MUNCIE, Ind. ? The Ball State women's basketball team returns home to Worthen Arena Sunday afternoon as the Cardinals host Mid-American Conference East Division foe Buffalo at 2 p.m. The game will be broadcast on the Ball State Sports Network with Wil Hampton and Heather Cusick calling the game.
“We are hungry to get back out on the court and back to playing Ball State Basketball,” acting head coach Lisa McDonald said. “Buffalo is playing with a lot of energy and we know our energy level will be a key factor in the game.”
The Cardinals (9-11, 5-2 MAC) are coming off of an 88-82 overtime loss at Ohio last Wednesday. The loss dropped the Cardinals into second place in the MAC-West Division one game behind division leader Western Michigan. The Cardinals fought back from a 16-point second half deficit against the Bobcats to force overtime before dropping just their second MAC game of the season.
Freshman forward Emily Maggert (Paris, Ill./Paris) led five players in double figures against Ohio as she scored a team-high 20 points. Maggert connected on eight-of-nine from the field off the bench in the loss. Sophomore guard Audrey McDonald (Kokomo, Ind./Kokomo) added 19 points on the strength of five-of-nine shooting from three-point land.
Senior forward Julie DeMuth (Merrillville, Ind./Merrillville) continued her strong play as she score 16 points and grabbed eight rebounds. DeMuth is second on the team in scoring this season at 12.1 points per game and is tied for the team lead in rebounding at 6.4 boards per game. Sophomore guard Porchia Green (Indianapolis, Ind./Arlington) added 10 points and eight assists in the loss. She leads the team in both scoring (12.7) and rebounding (6.4) on the year.
Sunday's game is the 11th meeting all-time between Ball State and Buffalo. The Cardinals hold a 7-3 advantage in series history against the Bulls as they have won the past seven meetings. The Cardinals are 4-2 all-time against Buffalo at home at Worthen Arena with four straight home wins.
Last season, the Cardinals took home a 59-44 victory last season at Buffalo during a snow storm. The Cardinal defense held Buffalo to just 16 field goals on the game and to 34 percent shooting in the victory.
The Cardinals had four players score in double figures in the victory including a game-high 14 points from former Cardinal Kelsey Corbin. Corbin was five-of-seven from the field and a perfect four-of-four from the free throw line in the victory.
Green recorded her fourth double-double of the season as she scored 12 points and grabbed a team-high 11 rebounds. She finished the night six-of-eight from the charity stripe, all in the second half.
The Cardinals slammed the door shut for the final time as they closed the game on an 11-2 run in the final 3:49 of the game. BSU was clutch from the charity stripe as it connected on nine-of-10 in the final three-plus minutes to seal the victory. The Cardinals finished the game 14-of-17 (82.4%) from the free throw line in the game, all coming in the second half.
Ball State finished the night 21-of-56 (37.5%) from the field after shooting 44.4 percent (12-of-27) in the second half. The Cardinals' defense forced Buffalo into 23 turnovers and recorded 14 steals in the victory. All five starters for the Cardinals' recorded at least two thefts on the night, including a career-high four steals from forward Lisa Rusche (Cincinnati, Ohio/Oak Hills). Rusche finished just shy of a double-double with 10 points and nine rebounds.
Buffalo enters the game with a 10-10 overall record and a 3-4 mark in Mid-American Conference play. The Bulls have dropped four of their last five games after opening the season with wins at Miami and Akron. The Bulls are coming off of a 77-63 loss at Northern Illinois on Thursday night.
Buffalo is averaging 63.5 points per game this season while allowing 64.9 points per game against. Guard Stephanie Bennett leads the team in scoring at 12.3 points per game. She has connected on 36.1 percent of her three-point shots and has attempted a team-high 144 long range shots.
Forward Heather Turner, a preseason All-MAC selection, is second on the team in scoring (11.6) and leads the team in rebounding (7.5). She also leads the team with a 56.6 percent field goal percentage and has led the MAC in that category for three straight years.
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