Indiana State Basketball

Indiana State star Robbie Avila is transferring to Saint Louis, he announced Saturday. Avila will follow his head coach Josh Schertz, who was hired by Saint Louis following the end of the season.

Let’s work‼️3️⃣1️⃣4️⃣ pic.twitter.com/e0agSUd4eJ

— Robbie Avila (@Robbie_Avila30) April 20, 2024

NEWS: Indiana State star transfer Robbie Avila has committed to Saint Louis, following his coach Josh Schertz, he tells @On3sports.

The 6-10 sophomore averaged 17.5 points, 6.6 rebounds and 4.0 assists this season. https://t.co/ZKK4PNXOH6 pic.twitter.com/DePJ7TWIeh

— Joe Tipton (@TiptonEdits) April 20, 2024

Avila, a sophomore, averaged 17.4 points, 6.6 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game for the Sycamores last year, leading the team to a 32-7 record and an NIT championship game appearance.

The Billikens went 13-20 last year before firing head coach Travis Ford.

Coming out of high school, Avila was a 2-star prospect according to 247Sports, but his outstanding play during the 2023-24 season made him one of the top transfers. He was considered to be a 4-star transfer prospect and the No. 43 overall player in the portal by 247Sports.

While Avila likely had his choice of Power 6 schools, he said his relationship with Schertz ultimately led him to Saint Louis, per the St. Louis-Dispatch's Stu Durando.

"I believed in him when he recruited me to Indiana State and it went well there, so I didn't see a reason to change it up," Avila said. "I was convinced from the beginning to follow him here. The biggest thing that draws me to him is he's up front and honest and we've had a good deal the last few years."

The fan favorite among college basketball fans will be a big part of Saint Louis' rebuild. He was the runner-up for the Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year and will have a good chance to take home the A10 Player of the Year award in 2024.

The news of Avila's transfer comes after the Billikens' star player from last season, Gibson Jimerson, announced he would return for his final season after entering the transfer portal. Jimerson averaged 15.8 points per game last year.

With Jimerson returning and Avila joining, Saint Louis could make a run at the NCAA tournament next season.

After the departure of head coach Josh Schertz, the exodus of Indiana State players continued on Tuesday.

According to Sports Illustrated's Pat Forde, Indiana State center Robbie Avila plans to enter the transfer portal, making him the fifth Sycamores starter to do so.

Forde noted that "it would make sense" if some of the players followed Schertz to Saint Louis.

Avila became a national sensation this year during his breakout season in which he averaged 17.5 points, 6.6 rebounds and 4.0 assists and earned first-team All-Missouri Valley Conference honors. He was nicknamed "Cream Abdul-Jabbar" for his trademark goggles and his skills in the low post.

Rick Semmler of Sports 10 noted that Avila will be "in the NIL open market at his next school" and is "looking at a minimum of $250K" in NIL money going forward.

Indiana State fell short of the NCAA tournament as one of the first four out, and the team went on a run to the NIT Championship before falling to Seton Hall in the title game.

Schertz was hired by Saint Louis shortly after Indiana State's season came to an end. He received a contract worth $2 million annually, making him one of the highest-paid coaches in the Atlantic 10, per Matt Norlander of CBS Sports.

In addition to Avila's planned departure from Indiana State, guards Ryan Conwell, Isaiah Swope, Jayson Kent and Julian Larry also have entered the transfer portal.

Each player averaged over 11 or more points this season, so they should receive a solid amount of interest from other schools.

The Seton Hall Pirates are NIT champions for the first time since 1953.

Senior guard/forward Dre Davis made a clutch layup Thursday night to seal Seton Hall's 79-77 NIT championship game victory over Indiana State.

DRE DAVIS FOR THE LEAD!!!!@SetonHallMBB x #NIT2024 pic.twitter.com/jEBvg9kcsB

— NIT (@NITMBB) April 5, 2024

It was part of a wild end to the game for Seton Hall:

WILD FINISH 😱

Seton Hall wins the NIT championship after going on a 9-0 run in the final minutes 👏 pic.twitter.com/uQ1QTSLbxu

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) April 5, 2024

After heading into halftime tied 39-39, Seton Hall fell into a late deficit.

