Ball State University
12-9, 6-3MAC
Bowling Green
11-10, 4-5MAC
Four-In-A-Row, Men's Hoops Tops Bowling Green
February 05, 2010 | Men's Basketball
MUNCIE, Ind. - The Ball State men's basketball team picked up its fourth straight victory over a Mid-American Conference East Division opponent with a 64-59 win over Bowling Green Thursday night at Worthen Arena. With the win, the Cardinals improve to 12-9 overall (6-3 MAC) as they have won six out of their last seven games, while Bowling Green drops to 11-10 (4-5 MAC) after the loss.
"We found a way to win tonight," head coach Billy Taylor said. "It wasn't pretty a lot of the times but our guys showed a lot of resiliency and fought through some difficult stretches. We made some big shots down the stretch, hit some free throws late and got some key stops when we needed to. Our guards did a good job setting the tone against their zone and were really aggressive tonight."
Sophomore guard Randy Davis (Plymouth, Ind./Plymouth) led four Cardinals in double figures as he scored 18 points and dished out four assists. Davis connected on 5-of-7 from the field, including three three-pointers, and hit 5-of-6 from the free throw line. Sophomore forward Jarrod Jones (Michigan City, Ind./Michigan City) turned in his sixth double-double of the season as he scored 11 points and grabbed a team-high 10 rebounds.
The Cardinals came out of the gate and scored the first five points of the game as Davis nailed a three-pointer and Jones scored in the paint. Ball State opened to an 8-4 lead just under seven minutes into the game against the BGSU zone.
Bowling Green took its first lead of the night as it ran off a 12-3 run to take a 16-11 lead and force the Cardinals into timeout. The Falcons hit back-to-back three-pointers to take the five-point lead. Ball State took the lead back as it scored eight straight points to go ahead 21-19. Senior forward Terrence Watson (Detroit, Mich./Univ. of Mississippi) started the run with an old-fashioned three-point play, while senior guard Brawley Chisholm (Bronx, N.Y./Western Texas College) nailed a three-pointer to cap the run.
The Cardinals took a 27-24 lead into the locker room as freshman guard Jauwan Scaife (Muncie, Ind./Muncie Central) hit a jumper and Davis scored on a pull-up jumper with 2.1 seconds left in the half. Ball State finished the half shooting 42.9 percent (9-of-21) from the field in the first half and 33.3 percent (2-of-6) from three-point land. Davis led the first half with seven points while Jones scored six points and grabbed five rebounds
The Cardinals were held in check on the glass at Bowling Green held a 21-13 advantage on the glass. The Falcons hit 33.3 percent (9-of-27) from the field and just 25 percent (2-of-8) from long range. BGSU was led by Dee Brown's six points while Marc Larson added five points and six rebounds off of the bench.
Ball State came out of the break and turned in a 7-2 run to take a 34-26 lead and force a Bowling Green timeout. Watson started the run as he scored off an offensive rebound and Scaife sealed the run with five straight points, including a three-pointer from the corner.
After Bowling Green scored four straight points, the Cardinals kept the momentum on their side as they ran off a 10-2 run to take a 44-32 lead with 14:00 left in the second half to force BGSU into another timeout. Davis was the offensive catalyst as he hit back-to-back three-pointers while the Cardinals' defense kept the Falcons at bay.
Ball State extended the lead to 50-37 before Bowling Green answered back with six straight points to force a BSU timeout. The Falcons extended the run 12-1 and pulled within two at 51-49 with just under four minutes left in the game. Watson snapped the run as he nailed two free throws to make it a two-possession game at 53-49 with 2:09 left.
The Cardinals' defense stepped up with a couple of stops before Scaife gave Ball State some breathing room as he nailed a three-pointer to extend the lead to 56-49 with 58.6 seconds left in the game. Bowling Green kept battling as it pulled within two points at 61-59 with 13 seconds left in the game, but the Cardinals hit 3-of-4 free throws in the closing seconds to seal the victory.
Ball State finished the game shooting 41.7 percent (20-of-48) from the field and 50 percent (6-of-12) from long range. The Cardinals went to the free throw line 26 times and hit 69.2 percent (18-of-26) from the charity stripe. BSU was out-rebounded for the first time in four games as Bowling Green held a 43-37 edge on the glass.
Watson finished just shy of a double-double as he scored 14 points and grabbed nine rebounds. He also tallied two blocked shots, three steals and handed out two assists in the all-around performance as he was 5-of-10 from the field. Scaife ended the night with 10 points, including two three-pointers.
Bowling Green finished the game shooting 35.4 percent (23-of-65) from the field and just 19 percent (4-of-21) from three-point land. The Falcons were forced into a season-high 21 three-point attempts by the Cardinals' defense. Scott Thomas finished with a double-double as he scored 10 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, but missed all seven of his three-point shots. Joe Jakubowski and Brown each chipped in 13 points in the loss.
The Cardinals return to action Saturday afternoon as they host defending MAC Tournament champion Akron at Worthen Arena at noon. The game will be broadcast by FSN Indiana.
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