Ball State University Athletics
Men's Hoops Battles IUPUI Monday At Conseco
December 15, 2011 | Men's Basketball
What's On Tap . . .
Ball State will be off this week for final exams and returns to action next Monday night as it battles instate foe IUPUI at Conseco Fieldhouse ... Game time is set for 7 p.m. ... The Cardinals are riding a six-game winning streak into the game while IUPUI is coming off an eight-point victory over Western Kentucky in which forward Alex Young scored 43 points.
Next Monday's game will be broadcast by 104.1 WLBC FM and online at www.ballstatesports.com with Morry Mannies and David Eha providing the call ... The game will also be video streamed online at www.iupuijags.com.
Jones Named MAC West Player of the Week . . .
Senior forward Jarrod Jones was named the Mid-American Conference West Division Player of the Week Monday after leading the Cardinals to wins over SIU Edwardsville and two-time NCAA Tournament finalist Butler to run their winning streak to six straight games ... This is the second MAC weekly honor of the season for Jones who earned the accolades after the Cardinals' season-opener at No. 16 Arizona Nov. 13.
Jones averaged 21.5 points and 11.0 rebounds in the two victories while shooting 54.2 percent (13-of-24) from the field and 88.9 percent (16-of-18) from the free throw line ... He scored a team-high 21 points against Butler, including the game-winning basket with 47.2 seconds left to give the Cardinals their first win over Butler since 2003 ... He opened the week by recording his third double-double of the season with 22 points and a season-high 13 rebounds at SIUE.
Series History . . .
Monday's game marks the eighth meeting all-time between Ball State and IUPUI, including the second game this season in the home-and-home series ... Ball state owns a 6-1 record all-time against the Jaguars, including a 69-62 victory in its home opener November 23 ... Senior forward Jarrod Jones scored a career-high 26 points in 34 minutes against the Jaguars as he connected on 10-of-16 from the field and 6-of-7 from the free throw line ... Junior Jauwan Scaife added 15 points off the bench while senior Randy Davis scored 13 points and dished out eight assists in the victory ... IUPUI was led by Stephen Thomas who scored 18 points, including four three-pointers, while Marcellus Barksdale added 12 points off the bench.
The two teams played for six straight years from the 2000-01 season to the 2005-06 season with the Cardinals posting a 5-1 record during the stretch ... The teams last played with IUPUI as the home team December 7, 2005 with Ball State posting a 53-50 victory.
Ball State History In Conseco . . .
Next week's game marks Ball State's fourth contest all-time in program history at Conseco Fieldhouse ... Cardinals are 1-2 all-time at Conseco, posting a 1-1 record against Purdue and an 0-1 mark against Indiana ... Ball State and Purdue played in the first collegiate game in Conseco Fieldhouse history with the Cardinals posting a 72-52 victory in front of 17,752 fans December 18, 1999.
Ball State faced Indiana December 28, 2004 and suffered a 71-59 loss to the Hoosiers ... The Cardinals last played at Conseco December 19, 2009 as they dropped a 69-49 game to the Boilermakers in the John R. Wooden Tradition.
IUPUI will play two games at Conseco Fieldhouse this season as it hosts Valparaiso December 23 ... The Jaguars have played at least two games at Conseco every season since 2008-09, including a 2-0 record last year with wins over IPFW and Oakland.
Coaching Comparison . . .
Ball State is led by fifth-year head coach Billy Taylor ... Taylor has led the Cardinals to 54 wins over the past four seasons, including a 19-win campaign last year which marked the 11th most wins in program history ... The Cardinals have finished either first or second in the Mid-American Conference West Division the past three years and have advanced to the MAC Tournament semifinals two out of the last three years.
IUPUI is led by first-year head coach Todd Howard ... Howard spent the past 16 years on the Jaguars' sideline, including the past 10 years as the associate head coach under for coach Ron Hunter.
Cardinals On Television . . .
Ball State announced its television package for Mid-American Conference play and the Cardinals can have up to 12 league games broadcasted on the Ball State Sports Network (BSSN), BSU Sports Link, SportsTime Ohio (STO) and ESPNU.
The Ball State Sports Network package for the MAC season includes three men's games, including Jan. 7 vs. Western Michigan, Jan. 21 at Northern Illinois and Feb. 25 at Eastern Michigan ... BSU Sports Link, an immersive learning student program, will produce the men's game Feb. 8 vs. Bowling Green.