The Pirates then went on a nine-point run to finish the game, leading to senior Seton Hall guard Al-Amir Dawes tying the score at 77-77 with a three-point jump shot with just over one minute left.

After the win, Dawes was named the NIT MVP.

Al-Amir Dawes wins NIT most outstanding player. What a way to end his career.

— Jerry Carino (@NJHoopsHaven) April 5, 2024

The tight game between the two teams, as well as the highlight-reel plays in crunch time by Davis and Dawes, led fans to question why Seton Hall wasn't granted an NCAA tournament bid.

The snub was a surprise for the Pirates, who won six of their last seven games, made it to the Big East Tournament quarterfinals and ranked No. 32 in the NCAA's NET rankings before being listed as one of the "first four out" of the Round of 68.

Simply undeniable that Seton Hall + Indiana St. would've made for a better NCAA Tournament. That's bid thief life, though, and I wouldn't trade a 69th team for it. Just tweak the process. Two really good teams that made this year's NIT feel as entertaining as it's been in years.

— Matt Norlander (@MattNorlander) April 5, 2024

That was a great game. Two teams that should’ve made the tournament. Seton Hall wins NIT by closing with a 9-0 run.

— Zach Braziller (@NYPost_Brazille) April 5, 2024

Shaheen Holloway taught his team a very important lesson: You can't control what happens to you in life --- you can control how you respond.

Seton Hall wins a classic over Indiana State to win the Postseason NIT.

The Pirates belonged in the NCAA Tournament.

— Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) April 5, 2024

Seton Hall wins!

It wasn’t the tournament we wanted or deserved, but it was the end result that this program needed.

NIT Champions. Hang that banner in Walsh.

Al-Amir Dawes has called it a career. 🏴‍☠️

— SOrangeJuice (@SOrangeJuice) April 5, 2024

Any other season Seton Hall would have been in the NCAA Tourney with its credentials.

An NIT championship isn’t a bad consolation prize. Great season for the Pirates. Easy team to root for.

— Brad Wachtel (@Brad_Wachtel) April 5, 2024

🏆What a game. What a team.

Seton Hall is your 2024 NIT Champion. This team let their play do their talking on why they should have been in the tournament. Congrats to @CoachSha10 and Seton Hall.

✔️ NIT Champions.
✔️ 20+ Win Season
✔️ 13 Big East Wins pic.twitter.com/U7DJE7j3BW

— Big East Vault (@BigEastVault) April 5, 2024

Seton Hall is really good. It’s insane they didn’t make the tournament. Like genuinely nuts.

— Curry Hicks Sage (@CurryHicksSage) April 5, 2024

Seton Hall wins the NIT and These two teams should never have been left out of the field. Glad they played and proved it.

— Mister Hot Balls ☄️☄️ (@MisterHotBalls) April 5, 2024

The Pirates finished the season with a 25-12 record and an NIT crown for head coach Shaheen Holloway.

Holloway was hired as the program's head coach in March 2022 after leading No. 15 seed Saint Peter's on an upset-packed run to the NCAA tournament's Elite Eight.

Now Holloway will look to guide Seton Hall on a similar journey next season as the program fights for a ticket to the next Big Dance.

Once Indiana State's NIT run concludes, college basketball fans might continue to see plenty of Sycamores center Robbie Avila.

Avila told TMZ Sports he has seen his NIL profile grow significantly after becoming a breakout star of the 2023-24 season.

"Obviously, I've had a couple of eyewear companies reach out to kinda brand with my goggles," he said. "Being able to take full advantage of this is, you know, something I'm able to do here."

Avila is averaging 17.3 points, 6.5 rebounds and 4.1 assists this season with Indiana State notching its most wins (31) since finishing as the national runner-up in 1979.

