TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – League-leading Indiana State had four players score in double figures, including a game-high 25 from Ryan Conwell and 24 from Robbie Avila, to hand Missouri State a 88-66 defeat here Tuesday in Valley play.
Avila was 9-of-15 from the field with 10 rebounds and 4 assists to lead the home club (15-3, 6-1 MVC), while Cromwell knocked down seven of his club’s 17 threes on the evening.
The Bears (10-8, 2-5) kept the second half even until the Sycamores tacked on four threes in the final three minutes with the game in hand. NJ Benson’s put-back at the 3:30 mark made it a 76-61 game.
Benson finished 7-of-10 from the field for 14 points and 8 rebounds, while Alston Mason led the Bears with 15 points and 7 assists, including three triples. Donovan Clay also pitched in 12 for the visitors who shot a respectable 45 percent from the field for the game with just 8 turnovers.
Missouri State led 3-0 out of the gates on Mason’s first triple of the contest, but ISU’s ensuing 6-0 run put the Sycamores ahead for good. The Bears would trim their deficit to six twice and seven four times late in the opening half before another ISU 7-0 run before the intermission put it ahead, 44-30 at the midway point.
Benson scored twice to open the second half to make it a 44-34 game. But another 9-0 outburst, led by Conwell stretched it to a 19-point contest.
Indiana State posted a 20-point lead five times from there, but each time MSU rallied. Matthew Lee’s triple at the 4:45 mark made it a 74-59 game. Later, Benson made it 76-61 with his third offensive rebound of the game at the three-and-a-half minute mark.
For the game, Missouri State was 27-of-60 (.450) from the field, 7-of-17 (.412) from three and 5-of-10 (.500) at the line with 29 rebounds.
Indiana State had just three more field goals, finishing 30-for-54 (.556) from the field, 11-of-26 (.423) from three and 17-of-23 (.739) at the stripe with 34 rebounds.
Both teams had 15 assists.