The Ball State men's program will have three games guaranteed for SportsTime Ohio broadcasts including Jan. 10 at Toledo, Jan. 24 vs. Akron and Feb. 22 at Western Michigan ... The Cardinals have five games in the ESPNU flex-schedule which allows for a 21-day advance notice of the broadcast ... Men's games on the flex-schedule include Jan. 14 vs. Eastern Michigan, Jan. 28 at Ohio, Feb. 11 at Kent State, Feb. 29 vs. Central Michigan and March 2/3 vs. Northern Illinois.
Home, Sweet Home . . .
Saturday's game marked the 287th game all-time for the Cardinals at Worthen Arena since it opened January 15, 1992 (previously named University Arena) ... Ball State owns a 211-76 record all-time at Worthen Arena as it has won 73.5 percent of its games at home ... Last season, the Cardinals posted an 11-3 record at home, including a 5-1 mark during non-conference play ... During its career, the Cardinals have averaged over 10.35 wins a season at home at Worthen Arena.
Last Time Out. . .
Ball State posted its sixth-straight victory Saturday afternoon and snapped a seven-game losing streak to Butler as the Cardinals downed the two-time NCAA Tournament finalists 58-55 in front of 8,421 fans, the largest crowd since 2005 ... The 8,421 fans in attendance marks the largest crowd at Worthen since a sellout of 11,500 December 31, 2005 when the Cardinals hosted Indiana ... The crowd Saturday is the 21st largest crowd in Worthen Arena history.
Senior forward Jarrod Jones continued his stellar campaign as he scored a team-high 21 points and grabbed eight rebounds ... Jones scored eight of the Cardinals' final 16 points down the stretch, including the go-ahead basket with 47.2 seconds left that broke a 54-54 tie and gave the Cardinals the lead for good ... He has scored 20 or more points in six of the Cardinals' eight games this season as he averages a team-high 20.0 points per game.
Ball State's defense limited the Bulldogs to just 30.8 percent (20-of-65) shooting from the field and only 13.6 percent (3-of-22) shooting from long range ... The Cardinals forced Butler into two critical turnovers in the final 47.2 seconds to seal the victory ... Ball State posted seven steals and blocked four shots in the victory as it scored 15 points off of turnovers.
Redshirt sophomore Tyler Koch ended the day with nine points as he hit three three-pointers, a career-high eight rebounds and two assists as he hit three three-pointers ... Senior Randy Davis added eight assists, three steals and two blocked shots while hitting all four of his free throws.
Six-Game Winning Streak . . .
Ball State enters Monday's game riding a six-game winning streak after opening the season with an 0-2 record ... The Cardinals started their winning streak with a 69-62 victory over IUPUI Nov. 23 ... During the streak, the Cardinals have also posted wins on Calumet, Texas Southern, Tennessee-Martin, SIU Edwardsville and Butler.
The six-game winning streak is the longest for the Cardinals since winning seven straight last year from Dec. 31-Jan. 22 ... Prior to that, the Cardinals' last winning streak of at least six games came in the 2001-02 season (Jan. 5-23) ... Ball State last posted a winning streak over seven games in the 1999-2000 season when it ran off 10 straight wins (Nov. 24-Jan. 5).
Defensive Prowess . . .
The Cardinals have been one of the top defensive teams in the Mid-American Conference and the country under fifth-year head coach Billy Taylor and this season is no different ... Ball State enters the week leading the MAC and ranking 10th in NCAA Division I in scoring defense holding opponents to a 55.6 point average ... Also, the Cardinals lead the MAC in field goal percentage defense at 35.5 percent, which places them eighth in the nation ... Ball State is 16th in the country and second in the MAC in three-point field goal defense, holding opponents to 25.5 percent.
Last season, Ball State led the MAC and was 64th in the nation in scoring defense at 64.0 points per game while placing third in the league in field goal percentage defense at 42.0 ... Two years ago, the Cardinals also led the MAC in scoring defense and were 43rd in the nation at 62.4 points per game.
20-Plus Scorers . . .
