Staff report
The Tribune-Star
Omaha, Neb. — A slow start Saturday at Creighton doomed the Indiana State women’s basketball team. The host Bluejays jumped ahead 12-0 and 20-6 before hanging on for a 66-53 victory over the Sycamores (16-13, 7-11 MVC).
ISU will be the eighth-seed in the Missouri Valley Conference tournament, which begins Thursday at St. Charles (Mo.) Family Arena.
Sophomore Brittany Schoen led the way for ISU with 15 points on a trio of 3-pointers, shooting 6-for-10 from the field. Senior Kelsey Luna also reached double-figure scoring with 13 points, hitting three triples to extend her career total to 262 career treys, which is fifth all-time in MVC history.
Sophomore Deja Mattox also totaled nine points in 18 minutes off the bench.
Creighton’s Megan Neuvirth finished with 22 points, and Sam Schuett and Chevelle Herring had 11 each. Kellie Nelson led CU on the boards with 10 rebounds.
“It’s tough to battle back against a team that is as talented and sound as Creighton,” said ISU assistant coach Clint Weddle. “But the positives are that our turnovers were down again, and I thought we did a good job on the boards with our post players there.”
Creighton led by double digits throughout the second half.
ISU will play at 6 p.m. EST on Thursday against Southern Illinois. With a victory, the Sycamores would play Friday at 1 p.m. against top-seeded Illinois State.
