Ball State University Athletics
Men's Hoops Begins Practice For 2011-12 Season
October 14, 2011 | Men's Basketball
MUNCIE, Ind. - The Ball State men's basketball team took part in its first practice of the 2011-12 season with a two-hour practice in Worthen Arena Friday evening.
Fifth-year head coach Billy Taylor and the Cardinals are coming off one of the top seasons in recent history as they posted a 19-13 record, with their 19 wins ranking 11th most all-time in program history. Ball State returns nine letterwinners from last season's team, including its top five scorers led by First Team All-Mid-American Conference selection, senior forward Jarrod Jones (Michigan City, Ind./Michigan City).
Jones led the team in scoring at 14.7 points per game and in rebounding at 8.4 caroms per contest as a junior. Junior guard Jauwan Scaife (Muncie, Ind./Muncie Central) chipped in 11.2 points per game last year, while senior guard Randy Davis (Plymouth, Ind./Plymouth) added 9.8 points per game and a team-high 160 assists.
Sophomore forward Chris Bond (Gary, Ind./Bowman Academy) picked up MAC All-Freshman team honors last year after ranking second in the MAC in field goals percentage at 58.9 percent (89-of-151). Sophomore guard Jesse Berry (Lafayette, Ind./Jefferson) was fourth on the team in scoring at 8.9 points per game and was second with 48 three-pointers.
Also returning for the Cardinals are sophomores Matt Kamieniecki (Clarkston, Mich./Clarkston) and Tyrae Robinson (Gary, Ind./Bowman Academy), as well as senior guard Pierre Sneed (Chicago, Ill./Simeon) and redshirt junior center Zach Fields (North Vernon, Ind./Jennings County) who combined to play 96 games last year, including 12 starts.
Ball State also welcomes to the court redshirt sophomore Tyler Koch (Winchester, Ind./Wright State), who sat out last season due to NCAA transfer rules. The Cardinals round out the roster with a pair of freshmen in guard Zeke Chapman (Scottsdale, Ariz./Chaparral) and forward Aaron Adeoye (Marion, Ill./Marion).
The Cardinals opens competition Monday, November 7 as they host Taylor in an exhibition game at Worthen Arena. Admission is free for the 7 p.m. tip-off. Ball State opens the regular season Sunday, November 13 as it travels to PAC-12 power Arizona for their first-ever meeting against the Wildcats.
Season and individual tickets are available online at www.ballstatesports.com/tickets or by calling 1-888-BSU-TICKET.
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