Source: Icon Sportswire / Getty
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. — It was pure poetry that unfolded inside the Hulman Center in Terre Haute on a cold Wednesday night. Poetry in the sense of the adversity faced by this ISU team both before the game and during it. Indiana defeated Southern Methodist 101-92 to advance to the next round of the NIT.
The Sycamores were unceremoniously left out of the NCAA Tournament, and the result of the Colorado State-Virginia game the day before left an even more sour taste in the mouths of Sycamore fans.
The alternative was a good showing in the NIT, in which Indiana State is a 1-seed. But the game’s first 22 minutes looked like anything but.
Southern Methodist, a 20-12 team out of the strong American Conference, came out swinging, shooting, rebounding, and scraping to get out and keep an early lead.
“The first ten minutes were pretty poor,” ISU head coach Josh Schertz. “But, I think after that we actually settled in and played pretty well. (SMU’s) shot make was, like, they were 9-for13 from three at one point.”
The Mustangs would play the entire first half with the lead. But never out of step and out of mind was Jayson Kent, a 6-foot-8, 205-pound, muscular forward, who picked up where the team was lacking to keep the Sycamores only a few steps behind SMU.
Kent was especially needed given the game’s ‘questionable’ officiating, SMU’s stellar shooting, and SMU’s ability to keep ISU star Robbie Avila contained. Avila would only score 13 points and grab eight rebounds for the night. A slow night by his standards.
Avila’s strength in the game was his passing. Finding Kent, Ryan Conwell, Xavier Bledson, and Julian Larry all over the floor setting them up for one smooth layup after the other; one made 3-pointer after the other.
Still, SMU, led by Jaheim Hudson, kept ISU under their thumb. Hudson would make shot after shot every time the Sycamores began to get in a rhythm and cut the Mustang lead. By the half, ISU found themselves down 49-40.
The frustration continued as the deficit swelled to 57-42 with 18:19 to play after BJ Edwards of SMU hit two free throws off of another ‘questionable’ foul called on Larry. The good thing for Indiana State was that the ‘questionable’ officiating was going both ways. SMU had three players with four fouls by the time the clock shot 15:00 to play.
“Our energy was not good the first couple minutes of the second half,” Schertz said.
Bledson then sparked what would become the miraculous Sycamore comeback with back-to-back lay-ups off empty possessions from SMU. Kent added the next four for ISU and before you knew it, Indiana State was on a heater to let SMU know they were not going away.
With 11:34 to play Ryan Conwell, a lefty from Pike High School in Indianapolis, drained a 3-pointer that sent shockwaves through the increasingly raucous crowd inside the Hulman Center. It sparked a 16-5 run in which Kent and Bledson would pour it on from behind the arc to tie the game at 74-74 with 8:22 to play.
“I was making hustle plays,” Kent said of the run. “Coach always says I make my best plays off my energy. So that’s what I need to do in that moment.”
The 16-5 run turned into a 25-6 run that sent the ISU faithful into a frenzy. SMU played flummoxed, out-of-breath, and without two players in the final five minutes as Tyreek Smith and Keon Ambrose-Hylton both fouled out of the game.
The horn sounded with Indiana State on top 101-92. Kent finished with a career-high 35 points. Ryan Conwell added 25 points going 4-of-7 from behind the arc. Bledson had 14 off the bench.
“We took a gut punch, we were devastated on Sunday,” Schertz said. ” We thought we deserved to be in the tournament. To pick yourself up and put the pieces back, to be down 15 points with 18 minutes to play and come back, they showed unbelievable resilience.”
Schertz walked off the court to chats of “We want Schertz!” as students and fans alike professed their love for him and their hope he might stay at ISU next season as the rumor mill turns about his coaching future.
For now, Schertz is focused on getting the Sycamores ready for another home NIT game this coming Sunday as they will host Minnesota at 2:00 pm EDT.
Rest assured, Indiana State has made it clear they will not be ignored this post-season.
The post NIT: Kent Drops 35 Leading Indiana State Back From Brink Against SMU appeared first on WIBC 93.1 FM.
NIT: Kent Drops 35 Leading Indiana State Back From Brink Against SMU was originally published on wibc.com