Against SIU Edwardsville, sophomore guard Jesse Berry and senior forward Jarrod Jones each scored at least 20 points in the Cardinals' 76-55 victory as Berry posted a career-high 25 points and Jones added 22 points ... It marks the first time this season that the Cardinals have had two players score at least 20 points in a game and the first time a duo has accomplished the feat since March 12, 2009 in the Cardinals' 64-61 Mid-American Conference Tournament victory over Central Michigan ... In that game, Jones scored 20 points while former Cardinal Laron Frazier added a career-high 22 points in the overtime victory.
Scouting The Cardinals . . .
Ball State enters final exams with a 6-2 record on the year as it has won six straight games ... The six-game winning streak is the longest for the Cardinals since winning seven straight last year from December 31-Jan. 22 ... Ball State is averaging 65.6 points per game this season while holding opponents to a Mid-American Conference best 55.2 points per game ... The Cardinals are shooting 42.0 percent (177-of-421) from the field and 32.9 percent (55-of-167) from three-point land ... Opponents are being held to just 35.5 percent (150-of-423) from the field and only 25.5 percent (41-of-161) from long range.
Senior forward Jarrod Jones leads the team in scoring at 20.0 points per game and on the glass at 9.1 rebounds per game ... Jones is shooting 59.4 percent (57-of-96) from the field and 85.4 percent (41-of-48) from the free throw line ... Sophomore guard Jesse Berry is second on the team in scoring at 10.9 points per game and is second on the team with 12 three-pointers.
Senior guard Randy Davis leads the team with 62 assists and is fourth in scoring at 7.8 points per game ... Redshirt sophomore Tyler Koch adds 6.5 points and 4.4 rebounds per game ... Sophomore Chris Bond is second on the team in rebounding at 4.6 boards per game.
Scouting The Jaguars . . .
IUPUI enters the week with a 3-8 record with all three of its victories coming at home ... The Jaguars are coming off an 84-76 victory Saturday against Western Kentucky and will host Division II opponent St. Joseph's (Ind.) Friday ... IUPUI is averaging 72.2 points per game and allowing 74.8 points per game ... The Jaguars are shooting 40.9 percent (280-of-684) from the field and 32.2 percent (73-of-227) from three-point land ... Opponents are shooting 46.6 percent (299-of-641) from the field and 32.6 percent (57-of-175) from long range.
Alex Young, the reigning Summit League Player of the Year, leads the team in scoring at 20.0 points per game ... Young scored a career-high 43 points last time out as he hit 14-of-20 from the field and 12-of-13 from the free throw line ... He leads the team on the glass at 6.9 rebounds per game and leads the team with 22 three-pointers ... Stephen Thomas is second on the team in scoring at 9.9 points per game and has dished out a team-high 50 assists.
Christian Siakam is second on the team in rebounding at 6.4 boards per game while adding 8.2 points per game ... Sean Esposito adds 12 three-pointers while Ian Chiles has connected on 10 three-pointers.
Jones Scoring Numbers . . .
Senior forward Jarrod Jones leads the Cardinals and is second in the Mid-American Conference in scoring at 20.0 points per game ... Jones ranks 23rd in NCAA Division I in scoring this season ... He ranks 29th in the country in field goal percentage at 59.4 percent (57-of-96) and 86th in free throw percentage at 85.4 percent (41-of-48).
Jones has scored at least 20 points in six of the eight games this season, including three straight games for the first time in his career ... He scored 25 points against No. 16 Arizona in the season opener, scored a career-high 26 points against IUPUI and added 23 points against Calumet College ... Currently, has notched three-straight games of 20-plus points with 22 points against UT Martin , 22 at SIU Edwardsville and 21 against Butler ... He has notched 16 games of 20-plus points in his career.
Running The Point . . .
Senior guard Randy Davis leads the Cardinals and the Mid-American Conference at 7.75 assists per game ... Davis currently ranks third in NCAA Division I in assists per game ... Additionally, Davis leads the MAC in assist/turnover ratio at 3.875, which ranks fifth in the nation.
Ball State as a team is tied for second in the MAC with 14.9 assists per game... The Cardinals lead the MAC in assist/turnover ratio at 1.20, which is 42nd best in the country.
Climbing The Charts . . .
Senior forward Jarrod Jones currently ranks 13th in Ball State history with 1,342 career points and is sixth all-time with 793 rebounds ... Jones moved up three spots in the scoring charts with his 22-point effort at UT Martin as he passed Ed Butler, Randy Boarden and Chris Williams ... Additionally, Jones is tied for fifth all-time with 99 career starts ... Senior guard Randy Davis moved up to sixth all-time in assists with 364, surpassing Patrick Jackson and Peyton Stovall Tuesday night.
