TERRE HAUTE, Ind.—Sophomore Dwayne Lathan posted team-leading totals of 18 points and nine rebounds off the bench as Indiana State defeated Colorado State 65-60 on Friday night.
Harry Marshall scored 15 points for the Sycamores (3-1), and Jake Kelly added 13 in a game that was part of the inaugural Mountain West/Missouri Valley Conference Challenge.
The Rams (2-2) were led by Dorian Green’s 18 points. Andy Ogide added 12 and Andre McFarland 11.
The game was tied 29-29 at the half, but Indiana State used a 7-0 spurt to gain a 36-29 edge before Colorado State rallied midway through the second half to lead 40-39 on Travis Franklin’s layup.
Latham sank two free throws made it 41-40, and the Sycamores never trailed after that.
“Dwayne had a pretty darn good second half,” Indiana State coach Kevin McKenna said. “Dwayne is an emotional kid, and we’ve talked to him about channeling his emotions toward the game. He’s a great athlete.”
Lathan delighted the crowd with three dunks in the second half. His slam with 2:32 left sent the fans into a frenzy and gave the Sycamores a 57-46 lead.
“He went up and got a couple rebounds, ran the floor really well, and obviously getting out on the break and getting a few highlight-reel dunks helps us and helps get the crowd behind us,” McKenna said.
“My vision here is hoping that this is contagious, people see how hard we’re playing, the excitement we’re creating here and hopefully they’ll keep coming out.That means a lot to our program.”
Indiana State held advantages of 34-32 in rebounds, 9-8 in assists, 5-0 in blocks and 17-13 in turnovers.
The Sycamores’ victory evens the score for the Missouri Valley in the Mountain West/MVC Challenge 1-1. BYU downed Bradley 70-60 one week ago.
