Indiana 79, Nicholls State 66

[December 21, 2013]  BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Indiana 79, Nicholls State 66: Yogi Ferrell tallied 16 points and eight assists as the Hoosiers won a sloppy game for their 37th straight non-conference victory at home.

Will Sheehey and Jeremy Hollowell each scored 14 points for Indiana (9-3), which has won 16 straight games following a loss since the 2011-12 season. Stanford Robinson added eight points off the bench and Noah Vonleh scored six points to go with a game-high nine rebounds to help the Hoosiers overcome 20 turnovers.

Dantrell Thomas scored a game-high 24 points on 11-of-16 shooting to lead Nicholls State (3-6), but the rest of the team went 17-for-45 from the floor. Sam McBeath added 10 points, but Jeremy Smith - who had scored in double figures in six straight games - was limited to four points on 2-of-8 shooting.

The Hoosiers didn't grab their first lead until the 12:48 mark of the first half, in the midst of a 10-0 run that gave them control. They used a huge discrepancy at the foul line to build a 37-22 halftime lead and maintained a comfortable margin the rest of the way.

Indiana continued to get to the line at will in the second half and finished 26-for-35 at the stripe, compared to 6-for-10 for the Colonels. Nicholls State got as close as 12 in the second half before Ferrell hit a 3-pointer to stop the rally, and Sheehey knocked down a pair of 3s during a 12-5 spurt to put it away.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Indiana held a 33-25 edge on the boards and has not been outrebounded this season. … Ferrell has scored in double figures in every game this season. … Nicholls State dropped to 0-9 all-time against current Big Ten teams.

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