Ball State University Athletics
2006-07 BSU Men's Basketball Final Release
March 27, 2007 | Men's Basketball
SEASON RECAP
Ball State ended its 2006-07 season under first-year head coach Ronny Thompson with a 9-22 overall record . . . The Cardinals were 5-11 in Mid-American Conference play . . . Senior Skip Mills (Indianapolis, Ind./North Central H.S.) was the team's top scorer, averaging 13.7 points per contest . . . Sophomore Anthony Newell (Chicago, Ill./Simeon H.S.) added 11.9 points per game . . . Newell was also the team's top rebounder with 8.0 rebounds per outing.
ABOUT THE CARDINALS
Anthony Newell ended the year with his third-straight double-double with 20 points and 13 rebounds in the March 7 loss to Eastern Michigan in the first-round of the Mid-American Conference Tournament . . . The Cardinals trailed by as many as 12 points before closing to within one point --49-48 -- with 51 seconds left in the game . . . The Eagles capitalized from the free throw line in the closing seconds to secure the 51-48 win . . . Skip Mills ended his BSU career with 13 points . . . Micah Rollin (Long Beach, Calif./Lakewood H.S.) and Peyton Stovall (Lafayette, Ind./Lafayette Jeff H.S.) each finished with five points.
WHO'S GONE & WHO'S BACK?
The 2007 senior class featured three seniors who ended their BSU careers -- Chris Ames (Jackson, Miss./Wingfield H.S.), Skip Mills and D'Andre Peyton (Indianapolis, Ind./Shores Academy H.S.) . . . The remaining 12 Cardinals from the 2006-07 team are expected to return led by the 2007-08 senior class of Steve Horton, Jarelle Redden, Micah Rollin and Peyton Stovall . . . In addition, Melvin Goins (Humble, Texas/Christian Life Center Academy) and Malik Perry (Philadelphia, Pa./Philadelphia Lutheran Christian Academy) have already committed to the BSU program.
THE MAC TOURNAMENT
Ball State competed in its 26th Mid-American Conference Tournament in 2007 . . . The Cardinals own an all-time MAC Tournament record of 35-20 with seven tournament championships and eight tourney Most Valuable Players . . . Those totals are the most of any team in the league.
MILLS MARCHED IN LIKE A LION
Skip Mills scored 21 points March 1 at Toledo and added 22 points March 4 vs. Western Michigan . . . He scored back-to-back career highs in March of 2006 with 34 points at Eastern Michigan (March 4) and 38 at Buffalo (March 6) . . . In 2005, Mills scored 24 points against the Broncos (March 5) and added 25 against Bowling Green (March 7).
20/20 VISION FOR MILLS
Skip Mills scored 22 points March 4 vs. Western Michigan for his sixth 20-plus game of the season and the 20th in his career . . . He managed his fifth 20-point scoring effort of the season March 1 with 21 points at Toledo . . . He had 20 points Feb. 7 vs. Buffalo for his fourth 20-point scoring effort of the season . . . Against Ohio Jan. 28, he posted his third 20-point scoring effort . . . Mills poured in a season-high 26 points Dec. 22 at Tennessee State . . . The effort was his first 20-plus scoring game of the season . . . He added his second 20-plus effort Jan. 9 at Western Michigan.
ALL AMES ON THE MAC
Chris Ames recorded a season-high 11 points -- just one point shy of his BSU career high -- in the Feb. 22 loss to Central Michigan . . . Through the 16 regular-season league games, Ames shot 76 percent from the floor (31-of-41) . . . He handed out 12 assists and recorded 15 steals against MAC foes.
NEWELL-NEWELL
Anthony Newell recorded his seventh double-double of the season and the eighth of his career with 20 points and 13 rebounds in the season-ending loss to Eastern Michigan March 7 . . . He scored 13 points and 12 rebounds March 4 vs. Western Michigan . . . Newell poured in 17 points and grabbed 10 boards March 1 at Toledo . . . Newell scored in double figures in 11 of BSU's final 12 games and in 24 of BSU's 31 games in 2006-07.
MORE ON THE DEFENSIVE CARDS
Behind a team-best average of 8.0 rebounds from Anthony Newell, Ball State out-rebounded 14 opponents in 2006-07 . . . In addition, Ball State forced 90 more opponent turnovers than it committed . . . The Cardinals also recorded 88 more steals than their opponents.
DOUBLE FIGURES MILLS ENDS WITH 66 IN THE CAREER
Skip Mills, who scored in double figures in 25 games as a junior in 2005-06, managed the feat 20 times as a senior in 2006-07. . . After scoring 21 points March 1 at Toledo and 22 March 4 vs. Western Michigan, Mills completed his BSU career with 13 points in the loss March 7 to Eastern Michigan . . . The effort against the Eagles was the 66th double-figure scoring effort of his Ball State career . . . Mills scored in double figures 53 times in the last 63 games he played at Ball State.
