MUNCIE, Ind. ? The Ball State men's basketball team used strong post play on Saturday afternoon as the Cardinals picked up a 67-55 victory over SIU-Edwardsville at Worthen Arena. The victory improves the Cardinals to 2-1 on the season, while SIUE falls to 1-4 overall.
“Today was a hard fought win,” head coach Billy Taylor said. “I will certainly take an ugly win over a pretty loss any day of the week. I give credit to our guys for how we defended, especially in the first half as we really imposed our will out there. We missed some opportunities in the second half that we will have to work on as the season goes along.”
Freshman forward Jarrod Jones (Michigan City, Ind./Michigan City) continued his strong start to his career as he scored a game-high 19 points in just 22 minutes of action because of foul trouble. Jones also grabbed seven rebounds as he missed a double-double for the first time in his career. He connected on seven-of-13 from the field and was five-of-seven from the free throw line. Through the first three games of his career, he is averaging 18.0 points and 10.7 rebounds per game.
Senior forward Anthony Newell (Chicago, Ill./Simeon) added his second straight double-double and the 14th of his career in the victory. Newell scored 15 points and grabbed a game-high 13 rebounds. Senior guard Brandon Lampley (Hamilton, Ohio/Hamilton) turned in a strong effort as well as he dished out seven assists, scored six points and grabbed five rebounds while only having one turnover. The seven assists for Lampley tie his career high and marks the second time in three games this season he has reached seven assists.
Ball State came out of the gate quickly as the Cardinals ran out to a 19-2 lead just under 11 minutes into the game. The Cardinals scored 17 unanswered points at one point as their defense held the Cougars to a one-for-13 shooting start. Ball State also forced SIUE into nine turnovers in the first 11 minutes of the game.
The Cardinals used a balanced scoring attack in the early run as six different players scored a basket in the 19-point outburst. Jones paced the attack with six straight points, while Newell added four points. Junior guard Brawley Chisholm (Bronx, N.Y./Western Texas College) added a three-pointer off of the bench and junior forward Eric Wormely (Joliet, Ill./Kishwaukee CC) drained a 15-foot jumper.
After an SIUE basket, the Cardinals scored five quick points to take a 24-4 lead with just under seven minutes remaining in the half. Senior guard Laron Frazier (Waukegan, Ill./Highland CC) capped the early going with an old-fashioned three-point play to give the Cardinals a 20-point lead. The 20-point lead is the largest of the season for the Cardinals and their largest since a 24-point lead against Valparaiso December 16, 2006.
SIU-Edwardsville broke out of its early shooting slump with back-to-back three pointers to force a BSU timeout. The Cardinals went almost six minutes without a field goal down the stretch to close out the first half as SIUE narrowed the gap. Lampley capped the first half with a lay-up to send the Cardinals into the locker room with a 29-16 lead.
Ball State connected on 35.5 percent (11-of-31) from the field in the first half and just 25 percent (one-of-four) from long range. SIUE was held to just 25 percent shooting from the field in the opening frame, including three-of-nine (33.3%) from three-point land. The Cardinals had a balanced scoring attack in the first half as seven different players scored and four players had at least five points.
The Cougars came out of the halftime break and reversed the game on the Cardinals as they opened on a 16-2 lead to take their first lead at 32-31. The two teams traded baskets back-and-forth before the Cardinals re-took the lead for good with on Jones dunk with just over 13 minutes remaining.
SIU-Edwardsville kept it a two possession game until the Cardinals pulled away down the stretch. Ball State posted a 10-2 run as its lead ballooned back to double figures at 56-44. Newell started the heat up with two baskets just a minute apart and Jones converted an old-fashioned three-point play off of a stellar assist from Lampley.
The Cardinals sealed the victory just under a minute to go as they broke the SIUE press and Newell capped the game with an alley-oop dunk from Frazier. Ball State finished the game shooting 41.5 percent (22-of-53) from the field and just one-of-seven from three-point land. The Cardinals struggled from the charity stripe as they hit just 57.9 percent (22-of-38) from the line.
The Ball State defense stepped up big to carry the Cardinals to victory as it held the Cougars to just 35.8 percent (19-of-53) shooting from the field and just 31.6 percent (six-of-19) from long range. The Cougars also struggled from the free throw line as they hit just 57.9 percent (11-of-19) in the loss.
Sophomore forward Malik Perry (Philadelphia, Pa./Philadelphia Lutheran) returned from an injury and saw his first action of the season with his 31st start of his young career. Perry helped the Cardinals to a 45-38 advantage on the glass as he finished second on the team with eight rebounds. Frazier added eight points and two assists in the victory.
SIU-Edwardsville was led by John Edmison who posted a double-double in the loss. Edmison scored 13 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for the Cougars while Aaron Garriott chipped in 13 points off of the bench.
Ball State returns to action Tuesday night as it takes on Wisconsin-Milwaukee on the road. Game time is set for 8 p.m. (ET) at U.S. Cellular Arena.
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