MUNCIE, Ind. ? The Ball State women's basketball team returns home to Worthen Arena Tuesday night as the Cardinals host Mid-American Conference West Division rival Toledo at 7 p.m. The contest begins the Cardinals' second swing through the MAC-West Division this season to close out the 2007-08 regular season.
“It is great to be back home on our home court,” acting head coach Lisa McDonald said. “We are coming to the game hungry and feel like we have something to prove after our last couple of games.”
Ball State enters Tuesday's game with a 10-14 record overall and a 6-5 mark in MAC play. The Cardinals currently sit in third place in the MAC-West Division as they trail Western Michigan by two games and Eastern Michigan by one game. This marks the first time Ball State has not been in first or second place in the MAC-West Division since the 2005-06 season.
The Cardinals return to MAC-West play for the second swing through the division this season. Ball State has posted a 13-2 record against teams from the MAC-West Division over the past two seasons with a 9-1 mark last year and a 4-1 mark the first swing through the division. The 13-2 mark over the past two seasons is the top mark for any team in the MAC-West against divisional foes.
The Cardinals are coming off of back-to-back road losses at Miami and most recently at Kent State. Ball State has struggled offensively over the past two games as it has been held under 60 points in both losses. The Cardinals shot just 32.2 percent from the field against Kent State and just 22.2 percent from three-point land in the loss.
Junior guard Porchia Green (Indianapolis, Ind./Arlington) leads the Cardinals in scoring at 12.8 points per game and in rebounding at 6.8 boards per game. She also has dished out a team-high 106 assists and has connected on 50 percent (121-of-242) from the field. Senior forward Julie DeMuth (Merrillville, Ind./Merrillville) is second on the team in scoring at 11.8 points per game and on the boards at 6.5 caroms per contest. She missed the Kent State game due to an injury.
Senior forward Lisa Rusche (Cincinnati, Ohio/Oak Hills) is third on the team in scoring at 10.9 points per game and in rebounding at 6.4 boards per game. Freshman forward Emily Maggert (Paris, Ill./Paris) is fourth in scoring at 9.2 points per game. She is averaging 13.4 points per contest against MAC foes and is second in the MAC at 59.4 percent field goal percentage in conference play.
Sophomore guard Audrey McDonald (Kokomo, Ind./Kokomo) adds 9.2 points per game as well and has connected on 40.9 percent (56-of-137) from three-point land. Junior guard Kiley Jarrett (Bloomington, Ind./North) is sixth on the team in scoring at 8.1 points per game and is second in assists with 95 on the year.
Tuesday's game is the 57th meeting all-time between Ball State and Toledo. The Cardinals trail the all-time series by a 14-42 margin, including a 72-66 loss earlier this season. That loss snapped a three-game winning streak for the Cardinals against Toledo.
Earlier this season, the Cardinals dropped their first Mid-American Conference loss of the season in the contest against Toledo. The Cardinals fell behind early in the second half and couldn't overcome a double digit deficit despite a late charge.
Ball State shot 40.6 percent (26-of-64) from the field in the loss and just 35.3 percent (six-of-17) from three-point land. The Cardinals were also off from the free throw line as they hit just 61.5 percent (eight-of-13) from the line. Toledo finished the night shooting 44.1 percent (26-of-59) from the field, including 50 percent in the second half. The Rockets hit 18-of-22 (81.8%) from the charity stripe in the victory.
Five different Cardinals scored in double figures as Rusche paced the attack with 15 points and nine rebounds. DeMuth added 13 points and eight rebounds Maggert chipped in 12 points off of the bench. Green added 12 points while Jarrett contributed 11 points in the loss. Toledo was paced by Tamesha Scotton as she scored 17 points off of the bench. Lisa Johnson added a double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds while Ta'Yani Clark chipped in 12 points in the victory for the Rockets.
Toledo enters the game with a 10-13 record overall and a 3-8 mark in Mid-American Conference action. The Rockets are currently in fifth place in the MAC-West Division as they have dropped five straight games heading into tonight's game. Toledo posted just a 1-5 record against teams from the MAC-East Division this year.
Toledo is led in scoring by guard Allie Clifton as she averages 15.8 points per game. Clifton has missed significant time as of late due to an injury and is not likely to play tonight's contest.
Scotton is the Rockets' second leading scorer as she averages 11.3 points per game. She also is tied for the team lead in rebounds at 6.8 per game. Clark is third in scoring at 8.2 points per game while Olivia Terry adds 7.7 points per game.
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