex Hemenway scored 12. Moeller approached a triple-double with eight assists and eight boards, both team bests. Three Sycamores scored in double digits with Ian Scott leading the way with 24 points and 11 rebounds. With the win, UE picked up its second consecutive road win over ISU for the first time since 2006-07.
 
"Our guys did a great job down the stretch; Leif made some huge shots in the final minutes. We did a better job of shooting the ball and finishing the job," UE head men's basketball coach David Ragland said. "Everyone on the floor made big plays that helped us. It was a game of runs by both teams, but we were able to go up by six in the final minute. The finish was crazy but it is good to be on the winning side."
 
Thirteen lead changes took place in the first half with Indiana State taking a 38-35 lead into the break. Leif Moeller hit a 3-pointer to get UE on the board while the Sycamores took their first lead at 4-3. Two baskets by AJ Casey solidified a 9-6 UE lead just over five minutes into the game before ISU countered with six in a row to go up 12-9.
 
Inside the 12-minute mark, a triple by Sterling Young gave ISU its largest lead of the period at 16-11. Evansville rallied with seven in a row to retake an 18-16 lead with 7:56 left in the half. Josh Hughes hit a triple while James Dyson-Merwe and Casey added field goals. Over the next five minutes, the squads swapped the lead numerous times as the score remained within a possession.
 
That changed with 2:51 on the clock when Camp Wagner knocked down a triple to put ISU up 34-30. Inside the final minute, the Sycamores took a 38-33 lead before Moeller found Hughes for a basket at the buzzer to make it a 3-point game at the break.  Casey led the Aces with nine points in the first half. Ian Scott came close to a double-double in the opening 20 minutes with 10 points and eight caroms.
 
Hughes hit a triple in the opening minute to the game, however, ISU pushed the lead back to four points (42-38). With the Sycamores up 43-41, Evansville reeled off seven in a row to take its largest lead to that point at 48-43. The Aces hit four baskets in a row including a triple by Trent Hundley that gave UE the lead.
 
With 10:24 remaining, Indiana State retook a 51-50 edge on a triple while Moeller quickly put UE back on top on the other end. Hemenway added another 3-pointer to extend the lead to 57-53 inside of eight minutes remaining. UE would continue to hold the lead until a rally inside the final three minutes.
 
Two free throws gave ISU a 66-65 edge with 2:06 on the clock. Moeller quickly struck on the other end, draining his third triple of the afternoon to put the lead right back in the Aces hands. Following a pair of missed shots by Indiana State, AJ Casey hit a jumper that gave UE a 70-66 edge with 49 ticks remaining. Casey added a dunk that pushed the lead to six.
 
Indiana State knocked down a triple in the final seconds to cut the deficit to three and forced a UE turnover to regain possession with just 0.2 left. A final 3-point try fell short as UE picked up the victory. For the second game in a row, UE shot 50% from the field, finishing 29-of-58. ISU shot 39.4%. The Sycamores outrebounded the Aces by a 41-31 tally.
 
UE is right back home on Tuesday to complete the season series against Bradley. Tip is set for 7 p.m. at the Ford Center.