Ball State University
14-11, 8-5MAC
Central Michigan
12-13, 7-6MAC
Men's Hoops Claims Sole Possession Of First Place In MAC West
February 18, 2010 | Men's Basketball
MUNCIE, Ind. - The Ball State men's basketball team continued its rise to the top of the Mid-American Conference West Division Wednesday night as the Cardinals defeated MAC rival Central Michigan 69-63 at Worthen Arena to take over sole possession of first place in the division for the first time this season. The victory improves the Cardinals to 14-11 overall and 8-5 in MAC play with just three conference games remaining, while the Chippewas fall to 12-13 overall and 7-6 in league play.
"I am really proud of our guys tonight," head coach Billy Taylor said. "Central Michigan is a really good ball club and Bitzer and Harman are playing well. We got off to a nice lead in the second half but Central Michigan made a run and showed a lot of courage to retake the lead. Our guys showed a lot resiliency, not panicking and staying the course with the task at hand, which was to win the ball game."
The Cardinals got a big boost offensively from their starting guard duo of sophomore Randy Davis (Plymouth, Ind./Plymouth) and freshman Jauwan Scaife (Muncie, Ind./Muncie Central) who combined to score 42 points in the victory. The two hit 11-of-19 from the field and 17-of-20 from the free throw line.
Davis led the Cardinals' attack as he scored a career-high 24 points, while grabbing five rebounds and handing out five assists. Davis connected on 8-of-13 from the field, 3-of-5 from three-point land and 5-of-6 from the free throw line as he played a game-high 38 minutes. Scaife added 18 points and three assists as he was just 3-of-6 from the field, but connected on a career-high 12-of-14 free throws. Ball State as a team hit 24-of-31 (77.4%) from the charity stripe in the victory.
The Cardinals came out of the gate quickly as they scored the first six points of the game on their way to a 14-5 start through the first 10 minutes of the half. Scaife opened with six early points as he hit four straight free throws in the first six minutes.
Ball State extended the lead to 25-12 with 5:49 left in the opening frame as it started to connect from three-point land. The Cardinals ran off nine straight points as they hit three consecutive three-pointers. Davis hit two of the long range shots while freshman guard Myron Green Jr. (Long Beach, Calif./Dominguez) nailed the third.
Central Michigan settled in and posted an 8-2 run on the strength of three-pointers from Robbie Harman and Jordan Bitzer to narrow the BSU lead to 31-23 and force a Cardinals' timeout. Ball State closed the half on a 5-2 run as Scaife scored the final five of the half to send the Cardinals into the locker room with a 36-25 lead.
Ball State connected on 52.2 percent (12-of-23) from the field and 50 percent (3-of-6) from long range. The Cardinals were strong from the free throw line as they hit nine-of-11 (81.8%) in the opening half. Davis led the charge with 12 points as he was 4-of-7 from the field, including a pair of three-pointers. Scaife chipped in 11 points in the opening half as he was 7-of-8 from the charity stripe.
Central Michigan ended the first half shooting 33.3 percent (10-of-30) from the field and 30.8 percent (4-of-13) from long range. The Chippewas held an 18-14 advantage on the glass, including grabbing 10 offensive rebounds. Marko Spica led CMU with six points and five rebounds off the bench while Harman added six points on a pair of three-pointers.
Ball State came out of the break and scored the first four points of the half to take a 40-25 lead. Central Michigan rallied and posted an 18-0 run to take a 43-40 lead with 10:47 left in the half. The Cardinals committed eight turnovers during the eight-minute scoreless stretch to aid the CMU run while Bitzer keyed the spurt with eight straight points.
The Chippewas extended the lead to a game-high four points at 47-43 with 9:04 left before the Cardinals showed their mettle down the stretch. Ball State responded with an 11-2 run to retake the lead for good at 54-49 with 5:17 left in the game. Scaife scored six points during the run and Davis nailed the biggest basket of the run as the shot clock was winding down he hit a deep three-pointer to put the Cardinals in front for good.
Central Michigan kept fighting and kept the game a two-possession contest at 59-54. The Cardinals were in need of a big basket to keep the momentum and Davis was able to make a play as he drove into the lane before kicking the ball into the corner for Green Jr., who nailed his second three-pointer of the game to put the Cardinals in front 64-56.
The Chippewas made a couple of plays in the final minute to narrow the gap to 66-63 with 12.5 second left. Sophomore forward Jarrod Jones (Michigan City, Ind./Michigan City) solidified the victory though as he hit 3-of-4 free throws and blocked a shot by Bitzer in the final 11.4 seconds of the game to move the Cardinals into first place.
Ball State finished the game shooting 48.8 percent (20-of-41) from the field and 50 percent (5-of-10) from three-point land. The Cardinals hit 75 percent (15-of-20) from the free throw line in the second half. Jones finished the night with 10 points, five rebounds and four blocked shots, while Green Jr. scored a career-high eight points in 14 minutes of action on his birthday. He connected on both three-pointers he attempted and was 2-of-2 from the free throw line.
Central Michigan ended the night shooting 35.9 percent (23-of-64) from the field and 32.0 percent (8-of-25) from long range. The Chippewas won the rebounding edge by a 37-31 margin, including grabbing 18 offensive boards. Bitzer led CMU with 18 points as he hit 5-of-20 from the field, including three three-pointers. Spica finished with eight points while Chris Kellermann added seven points off the bench.
Ball State steps out of MAC play this weekend as it takes part in the ESPNU BracketBusters event. The Cardinals will host Tennessee-Martin Saturday afternoon at 2 p.m. at Worthen Arena.
####
