TERRE HAUTE, IND.--Trine hung tough, but fell to Division-I foe Indiana State, 68-54, in an exhibition contest held Sunday afternoon at the Hulman Center.
Reigning-Missouri Valley Conference Sixth Man of the Year Khristian Smith scored 21 points on 7-of-10 shooting to lead ISU. Will Dixon (Indianapolis, Ind./Zionsville) led the Thunder with 15 points on 7-of-19 shooting. After a slow start that saw Trine facing a 36-17 deficit at the half, the Thunder recovered to shoot 52 percent and outscore the Sycamores 37-32 after the break. The Sycamores shot 44 percent on the afternoon (20-of-45) and outrebounded Trine by a 40-26 margin.
Jared Holmquist (Reed City, Mich./Reed City) turned in a solid effort with 12 points on 6-of-11 shooting. Tyler Good (Swanton, Ohio/Evergreen) added 11 points. All 15 players to suit up saw action for the Thunder, with six newcomers seeing action.
Justin Gant added 18 points and eight rebounds for the Sycamores, who are coming off an appearance in the NIT last season. ISU committed 18 turnovers to Trine's 16. Brandon Murphy came off the bench to add 13 points.
The Thunder battled ISU tough inthe early going, as the Sycamores held a 7-6 lead at the first media timeout at 14:02. Holmquist, Dixon and Good scored buckets in the early going for Trine. From the Sycamores' athleticism took over as they scored they scored the next eight points
ISU shot 50 percent from the field in the first half (12-of-24), while Trine was just 7-of-29 (24 percent) to start.
The Thunder got more comfortable in the second half, finding rhythm in their offensive sets and executing down the stretch. Dixon scored 13 of his points in the second half, showing his usual array of shots off the dribble. Holmquist scored 10 after the break before fouling out.
TU took much better care of the basketball in the second half as well, with just six turnovers after the break.
Trine will open the regular-season Saturday, Nov. 15 when they travel to Heidelberg. Tip-off is scheduled for 5:30 p.m.