The sophomore's performance on the court would've inevitably garnered some attention on its own. His signature goggles helped him become a viral sensation, one spawning as many nicknames as Shaquille O'Neal.

The nicknames for Indiana State big man Robbie Avila are too much 😅 pic.twitter.com/cd3Kdk3ssw

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) March 24, 2024

When the NCAA ushered in the NIL era, the top stars in a given sport stood to benefit in a big way. Proportionally speaking, the likes of Avila might be the bigger winners, though. In a previous time, the 6'10" big man wouldn't have been able to cash in a period when his mainstream popularity is at its zenith.

Now, Avila can have something tangible to show from his time in the limelight.

I Thought This Was a Party. Let's Dance!

Ren McCormack got it right in Footloose, the conference tournaments are done and now it is time for the best teams in the country to dance. Six schools from the Missouri Valley Conference will be dancing in some manner as they take part in the four post-season tournaments.

As the tournaments kick off this week, it is time to take a quick look at the match-ups and see how long the MVC will be dancing.

NCAA Tournament

The invites to the big dance were limited for the MVC this season as only conference tournament champion Indiana State was tabbed to take part in the ultimate basketball event. The Sycamores (20-13, 12-6 MVC) were given the 14 seed and will travel to Cleveland to face Syracuse (26-7, 12-6 Big East) in their opening game on Friday.

ISU and Syracuse have three common opponents this season. Indiana State went 3-1 against a combination of DePaul and Northern Iowa, and Notre Dame (losing to Notre Dame 81-72), while Syracused went 3-0 in games against the same group. The Orange are led forwards Kris Joseph (14.4 ppg, 5.0 rpg) and Rick Jackson (13.0 ppg, 10.6 rpg) along with guard Scoop Jardine (5.8 apg).

While the match-up is not as bad as it seems at a distance, it will be a hard game for the Sycamores to win as they have a short stay in the dance.

National Invitational Tournament

The top two regular season squads, Missouri State and Wichita State were passed over for the big dance but were extended invites to the NIT.

In a battle of regular season champions who fell in their conference tournaments, Missouri State (25-8, 15-3 MVC) will host Murray State (23-8, 14-4 OVC) Tuesday in the first round of the NIT. The teams share a common opponent in Evansville. The Racers beat the Aces 72-47 as part of the BracketBusters while the Bears split their two contests with Evansville this season.

The challenge for the Racers is to stop MVC player of the year Kyle Weems. The Racers are led by guards Isaiah Canaan (11.7 ppg, 2.4 apg) and B.J. Jenkins (11.0 ppg, 3.8 apg).

The Bears have a lot to prove as they were shut out of the NCAA tournament. If they return to the form that won them the regular season crown, the home crowd will be celebrating a win and a trip to the second round of the NIT.

Wichita State (24-8, 14-4 MVC) gets a chance of redemption as they kick off the NIT against Nebraska (19-12, 7-9 Big 12). A common opponent is Creighton, who Nebraska beat 59-54, and Wichita State beat twice this season (68-54 & 67-65).

The Cornhuskers come into this matchup on losing four of their last five. The Cornhuskers, who only average 66.9 points per contest, are led by guard Lance Jeter (11.6 ppg, 4.6 apg) .

This match-up is favorable for the Shockers to pull out the win and make it to the second round, keeping their hopes of leading the MVC post-season charge alive.

College Basketball Invitational

Creighton (19-14, 10-8 MVC) gets a chance to extend their season as they will host San Jose State (17-15, 5-11 WAC) in the first round of the 16-team College Basketball Invitational. Both teams come into this match-up struggling, both losing three of their past five games.

MVC Freshman of the Year Doug McDermott is the man the Spartans have to stop if they have a chance. For the Bluejays to win, they are going to have stop explosive guard Adrian Oliver (24.3 ppg). Oliver, a transfer from Washington, has scored in double digits in all but one of the games he has played in this season and has seven games with 30 or more points.

This is going to be a tough game, but the crowd in Omaha is going to be enough to help the Bluejays take flight to the second round.

