Men’s Hoops Visits Fort Wayne for CIT Opener

CIT First Round
Ball State (21-12, 11-7 MAC) at Fort Wayne (19-12, 8-8 Summit)
Wednesday, March 15 (7 p.m.)
Fort Wayne, Ind. (Gates Sports Center)
Watch (Facebook Live) | Listen (WLBC) | Live Stats

Purchase tickets through Fort Wayne's online system.

Opening Tip
• Ball State makes its second straight postseason appearance with a return to the CIT. BSU also played in the CIT last year, reaching the quarterfinals before falling at eventual champion Columbia.

• Wednesday's first-round game at Fort Wayne has been designated by the CIT as the Lou Henson Classic, honoring the legendary New Mexico State and Illinois head coach.

• Ball State's 21 wins this season are tied for the seventh-most in program history (BSU also won 21 games last season).

• The Cardinals have won six of their past eight games after finishing the regular season strong and then splitting two games at the MAC Tournament.

• The Cardinals shared the MAC West Division championship for the second straight year and reached the semifinals of the MAC Tournament in Cleveland for the first time since 2011.

• Ball State defeated fellow West Division co-champ Western Michigan in the quarterfinals before falling 74-70 to No. 1 seed Akron. The Cardinals lost two games to the MAC regular season champion Zips this season by a combined six points.

• Redshirt freshman forward Tahjai Teague scored a career-high 19 points in the semifinals. Junior guard Francis Kiapway led BSU over two tournament games with 14.0 points per, while senior forward Franko House averaged a near double-double at 11.5 points and 9.5 rebounds.

• Fort Wayne tied for fourth in the Summit League standings and lost to Omaha in the quarterfinals of its conference tournament. The Mastodons feature four double-figure scorers, led by Mo Evans at 16.8 points per game. All-Summit League performer John Konchar averages 15.3 points and 8.9 rebounds while shooting 64.3 percent from the floor.

• Ball State had three players earn all-conference honors, with sophomore point guard Tayler Persons being named to the All-MAC Second Team, Franko House earning third-team honors and sophomore center Trey Moses being named to the all-defensive team.

• Wednesday's game will be a homecoming for Ball State freshman forward Kyle Mallers, who was an Indiana All-Star for Fort Wayne Carroll High School.

Nearing 3-Point Record
• Ball State enters the CIT five 3-pointers away from the school record for a season.
• The Cardinals' 305 treys this year are tied with last season's total for second on the program's all-time list.
• This season marks the third time Ball State has surpassed 300 treys in a season and the first time the Cardinals have ever done it in back-to-back years.

House Nearing Top 10 Scoring
• Senior forward Franko House is 13th on Ball State's career scoring list with 1,356 points.
• House is 27 points away from the No. 10 spot occupied by Peyton Stovall (1,383).
• Along the way on the list are No. 12 Skip Mills (1,360) and No. 11 Dan Palombizio (1,369).

21 Wins Again
• Ball State's MAC Tournament quarterfinal victory gave the program 21 wins for the second year in a row.
• The Cardinals went 21-14 last year, notching their 20th and 21st victories in the CIT.
• BSU has won 20 games in consecutive seasons for the fifth time in history and the first time since 1991-92 (24-9) and 1992-93 (26-8).
• This year marked the first time BSU won 20 games in the regular season since 1997-98.

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Players Mentioned

Franko House

Francis Kiapway

Kyle Mallers

Trey Moses

Tayler Persons

Tahjai Teague