Every team in college basketball wants to start the New Year in the win column. Youngstown State’s 77-61 win over IU Indy not only checked that box, but it set a handful of records for the Penguins.
Today’s victory marks eight consecutive wins for YSU, setting the program’s DI win streak record. It’s the first time they’ve won eight straight since the 1979-1980 season. This is also the first time the Guins have started 5-0 in Horizon League play. Ethan Faulkner collects his 10th win as a head coach.
Can’t think of a better way to start 2025 than that. Let’s take a look at how YSU achieved this milestone win at the Corteva Center.
First Half
EJ Farmer came out of the gate scorching hot, dropping 12 points in the first four minutes of the game off three 3-pointers and three free-throws after being fouled on an attempt from distance. YSU led 16-7 after the first media timeout after piecing together some stops and finding supplemental buckets down low from Nico Galette and Cris Carroll.
The scoring onslaught continued for YSU after the timeout, but with more balance in this stretch. Galette took another tough drive to the cup for his second bucket of the night, while Siem Uijtendaal and Juwan Maxey got in the scoring column for the first time. For IU Indy, the Jaguars hung around after collecting multiple second chance points and earning some easy ones at the line. At the under 12 media timeout, YSU was shooting 61.5% from the field, and 4-6 from deep.
Farmer continued to carry the scoring load out of the break, connecting on his fourth three-point field goal of the afternoon, and converting two free throws to get his total to 17. Galette and Gabe Dynes found the cup down low to increase the Guins’ lead up to 12.
From the 7:01 mark, IU Indy got it back to a ten-point game after outscoring YSU 15-13 to make the score 45-35 in favor of the visitors at half. The 45-point first half was only the third time the Guins have scored 40+ points in the first half all year. YSU had exceptional shooting splits in the opening half, shooting 52% from the field and 60% from three. EJ Farmer paced scoring with 20, while Nico Galette stuffed the stat sheet with six points, five boards, and four assists.
Second Half
The Jaguars opened the second half with some offensive firepower, as Paul Zilinskas drained back-to-back threes to make the score 45-41. The Guins’ offense stalled for almost three minutes, missing their first four shots until Ty Harper earned some easy ones at the line to make the lead 47-41. A DeSean Goode jumper cut deficit back to four points, where the score remained at 47-43 until the first media timeout of the second at the 15:28 mark.
I had a chance to catch up with Coach Ethan Faulkner after the game, and asked about the message in the huddle after IU Indy’s 8-2 run out of the halftime break. His response was simple: “It’s been our M.O. all year. When a team makes a run at us, we have to respond by going back to our defensive principles and gameplan” That statement certainly rang true for the rest of the game.
Zilinskas scored his 18th point of the night on a turnaround jumper out of the break, but from that point, YSU went on a 9-0 run over a five-minute stretch to re-cushion the lead to 56-45. The flurry saw Uijtendaal, Farmer, and Nelson all converting from distance, and another bucket from Dynes.
After a Julian Steinfeld free throw at the 9:51 mark, the Guins went on a 7-0 scoring run before a media timeout at the 7:11 mark, leading 63-46. The 17-point lead was enough to pace YSU for the rest of the game, as the game finished with Siem Uijtendaal scoring eight of the last 14 points for YSU.
Uijtendaal finished with a season-high 14 points, shooting 4-6 from the arc. Farmer also tied his season high in scoring with 26, with 20 of them coming in the first half of action. Galette did it all tonight, scoring nine points, collecting 11 rebounds, dishing five assists, and adding three stocks. Dynes dominated the painted area, grabbing 12 boards, swatting three shots, in addition to scoring five points. Jason Nelson may have only scored seven tonight, but his impact on the defensive side really caught the eye of Coach Faulkner. “I thought Jason was phenomenal in the second half, running our team and getting our guys shots out of the ball screen.”
The 77-61 record-breaking win was the fifth time that YSU has held conference opponents under their season scoring average, as IU Indy was the third-highest scoring team in the league averaging 76.7 points per contest. Coach Faulkner attributes this to the team’s continuity. “We have guys that are willing to guard. It’s a connected group defensively. With Dynes back there it allows us to be very aggressive on the perimeter, take away three-point shots and pressure the ball. He’s a total difference maker for our team.”
The Guins look to make it 9 straight with an away matchup against Purdue Fort Wayne this Saturday at 7 PM. The Mastadons’ offense will give YSU’s defense another tough test, as PFW averages 81.8 points per contest.