Evansville finished the regular season with a level record (15-15, 9-9 MVC) so it is surprising to see that the Aces were invited to a post-season tournament. Now they get a chance to continue the surprise as  they open the CBI against Hostra (21-11, 14-4 CAA).

The Pride are led by guards Charles Jenkins (22.9 ppg, 4.8 apg) and Mike Moore (14.9 ppg, 2.2 apg). Hofstra was second in the CAA but fell to ODU in the conference tournament and missed out on the NCAA tournament.

While Evansville's record is not impressive, they match-up well against the Pride. The home court may be the difference as the Aces look to continue their season another game.

CollegeInsider.Com Postseason Tournament

Northern Iowa (19-13, 10-8 MVC) is the sixth team from the MVC to make the post-season and they will be hosting Rider (23-10, 13-5 MAAC) in the first round of the 24-team CollegeInsider.Com Postseason Tournament. 

The two teams in this showdown are going in different directions. The Panthers have lost seven of their last eight after being in contention for the MVC regular season crowd. In contrast, the Broncs have eight of their last ten games.

The Broncs are led by guards Justin Robinson (15.3 ppg, 3.8 apg) and Novar Gadson (13.7 ppg, 5.8 rpg). It looks to be a tough match-up for the Panthers as they are outperformed statistically in points, rebounds, assists and shooting percentage by their opponents from the MAAC. With this being the case, it looks to be a sad night in Cedar Falls as UNI looks to fall out of the CIT early this year.

Let the madness begin. GO MVC!!!

With a win over Wichita State Saturday, the Missouri State Bears won their first Missouri Valley Conference regular season title. Coach Cuonzo Martin is my pick for the MVC Coach of the Year, with Kyle Weems (16.3 PPG, 7.0 RPG) for Player of the Year.

Arch Madness, the MVC tournament, kicks off Thursday in St. Louis with two contests and concludes Sunday with the MVC tournament champion being crowned. With RPIs in the 40's, Missouri State (No. 46) and Wichita State (No. 48) might be sitting on pins and needles if they don't hoist the title at the Scottrade Center.

Here are the games and predictions for the tournament.

First Round

No. 8 Southern Illinois (12-18, 5-13) vs. No. 9 Illinois State (12-18, 4-14)

SIU and ISU split during the regular season, with each team winning on its own home court. Both teams are struggling as they both only have one win in their last five games. This game is for pride and potentially for SIU coach Chris Lowery's job.

Winner: SIU

 

No. 7 Drake (13-17, 7-11) vs. No. 10 Bradley (11-19, 4-14)

Drake and Bradley split during the regular season, with each team winning on its own home court, but Bradley beat the Bulldogs by 26 points Saturday. The young Bulldogs will put up a tough fight, but fall short. Watch out for Drake next season!

Winner: Bradley

 

Quarterfinals

No. 1 Missouri State (23-7, 15-3) vs. No. 8 Southern Illinois

Missouri State beat Southern Illinois by 17 and 18 points this season. The Bears have won six of their last seven games coming into the tournament, and it does not stop here.

Winner: Missouri State

 

No. 4 UNI (19-12, 10-8) vs. No. 5 Creighton (18-13, 10-8)

The Panthers and Bluejays split during the regular season, with each team winning on their own home court, but Creighton beat UNI by eight points Saturday. Northern Iowa comes into the tournament on a serious downswing, losing six of its last seven, while Creighton is 4-4 in its last eight. The Panthers' slide continues as they lose their fourth straight here and probably miss out on a postseason berth.

Winner: Creighton  

No. 2 Wichita State (23-7, 14-4) vs. No. 10 Bradley (11-19, 4-14)

Bradley lost to the Shockers by double-digits in both outings this season, and that will most likely happen a third time, as Wichita State is fighting for its NCAA life. The Shockers easily move on to the semis.