Scoring
9. Peyton Stovall, 2003-08 1,383
10. Dan Palombizio, 1984-86 1,369
11. Skip Mills, 2003-07 1,360
12. Patrick Jackson, 1998-02 1,348
13. Jarrod Jones, 2008-11 1,342
14. Chris Williams, 2001-03 1,291 15. Randy Boarden, 1975-79 1,290
Rebounding
3. Steve Payne, 1992-95 885
4. Theron Smith, 1999-2002 882
5. Bonzi Wells, 1994-98 843
6. Jarrod Jones, 2008-11 793
Game Started
4. Randy Zachary, 1993-97 100
5. Jarrod Jones, 2008-11 99 Malik Perry, 2007-11 99
6. Scott Nichols, 1986-90 98
Assists
4. Scott Nichols (1986-90) 406
5. Bonzi Wells, 1994-98 386
6. Randy Davis, 2008-11 364
7. Patrick Jackson, 1998-02 349
Peyton Stovall, 2003-08 349
9. John Williams, 1979-82 344
Hitting The Glass . . .
Ball State has been strong on the glass this season as it ranks fourth in rebounding offense in the Mid-American Conference at 37.9 boards per game and is first in rebounding defense at 32.5 caroms per game ... The Cardinals have out-rebounded their opponents in six of eight games this year with only No. 16 Arizona and Butler grabbing more boards than the Cardinals.
In fact, Ball State has out-rebounded four opponents by double figures this year in IUPUI (+11), Calumet College (+14), Texas Southern (+12) and SIU Edwardsville (+10).
Leading The MAC . . .
Senior forward Jarrod Jones is the Mid-American Conference career active leading scorer with 1,342 points and is the career active rebound leader at 793 boards ... Jones leads the active scoring leaders by 150 points as Kent State's Justin Greene is second on the list at 1,192 points while Ohio's D.J. Cooper is third at 1,163 points ... He also owns a 140-rebound lead as Greene is second on the active list at 652 rebounds ... Miami's Julian Mavunga is third on the list at 604 caroms.
Lighting It Up . . .
Last Saturday, the Cardinals' offense was hitting on all cylinders in the second half at Tennessee-Martin ... Ball State shot 72.0 percent (18-of-25) from the field in the second half and hit 87.5 percent (7-of-8) from three-point land as it out-scored the Skyhawks by a 46-30 margin ... The Cardinals' 72 percent field goal percentage marks the first time Ball State has shot at least 70 percent in a half since hitting 71.4 percent against Marshall February 28, 1998.
Double-Dipping . . .
Senior forward Jarrod Jones has posted three double-doubles to raise his career total to a Mid-American Conference best 23 double-doubles ... Jones has accomplished the feat this season against Calumet College, Texas Southern and most recently at SIU Edwardsville.
Lowe's Senior CLASS Award . . .
Senior forward Jarrod Jones has been selected as one of 30 candidates for the 2011-12 Lowe's Senior CLASS Award given to basketball student-athletes who excel on and off the court ... Jones is the first Cardinal to be selected as a candidate since Peyton Stovall was a finalist for the 2007-08 award.
To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as a NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence - community, classroom, character and competition ... The 30 candidates will be narrowed to 10 finalists midway through the regular season, and those 10 names will be placed on the official ballot ... Ballots will be distributed through a nationwide voting system to media, Division I men's coaches and fans who will select one finalist who best exemplifies excellence in the four Cs of community, classroom, character and competition.
Cardinals Sign Four . . .
Ball State head coach Billy Taylor announced the signings of Michael Ramey (Indianapolis, Ind./Southport), Bo Calhoun (South Bend, Ind./Washington), Marcus Posley (Rockford, Ill./Rockford Auburn) and Mading Thok (Boyden, Iowa/Western Christian) to national letters of intent Friday morning during the early signing period.
Ramey, a 6-5 shooting guard, was recently ranked as a Top 25 Shooter in the country for the class of 2012 by ESPN.com after leading the state in three-point shooting as a junior, connecting on 52.4 percent (66-of-126) ... He averaged 19.5 points per game as a junior to earn First Team All-Conference honors.
