Ball State University Athletics
Ball State University
Taylor (Exhibition)
Men's Hoops Cruises To Exhibition Win Over Taylor
November 07, 2011 | Men's Basketball
MUNCIE, Ind. - The Ball State men's basketball team posted a 72-47 exhibition victory over Taylor University (Ind.) Monday night at Worthen Arena. Sophomore guard Jesse Berry (Lafayette, Ind./Jefferson) led three Cardinals in double-figures with 22 points in the Cardinals' first exhibition game since the 2007-08 season.
"This was a good first game for us as we needed to play in front of a crowd and here at home," fifth-year head coach Billy Taylor said. "I was really pleased with our start tonight. I wanted us to come out with defensive pressure and a lot of activity which allowed us to get out in transition early on. Taylor is a very good team that will do well this year and I thought we were dialed into their personnel from the very beginning."
Berry connected on 9-of-18 from the field off the bench, including three three-pointers. Senior forward Jarrod Jones (Michigan City, Ind./Michigan City) added 16 points, while junior guard Jauwan Scaife (Muncie, Ind./Muncie Central) posted 15 in the victory.
Jones connected on 8-of-15 from the field, while grabbing seven rebounds, posting three assists and recording four steals. Scaife hit 5-of-9 from the field, including a pair of three-pointers, while also dishing out a team-high six assists.
As a team, the Cardinals posted a 49.2 (31-of-63) effort from the field, while limiting the Trojans to a 36.0 (18-of-50) rate of success. Ball State scored 16 points on the fast break and scored 25 points off of 20 Taylor turnovers.
Ball State came out of the gate and exploded for 16 unanswered points in the first 4:54 of the game to overwhelm the Trojans. Scaife was the offensive catalyst in the start as he scored eight early points, including an old-fashioned three-point play.
The Cardinals continued to pad their lead as they posted a 13-3 run to take a 31-7 lead with just over six minutes left in the opening frame. Ball State used the three-point shot in its second run of the game as Randy Davis (Plymouth, Ind./Plymouth), Berry and Scaife all hit three-pointers in the spurt.
Taylor slowed the Cardinals' momentum with a 9-2 run of its own before Davis scored on a fast break and Berry nailed his second three-pointer of the half. Ball State went into the locker room with a 40-19 lead as sophomore forward Matt Kamieniecki (Clarkston, Mich./Clarkston) scored on a tip-in at the buzzer on his team-high seventh rebound of the first half.
Ball State connected on 51.5 percent (17-of-33) from the field and 50 percent (5-of-10) from three-point land in the first half. Scaife led all scorers with 13 points as he hit 5-of-7 from the field while also posting four assists and two steals. Berry chipped in eight points while Jones added eight points.
Taylor was held to just 23.1 percent (6-of-26) shooting in the first half and just 33.3 percent (2-of-6) from long range. The Trojans were forced into 12 first half turnovers that the Cardinals turned into 17 points.
The Trojans came out of the halftime break and posted a 10-0 run to narrow the BSU lead to 44-31 as Casey Coons hit back-to-back three-pointers. The Cardinals weathered the spurt and posted an 8-2 run as Berry scored four points and sophomore Chris Bond (Gary, Ind./Bowman Academy) scored on a drive down the lane.
Ball State ended any doubt with another 8-2 run to take a 60-37 lead as it got out in transition. Bond and Jones highlighted the stretch with dunks in transition while freshman forward Aaron Adeoye (Marion, Ill./Marion) scored his first basket with a thunderous dunk on the break.
Kamieniecki finished the game with a team-high eight rebounds as the Cardinals out-rebounded Taylor by a 38-27 margin. Bond added six points and four rebounds while Davis chipped in five points and three assists in the victory.
Taylor was led by Coons' 15 points as he was 4-of-14 from the field with all four field goals coming from long range. Josh Riikonen chipped in 14 points off the bench while Kyle Hanaway grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds.
Ball State opens the 2011-12 regular season Sunday afternoon as it travels to Tucson, Ariz., as the Cardinals will face No. 16 Arizona. Game time is set for 4 p.m. (MST).
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