Winner: Wichita State

No. 3 Indiana State (17-13, 12-6) vs. No. 6 Evansville (15-14, 9-9)

Evansville defeated Indiana State in both matchups this season, but come into the game losing five of its last seven. The Sycamores have rebounded to win five of their last six after a five-game swoon cost them a chance at the MVC title. ISU gets the last laugh against their fellow Hoosiers and moves on to the semifinals.

Winner: Indiana State

 

Semifinals

No. 1 Missouri State vs. No. 5 Creighton

The Bears won both games against the Bluejays this season. With the way Missouri State is looking right now, Creighton has little chance. Unfortunately, with their RPI, the Bluejays (No. 146) will probably miss out on further postseason play after losing this matchup. 

Winner: Missouri State

 

No. 2 Wichita State vs. No. 3 Indiana State

Wichita State beat ISU twice this season, with both occurrences taking place during the Sycamores' five-game losing streak. Indiana State has peaked at the right time and scores the upset, sending the Shockers to the NIT. 

Winner: Indiana State

 

Finals

No. 1 Missouri State vs. No. 3 Indiana State

The Bears and Sycamores split their matchups during the season. Both teams are playing well as the tournament hits. In my first MVC Power Rankings, I had ISU on top. With that being the case, I give the edge to the Sycamores, as they will sneak into the dance. The Bears will have to wait to see if they sneak in or go to the NIT. 

Winner: Indiana State

GO VALLEY!!!

It’s not quite the same as the days of Larry Bird, but there is some reason for excitement in Terre Haute, Indiana.

The Indiana State Sycamores, coming off a thrilling buzzer-beater win over Creighton on Sunday, currently sit in a second-place tie with Wichita State at a record of 6-1 in the Missouri Valley conference.  Each sits one game behind Missouri State, who is currently undefeated in the league at 7-0. 

With the two games they have on the schedule this week, the Sycamores will have a chance to establish themselves as a legitimate contender for the Missouri Valley Conference title this season. 

On Wednesday, the Sycamores will play host to Missouri State.  With a win, they would move into a tie with the Bears as leaders of the MVC.   They will follow that game with a tough road trip to Wichita, where they will face the Shockers.

Win or lose, Indiana State is in territory they have been nowhere near for the past decade.

The last time the Sycamores made the NCAA Tournament was in 2001.  It was their second consecutive trip to the tournament.  As a 13 seed, they pulled off a first-round upset over Oklahoma.  They went on to lose to Gonzaga, a 12 seed that was still in the process of earning national respectability, in the second round.

After that season, the bottom fell out quickly for Indiana State.

The next season, the Sycamores won just five games overall.  The next season, they finished 7-24.  Between those two seasons (2001-02 and 2002-03), they won a combined five conference games, finishing in last place both years.

While the team’s win total improved slightly for five straight seasons (nine wins in ’03-04; 11 in ’04-05; and 13 in ’05-06), the Sycamores were still miles away from the top tier of the conference.    Between 2004 and 2007, the highest they managed to finish in the league was a tie for eighth place.

During those years, the competitiveness and depth of the MVC was being recognized on the national stage.  The league was a source for multiple NCAA at-large bids—Southern Illinois earned at-large berths in ’04 and ’05; Northern Iowa in ’05 and ’06; Wichita State and Bradley in ’06. 

Indiana State, however, was simply a very insignificant part of the resumes of each of those teams who were fighting over those NCAA at-large bids.  Losing to the Sycamores at that time may in fact have ruined a team’s season.

The past three seasons were a little better for Indiana State.  They posted an 8-10 conference record in 2008, followed by 7-11 in 2009.  Last year, the Sycamores managed to finally crawl back to the .500 mark at 9-9, ending an eight-year streak of losing seasons, both in conference and overall.   

Last year’s fifth place finish in the MVC created just a little sliver of hope for this season —that maybe Indiana State could compete for a conference championship, and earn their first NCAA Tournament berth in 10 years.

