Indiana State Sycamores
Missouri Valley (23-10, 12-6)
Of course Wichita State garnered all of the attention in the Missouri Valley Conference, but Indiana State was clearly the second best team. The MVC appears to be down this year, but the conference is extremely balanced behind the Shockers and the Sycamores and Indiana State deserves more credited than they have gotten for another quality season.
Big Wins: 11/17 at Notre Dame (83-70), 12/28 Belmont (85-73), 1/15 Missouri State (70-55)
Bad Losses: 1/29 at Southern Illinois (60-79), 2/26 at Illinois State (59-77), 3/1 Northern Iowa (69-71)
Coach: Greg Lansing (4 seasons at Indiana State)
Why They Can Surprise:
Indiana State is a balanced and experienced squad. Coach Greg Lansing utilizes six upperclassmen in his eight man rotation. Despite the balance, the clear star is Jake Odum, who led the team in points, assists and second in rebounds. Odum has not exactly been the model of consistency when it comes to scoring, but he is a leader whether his shot is falling or not. Shooting guard Dawon Cummings and wing Manny Arop are capable of picking up the scoring load, especially from beyond the arc. Like Odum and Arop, Khristian Smith and Justin Gant also have double figures in the scoring column.
Why They Can Disappoint:
The good news is that Indiana State has made a postseason tournament for five straight years now. That is quite impressive considering prior to that their last postseason appearance was back in 2001. Unfortunately, the Sycamores have lost their first game in the CBI, CIT, NIT and NCAA over the last four years. Can this group buck that trend and actually earn a win? With so many seniors in the backcourt this could be the year for the Sycamores to make a bit of a tournament run.
Probable Starters:
Jake Odum, Senior, Guard, 13.2 ppg, 4.5 apg,
Dawon Cummings, Senior, Guard, 9.8 ppg, 2.3 apg
Manny Arop, Senior, Guard, 10.9 ppg, 4.7 rpg
Justin Gant, Junior, Forward, 10.2 ppg, 3.9 rpg
Jake Kitchell, Junior, Center, 3.2 ppg, 2.9 rpg
Key Roleplayers:
Devonte Brown, Sophomore, Guard, 5.2 ppg, 1.6 apg
Lucas Eitel, Senior, Guard, 2.3 ppg
Khristian Smith, Sophomore, Guard, 10.5 ppg, 4.3 rpg
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 71.1 (185th in nation, 3rd in conference)
Scoring Defense: 67.8 (115, 4)
Field-Goal Percentage: 45.4 (120, 5)
Field-Goal Defense: 43.5 (170, 3)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 6.5 (139, 6)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 34.9 (143, 5)
Free-Throw Percentage: 72.1 (98, 3)
Rebound Margin: 0.9 (162, 4)
Assists Per Game: 13.0 (150, 5)
Turnovers Per Game: 11.2 (69, 4)
Recent Postseason Appearances:
2013 NIT First Round loss to Iowa
2012 CIT First Round loss to Robert Morris
2011 NCAA Round of 64 loss to Syracuse
2010 CBI First Round loss to St. Louis
2001 NCAA Round of 64 win over Oklahoma
2001 NCAA Round of 32 loss to Gonzaga
2000 NCAA Round of 64 loss to Texas
*all team stats through 3/9
See All Men’s Basketball Postseason Capsules
