Ball State University Athletics
Ball State University
8-15 (4-6MAC)
Buffalo
10-13 (2-8MAC)
| Team | 1 | 2 | F |
|---|---|---|---|
| Buffalo | 30 | 43 | 73 |
| Ball State | 36 | 43 | 79 |
Mills & Peyton Lead Cardinals To MAC Win Over Buffalo
February 08, 2007 | Men's Basketball
Skip Mills scored a game-high 20 points, while fellow senior and Indianapolis-native D'Andre Peyton added 18 points as the Ball State men's basketball team snapped a two-game losing streak with a 79-73 victory Wednesday over Buffalo.
The 79 points was the highest point total by the Cardinals since opening the season with 81 points in a victory over Northern Colorado Nov. 11.
BSU's fullcourt pressure forced Buffalo into 20 turnovers, while both teams shot just 40 percent or lower for the game.
"I like ugly games," said first-year BSU head coach Ronny Thompson with a smile. "I think tonight was an ugly game and it went in our favor.
"I think the uglier the game, the better for us. I don't think we have the kind of team that the offense is just going to poetically flow. We need to rebound and get to the floor. As choppy as this game was, I loved it."
The Cardinals fell behind 7-0 in the first three minutes and trailed 12-2 with 15:00 on the clock.
A layup from Peyton Stovall on the next possession however sparked what would eventually amount to a 24-6 Ball State run over the next 10 minutes. Included in the run was Stovall's 110th career three-point field goal, while his 111th capped the Cardinals' run and made the score 26-18 with 6:49 on the clock.
D'Andre Peyton scored 10 points in the stretch.
"I just got into the flow of the game and I was just making baskets," D'Andre Peyton said. "When it's rough like it was tonight, you're going to have more chances to shoot because there are more broken plays. You'll be open more and have a chance to run, which we did."
After a 36-30 BSU lead at halftime, Buffalo wasted little time in the second half andf tied the contest at 42 less than five minutes in to the half.
Anthony Newell answered for Ball State, however, while Mills delivered from the free throw line to push BSU's lead to a game-high 15 points -- 62-47 -- with nine minutes left to play.
Buffalo's Yassin Idbihi rallied the Bulls to within four points at 69-65 with a pair of free throws with 4:09 on the clock, but back-to-back scores from Newell and Mills pushed the lead back to eight points en route to the 79-73 final.
Idbihi finished with 13 points and 14 rebounds, while UB's Andy Robinson scored 14 points to lead the Bulls.
Stovall and Newell each added 12 points for the Cardinals. Mills grabbed a team-high eight rebounds.
Ball State improved to 8-15 overall and 4-6 in the MAC, while Buffalo dropped to 10-13 overall and 2-8 in the league.
The Cardinals return to action with a 3 p.m game Saturday afternoon at MAC-rival Miami University. The game will be televised by the Ball State Sports Network.