The first sign of this came in a hard-fought struggle against Purdue in December, in which the Sycamores trailed by only two points with less than eight minutes to play, before losing 65-52.  Since then, they have won six of seven conference games.  This includes an impressive 70-45 rout of Northern Iowa, last year’s league champion and eventual winner over top-seeded Kansas in the second round of the NCAA tournament.

While the Sycamores’ early success in conference play is a legitimate sign of optimism, this team has yet to face a true test against one of the league title contenders—Missouri State and Wichita State.  Nor have they yet to play in one of the more intimidating road environments of the league, such as Creighton, Northern Iowa or Southern Illinois.  

There are plenty of opportunities ahead for Indiana State to prove themselves.  The next three weeks in particular—two games against both Missouri State and Wichita State, along with a game at Creighton—will give an excellent barometer of just how far the program has come.

At the end of the season last year, Indiana State University's Men's Basketball program was definitely looking to come into this season riding an amazing end to the year.  With now junior Isiah Martin, transfer junior guard Jake Kelly, transfer sophomore guard Dwayne Lathan and seniors Harry Marshall and Rashad Reed, this team was still picked to finish 7th in the Missouri Valley Conference.  With the immediate eligibility being granted to Kelly and now eligible Lathan pairing with Marshall and Reed, once believed to be an okay to average back-court now becomes one of the best in the Missouri Valley.  The Indiana State frontcourt consists of senior center Josh Crawford, junior center Brant Leitnaker, red-shirt freshman forward Koang Dulouny, and sophomore guard/forward Carl Richard.

ISU began the season with non-conference match-ups with teams such as Louisiana State University, the University of Nebraska at Kearney, Colorado State, Ball State, IUPUI, Toledo, Coastal Carolina, and Western Kentucky among others.  After the non-conference portion of the season was over ISU emerged 8-3 ready to start conference play as one of the top teams in the conference.  It has been a rocky start to the conference schedule though with a current conference record of 3-5 and an overall record of 11-8 currently putting the Sycamores at second to last in the Missouri Valley.

Tomorrow, Sunday January 24, ISU hosts the nationally-ranked Northern Iowa Panthers at the Hulman Center.  This game will host two of the Valley's best players at their respective positions.  Center Jordan Eglseder and Forward Adam Koch will bring up the same problem that ISU has faced all year.  The post has been the problem for ISU with the lack of bulk and the lack of experience.  As the season has progressed, this has improved tremendously and the post players have received some major help from Lathan and Richard who have provided some amazing dunks and blocks throughout this season, not to mention the many ally-oops thrown Lathan's way.

Being in the student section for most of the season as I have been, I have enjoyed the sight of more and more students, alumni, and other fans at the games.  ISU has a more storied tradition than a lot of fans know about including one of the greatest basketball players, Larry Bird, having led the Indiana State Sycamores against Irving "Magic" Johnson's Michigan State Spartans in the 1979 Men's Basketball National Championship game.  And with the athletic department and Men's Basketball team coexisting to create the promotional commercials and the video including Larry Bird for the beginning of the games.

The Indiana State Sycamores still have time to turn it around and end the losing streak and get on the track that many people believed that they would be on this season.

Drake (15-10, 6-7) at Indiana State (5-19, 3-10)

Line: Drake -1.5

Drake broke a three-game losing streak with a 68-54 victory over Bradley on Saturday. Sitting in a tie for sixth, the Bulldogs can’t afford to trip over lower level teams like Indiana State. The Bulldogs cruised to an easy 19-point victory in their first meeting back on Jan. 7.

A 75-73 victory over Illinois State on Saturday gave the Sycamores a pair of Red Bird bookends. The victory stopped a seven-game losing streak that began after a defeat of Illinois State on Jan. 10. Indiana State has had little success outside of Illinois State and Northern Iowa though.

ATS-

Drake is 10-10 against the spread including 5-4 on the road

Drake is 6-4 against the spread in their last 10 matchups against Indiana State

Indiana State is 9-13 against the spread including 6-5 at home.

See the rest of the article including Dave's free prediction at cbbplace.com