Ball State University
3-3
University of Alaska Anchorage
3-3
Cold Shooting Thwarts Men's Hoops In Alaska
November 27, 2010 | Men's Basketball
ANCHORAGE, Alaska - The Ball State men's basketball team dropped to 3-3 on the young season Saturday afternoon as the Cardinals fell to host Alaska-Anchorage 62-44 in the fourth place game of the 2010 Carrs/Safeway Great Alaska Shootout at Sullivan Arena.
"The Alaska-Anchorage guys did a good job of playing hard, competing and following a game plan while our guys clearly did not compete how we wanted to tonight," head coach Billy Taylor said. "We did not compete defensively, we did not compete on the glass and we did not get out in transition. Those were all keys for us coming into the game and we didn't meet any of those keys and the outcome reflects that."
The Cardinals connected on just 29.2 percent (14-of-48) from the field in the loss, including just 25.0 percent (6-of-24) in the second half. Ball State also struggled from beyond the arc as it hit 15.4 percent (2-of-13) from long range. Alaska-Anchorage conversely shot 42.9 percent (18-of-42) from the field and 33.3 percent (6-of-18) from three-point land in the victory.
Ball State (3-3) came out of the gate quickly as it scored the first seven points of the contest. Junior forward Jarrod Jones (Michigan City, Ind./Michigan City) scored four early points and sophomore guard Jauwan Scaife (Muncie, Ind./Muncie Central) nailed a three-pointer.
Alaska-Anchorage (3-3) responded on it posted a 24-7 run to take a 24-14 lead with 2:37 left in the half. The Cardinals connected on just 20 percent (3-of-15) during the stretch while the Seawolves hit 4-of-5 three-pointers during the spurt. Ball State shot just 33.3 percent (8-of-24) in the first half with Jones and Scaife leading the way with six points apiece. The Seawolves hit 45.5 percent (10-of-22) from the field and were led by Casey Robinson who scored eight first half points.
Alaska-Anchorage opened the second half like the Cardinals opened the first as it posted a 7-0 run out of the halftime break to take a 35-21 lead. The Seawolves maintained a double figure lead at 41-29 before the Cardinals made a quick run. Ball State scored six straight points to narrow the deficit to six at 41-35 as junior guard Randy Davis (Plymouth, Ind./Plymouth) nailed a three-pointer.
The Cardinals had a couple of opportunities to continue their run but could not get a basket to fall over the next two-plus minutes of play. UAA weathered the pressure and pulled back into a double figure lead as it hit its free throws down the stretch (16-of-21) to secure the victory.
Travis Thompson led all players in scoring as he scored 13 points off the bench for UAA as he hit 4-of-7 from the field, including three three-pointers. Brandon Walker added 12 points and Robinson finished with 10 points in the Seawolves' victory.
Jones led the Cardinals in the loss as he posted his third double-double of the season with a team-high 11 points and 10 rebounds. He hit just 5-of-14 from the field and 1-of-3 from the free throw line before fouling out after 28 minutes of play. Davis finished with nine points but only dished out one assist after notching 20 assists in the first two games of the tournament.
Ball State will have time off before its next game as the Cardinals return to action December 8 when it travels to Charleston, Ill., for the second game of the home-and-home series with Eastern Illinois.
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