GAME NOTES: The Austin Peay Governors try to snap a two-game slide as they tangle with the Indiana State Sycamores in the preliminary round of the Las Vegas Invitational at the Hulman Center on Monday.

The Governors are still awaiting their first win against a Division I foe this season, having beaten only Berea (68-63) back on Nov. 16. The squad most recently was crushed by Illinois on the road three days ago in a 107-66 final, dropping them to 1-3 on the campaign.

As for the Sycamores, they are coming off their second win of the season in the first three outings, taking out the Brown Bears on Saturday by a score of 78-66, four days after suffering a 69-56 setback to Saint Louis at home.

With respect to the all-time series between these two schools on the hardwood, the Governors are ahead by a count of 3-2, although Indiana State won the most recent meeting, 76-70, at home back in 2000, which means the Sycamores are 2-0 in their own building.

Both of these teams will be heading to Las Vegas for the rest of this event, with the Govs taking on Brown and Indiana State going up against Illinois on Thursday in the third round.

Somehow the Governors led Illinois by three points in the first half of their meeting three days ago, but that was before Austin Peay ended up shooting just 35.7 percent from the floor in the period, en route to a 46-25 deficit at the break. Overall, the Govs made good on 42.9 percent from the floor, but at the same time allowed the Illini to knock down 59.7 percent.

Chris Freeman scored 13 points and handed out five assists, followed by Khalil Davis and Josh Robinson with 12 and 11 points, respectively, for a unit that claimed only 26 rebounds and turned the ball over 18 times.

Freeman and Chris Horton are leading the APSU offense with 15.3 and 14.5 ppg, respectively, the former hitting his field goals at a 62.2 percent clip and the latter not only pulling down 8.0 rpg but also averaging just under five blocked shots per outing for a team that is averaging 8.0 blocks per contest heading into the week.

Against the Bears a few days back, Khristian Smith scored a team-best 23 points, converting all nine of his chances at the free-throw line, in the 22- point victory at home. Also scoring in double figures for the Sycamores during the lopsided victory were Devonte Brown and Brenton Scott with 21 and 11 points, respectively, as the team forced 20 turnovers and held Brown to just 39.0 percent shooting from the floor.

Through three games, Smith is leading the Sycamores in scoring with 19.0 ppg, although his 4-of-14 showing behind the 3-point line leaves a lot to be desired. Smith, who paces the group with 6.3 rpg, has shown great touch at the free-throw line though, missing only two of 21 opportunities. Brown and Scott account for 18.7 and 11.0 ppg, respectively, as the team generates 71.0 ppg and limits foes to 67.0 ppg in the early going.

As long as the Govs can put on a strong defensive effort in the paint they won't be run out of the building, although they still will probably end up in the loss column while playing on ISU's home floor.