Calhoun, a 6-6 forward, earned First Team All-Northern Indiana Conference honors last season after averaging 18.0 points and 9.1 rebounds per game ... He has led the Panthers to a 46-22 record during his first three seasons, including a 12-7 mark last season.
Posley, a 6-1 guard Illinois High School Association All-State honors as a junior as he averaged 19.4 points per game and 4.5 assists per contest ... He also picked up All-Northern Illinois Conference and All-Area accolades last season.
Thok, a 7-0 center, is a native of Bor, Sudan ... He averaged 8.5 points and 6.0 rebounds per game as a junior while shooting 54.3 percent from the field and 67.6 percent from the free throw line.
Jones Collects MAC Honor . . .
Senior forward Jarrod Jones was named the Mid-American Conference West Division Player of the Week Monday ... Jones tied his career-high with 25 points against No. 16 Arizona Sunday night while also grabbing nine rebounds ... He connected on 11-of-15 (73.3%) against the nationally ranked Wildcats, including hitting 3-of-3 from three-point land ... He played a team-high 37 minutes as the Cardinals led by 11 points in the second half before their upset bid fell short ... His 25 points ties his career-high which he has posted two other times in his career.
Cardinals Tabbed Second . . .
Ball State has been picked to finish second in the Mid-American Conference West Division preseason poll as selected by the MAC News Media Association ... The Cardinals were picked to finish second in the MAC West Division with 111 points, including nine first place votes, behind Western Michigan (128/14) ... The Cardinals finished last season with a 19-13 overall record and a 10-6 mark in MAC play, finishing second in the West Division ... The Cardinals returns nine letterwinners, including its top five scorers, from last season's team which posted the 11th most wins in program history.
Rounding out the MAC West Division are Central Michigan (92/1), Toledo (76), Northern Illinois (59) and Eastern Michigan (38) ... Reigning MAC regular season champion Kent State was selected to win the East Division with 132 total points, including 16 first place votes ... Akron was tabbed second with 104 points and eight first place votes followed by Ohio (94), Miami (80), Buffalo (62) and Bowling Green (32).
Kent State was also selected to win the 2012 MAC Tournament in Cleveland, Ohio as it received 12 of the 24 votes ... Akron was second with six votes followed by the Cardinals (3), Western Michigan (2) and Central Michigan (1).
Captains Earn MAC Honors . . .
Ball State senior captains Jarrod Jones and Randy Davis were named to the preseason All-Mid-American Conference West Division teams last week ... The two Cardinals were joined by Western Michigan's Flenard Whitfield and Demetrius Ward along with Central Michigan's Trey Zeigler on the West Division squad.
Jones highlights the MAC West Division preseason team, earning preseason accolades for the third time in his career ... He earned First Team All-MAC and MAC All-Tournament honors last season as a junior when leading the team in scoring at 14.7 points per game and rebounding at 8.4 caroms per game ...He scored double figures in 27 of BSU's 32 games, including five games of 20-plus points last season while posting 11 double-doubles.
Davis earns preseason All-MAC honors for the first time in his career after starting all 32 games last season as the Cardinals' point guard ... He averaged 9.8 points per game while leading the team with 160 assists and 48 steals ... He led the MAC from the free throw line connecting on 87.3 percent (117-of-134) while placing second in assists per game (5.0).
Summer Trip To Canada . . .
Ball State took a nine-day foreign trip to Vancouver and Victoria, British Columbia, Canada this past August ... The Cardinals posted a 4-0 record on the trip as they picked up wins over Quest University, Trinity Western University, Victoria Select and Vancouver Island University.
The Cardinals averaged 101.8 points per game in the four-game trip as they won by an average margin of 31.5 points per game ... Ball State posted 22.5 assists per game while shooting 49.6 percent from the field as a team.
Nine different Cardinals averaged at least six points per game on the trip ... Junior guard Jauwan Scaife led the team in scoring at 19.5 points per game while hitting 53.3 percent (16-of-30) from long range ... Sophomore Chris Bond added 15.3 points, 7.3 rebounds. 4.0 assists and 3.25 steals per game ... Senior forward Jarrod Jones chipped in 15.3 points and 8.8 rebounds per game while senior Randy Davis added 9.5 points and 7.0 assists per game.
Looking Ahead . . .
The Cardinals wrap up play before the holiday break Friday evening as they travel to 2011 NCAA Tournament participant Morehead State.