SKIP AND THE POINTS -- ENDS CAREER WITH 1,360 TO RANK 11TH ALL-TIME
Skip Mills scored 1,360 career points to rank 11th all-time in the 86-year history of BSU basketball . . . His 13-point performance in his final game March 7 vs. Eastern Michiagn allowed him to pass Patrick Jackson (1998-02, 1,348) for 11th all-time in school history.
MORE ON MILLS AND THE BSU RECORD BOOKS
Skip Mills logged 3,138 minutes in his Ball State playing career to rank ninth all-time in BSU history . . . He also connected on 307 free throws in his career to move into 10th all-time at BSU in that category . . . Mills' 392 three-point field goal attempts rank fifth all-time, while his 135 made three-pointers also rank fifth . . . Mills also grabbed 491 rebounds in his four seasons to climb into the 20th spot on BSU's career rebounding list.
SUPER STOVALL MOVES INTO SEVENTH ALL-TIME AT BSU
Peyton Stovall scored a season-high 22 points Dec. 19 vs. Temple, including a season-high five three-point field goals . . . The long-range shooting effort was one short of his career-high for three-pointers in a game (6 on two occasions) . . . He owned a team-best 40 three-point field goals in 2006-07 . . . He has hit 122 three-pointers for seventh all-time at BSU in that category . . . He will begin his senior season needing one to pass Billy Butts (123, 1988-90) for sixth . . . Patrick Jackson (202, 1998-02) ranks first on the list.
ANOTHER NOTE ON THE LONG BALL -- MILLS & STOVALL IN TOP SEVEN
While Peyton Stovall has moved into the career top 10 for three-point field goals, Skip Mills continued to climb the list ahead of him in 2006-07 . . . Mills hit 30 threes to give him 135 long-range bombs in his career . . .The 135 career threes passes Billy Butts for the fifth spot on the list . . . Stovall's 122 threes, as noted above, rank seventh.
STOVALL ENTERS SENIOR SEASON WITH 1,000 POINTS IN REACH
Peyton Stovall has scored 979 points in 90 career games . . . He needs 21 points to become the 24th 1,000-point scorer in the 86-year history of BSU men's basketball . . . Stovall scored in double figures 11 times in 2006-07 for a total of 47 in his career.
MILLS BECAME BSU'S 23RD 1,000-POINT SCORER IN 2006-07
Skip Mills became just the 23rd individual in the 86-year history of BSU men's basketball to score over 1,000 points in his career . . . His driving layup with 6:39 left against Kansas Nov. 24 gave him the honor . . . Mills scored 1,360 career points in 112 career games to rank 11th all-time at BSU. . . Bonzi Wells (1994-98), now a member of the Houston Rockets, owns the all-time scoring mark with 2,485 points.
WHO IS THAT?
Malik Perry (Philadelphia, Pa./Philadelphia Lutheran Christian Academy) joined the Ball State men's basketball program Jan. 16 . . . Perry will join the Cardinals for the 2007-08 season . . . The 6-foot-4 guard/forward signed last spring to play this season at Iowa, before returning for a fifth season of prep school . . . He averaged 26 points and 13 rebounds in his first 10 games at Lutheran Christian this season.
WHILE WE'RE TALKING NEW GUYS
Melvin Goins (Humble, Texas/Christian Life Center Academy) will also join the Ball State program in 2007-08 . . . Goins ? a 5-foot-11, 180-lb. point guard ? averaged 25 points and nearly six assists per game as a junior last season . . . Before going to Christian Life Academy this year, he helped Heritage Christian to a 28-14 record a year ago, in addition to playing for the Dallas Mustangs AAU Team.
CALIFORNIA CARDINALS
Ball State's 2006-07 roster featured two Cardinals from the state of California . . . Junior Micah Rollin (Long Beach, Calif./Lakewood H.S.) became the first player from the state of California in the 86-year history of Ball State men's basketball when he signed as Coach Ronny Thompson's first BSU recruit . . . Ahmaad Cook (Inglewood, Calif./Westchester H.S.), a true freshman, joined the program in 2006.
702 & COUNTING
Ball State's 70-61 victory Jan. 16 over Northern Illinois allowed the Cardinals to reach the 700-win plateau in home games . . . The Cardinals now own an all-time record of 702-294 in games played in Muncie . . . As noted below, BSU is 170-53 in Worthen Arena . . . BSU's first season of basketball was 1920-21 and the Cardinals posted a 1-1 record at home . . . BSU's best home record in school history was its 15-1 mark in 1992-93.
THE HOMECOURT POWERED BY “THE NEST”
Ball State owns an all-time record of 170-53 at Worthen Arena for a .762 winning percentage . . . Worthen Arena is the toughest place to play in the Mid-American Conference and ranks 55th overall out of 334 Division I teams according to RPIratings.com.
