MUNCIE, Ind. ? The Ball State men's basketball team turned in an inspired team effort Tuesday night as the Cardinals ran their Mid-American Conference record to 2-0 on the season with a 60-54 victory over Northern Illinois at Worthen Arena. Nine different Cardinals scored points in the victory with four players scoring at least nine points as Ball State is off to its best MAC start since the 1999-2000 season.
“I'm proud of our guys tonight,” head coach Billy Taylor said. “They played with tremendous pride and effort from the beginning. I came into the locker room after the game and saw a sign on our whiteboard saying, ?For our brother, Anthony,' and that just goes to show a lot about our guys' character.”
The victory is the first for the Cardinals without the services of leading scorer and rebounder senior Anthony Newell (Chicago, Ill./Simeon), who suffered a season-ending leg injury Saturday at Eastern Michigan. Senior forward Rob Giles (Detroit, Mich./Mott CC) got the start in Newell's absence and turned in a career-high 11 points in the balanced scoring attack. Giles converted three three-pointers in the victory, while also dishing out three assists.
Freshman forward Jarrod Jones (Michigan City, Ind./Michigan City) added 11 points and seven rebounds, while also dishing out a career-high three assists. The Cardinals as a team dished out a season-high 17 assists on 22 field goals in the victory.
Senior guard Laron Frazier (Waukegan, Ill./Highland CC) chipped in 10 points off of the bench while senior guard Brandon Lampley (Hamilton, Ohio/Hamilton) added nine points, four assists and three steals off the bench. Ball State's bench out-scored NIU's bench 28-5 in the victory. The 28 points are the most for the Cardinals' bench this season.
“Our seniors' effort is important for us,” Taylor said. “You hear a lot about our freshmen, but our seniors make-up one of the biggest parts of the development of our program. Their ability to lead is what improves our freshmen.”
The two teams came out to start the game trading baskets back-and-forth until Northern Illinois (5-9, 1-1 MAC) took a 19-14 lead just over 10 minutes into the game. The Cardinals battled back and scored five straight points as Giles nailed his second three-pointer of the game and Frazier scored on a fast break to force a NIU timeout with the score tied at 19-19.
The Huskies reclaimed the lead with five straight points but BSU continued to fight and ran off a 6-2 run to pull within one at 28-27. Northern Illinois continued its strong shooting in the first half though, as it closed the half with six unanswered points to take a 34-27 lead into the locker room.
The Cardinals shot 37.0 percent (10-of-27) from the field in the first half, but hit 50.0 percent (four-of-eight) from three-point land. Ball State (7-7, 2-0 MAC) also took care of the basketball as it committed just four first half turnovers. Giles led the Cardinals with six points as eight different players scored in the first half.
Northern Illinois turned in a strong offensive first half as it hit 66.7 percent (14-of-21) from the field and 75.0 percent (three-of-four) from three-point land. Guard Darion Anderson paced NIU with nine first half points, while Mike DiNunno and Sean Kowal each added eight points.
The Huskies came out of the halftime break and took their largest lead at 37-28 with 17:27 left in the game to force a Ball State timeout. The Cardinals responded to the adversity and turned in a 14-4 run, including eight straight points to take the lead at 42-41. Giles ignited the run with a three-pointer in the corner before the Cardinals' defense stepped up the intensity. Ball State scored on back-to-back fast break baskets from Lampley and Frazier after the defense came up with steals. The Cardinals capped the run with another three-pointer as junior guard Brawley Chisholm (Bronx, N.Y./Western Texas College) nailed a long range shot to put BSU ahead.
The teams traded baskets until NIU took a four points lead at 48-44, but the Cardinals scored five straight to retake the lead. Lampley hit the Cardinals' seventh three-pointer of the game to give Ball State a 49-48 lead.
After NIU scored at the 4:55 mark to take a 50-49 lead, the Cardinals turned up the intensity on both ends of the floor as they closed the game on an 11-4 run. Ball State clamped down on the defensive end as they held the Huskies to just two-of-nine shooting down the stretch. Northern Illinois also missed three straight free throws in the closing minutes to thwart its chances.
Frazier gave the Cardinals back the lead for good at the 3:34 mark and Jones put some distance between the teams with a tip-in to put BSU ahead 53-50. After NIU pulled back within one, Ball State scored five straight points as Giles scored on a fast break and freshman forward Mo Hubbard (Chantilly, Va./Westfield) capped the victory with a dunk after the Cardinals beat the NIU press with 16.2 seconds remaining in the game.
Ball State finished the game shooting 38.6 percent (22-of-57) from the field and 38.9 percent (seven-of-18) from three-point land. The seven three-pointers ties the Cardinals' single game high for the season (Eastern Illinois 11/15). Ball State also only committed nine turnovers in the victory.
The Cardinals held Northern Illinois to 47.7 percent shooting (21-of-44) from the field in the game and just 30.4 percent (seven-of-23) in the second half. Ball State forced NIU into 16 turnovers in the victory and scored 17 points off of the turnovers. The Cardinal defense held the Huskies to just 20 second half points. The 20 points are a season-low for Northern Illinois in a half as its previous low was 22 points in the first half against Maine and Air Force.
Hubbard finished the game with six points in 26 minutes of action. Sophomore forward Malik Perry (Philadelphia, Pa./Philadelphia Lutheran) added five points, four rebounds and two steals.
Northern Illinois was paced by Anderson who finished with 16 points and eight rebounds but committed four turnovers. DiNunno added 13 points while Kowal finished with 10 points as both were held to just five total points in the second half.
The victory is the Cardinals' first in a MAC home opener since the 2004-05 season when Ball State defeated Kent State (76-67). The Cardinals are at the .500 mark 14 games into the season for the first time since the 2004-05 season when BSU was 9-5. Ball State's seven victories so far this season have already matched last season's win total of six (6-24).
The Cardinals will return to action Saturday afternoon as they travel to Central Michigan for a 4:30 p.m. tip-off at Rose Arena. The game will be broadcast by the Ball State Sports Network on WIPB-TV.
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