Ball State University Athletics
Men's Basketball Travels To Buffalo Wednesday Night
January 31, 2012 | Men's Basketball
What's On Tap . . .
Ball State concludes its two-game road swing against Mid-American Conference East Division foes Wednesday night as it travels to the Empire State to take on the Buffalo Bulls at 7 p.m. at Alumni Arena ... The Cardinals enter the game with a 4-3 mark in MAC play as they sit tied for second place in the MAC West Division with Western Michigan, trailing Eastern Michigan by one game ... Buffalo enters the game with a 5-2 league mark and has won four straight MAC games ... The Bulls are tied for second in the MAC East Division with Ohio and trail Akron by one game.
Wednesday's game will be broadcast on 104.1 WLBC FM and online at www.ballstatesports.com with Morry Mannies and David Eha providing the call ... The game will be video streamed online at www.mac-sports.com.
Series History . . .
Wednesday's game marks the 21st meeting all-time between Ball State and Buffalo dating back to December 18, 1958 ... The Cardinals hold a 13-7 mark all-time against the Bulls and have won five out of the last six meetings between the two teams, including the past five in the regular season ... Ball State is 5-4 all-time in Buffalo, including wins in the past two road games -- in the 2009-10 season (75-69) and the 2007-08 campaign (76-67).
Last year, the Cardinals posted a 72-71 victory over Buffalo at Worthen Arena ... Guard Jauwan Scaife scored a team-high 22 points, including a career-high six three-pointers ... Scaife connected on 7-of-12 from the field, 6-of-8 from long range and hit both of his free throws in 38 minutes of action ... Forward Chris Bond added 11 points as he was 4-of-4 form the field and 3-of-4 for from the free throw line ... Buffalo was led by Zach Filzen who scored a game-high 26 points as he was 9-of-16 from the field, including four three-pointers ... Titus Robinson added 16 points while Javon McCrea chipped in 12 points off the bench.
In two career games against Buffalo, Scaife is averaging 19.0 points per game ... He is shooting 60.0 percent (12-of-20) from the field and a startling 73.3 percent (11-of-15) from three-point land against the Bulls.
Sears BracketBusters . . .
The 10th annual Sears BracketBusters, a three-day men's college basketball event pitting potential NCAA Championship hopefuls against each other Feb. 17-19, and it features 13 nationally televised games - on either ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU or ESPN3 ... The NCAA hopefuls will be selected from a pool of 142 teams from 16 conferences.
Ball State is participating for the 10th season in the BracketBusters event and will host Missouri Valley Conference foe Southern Illinois ... Game time is set for 2 p.m. at Worthen Arena February 18.
Date Set Versus Northern Illinois . . .
The Cardinals' regular season finale against Northern Illinois is now set for Saturday, March 3 with a 2 p.m. tip-off at Worthen Arena ... The game was originally part of the MAC/ESPNU flex schedule and was listed as a March 2/3 date on all schedules ... The Cardinals will honor their 2011-12 senior class prior to that game.
Cardinals Vs. The MAC East . . .
The 2011-12 season marks the 15th season the Mid-American Conference has been in two divisions (West & East) ... Ball State, which has always been a member of the West Division, owns a 42-53 record against the East Division since the two-division format was implemented in the 1997-98 season.
The Cardinals posted a 1-5 record against the East Division last season with their lone win coming against Buffalo ... Ball State has only posted a winning record against the MAC East Division three times in 14 years .. The Cardinals posted a 4-2 record in 2009-10, a 4-2 record in 2002-03 and a 5-1 mark during the 1997-98 campaign ... Ball State has recorded four .500 records against the East Division but have seven seasons below .500 against the East Division ... Ball State is 12-3 during the regular season against Buffalo, 7-4 against Bowling Green, 5-10 against Akron, 6-7 against Ohio, 4-8 against Kent State, 2-6 against Marshall and 6-15 against Miami since divisional play began.
Leading The Nation . . .
Senior guard Randy Davis leads all of NCAA Division I this season in assist/turnover ratio entering Wednesday's game at 3.67 ... Davis has handed out 110 assists this season while only committing 30 turnovers ... He has a 3.33 assist/turnover ratio in Mid-American Conference play with 30 assists and nine miscues ... His 3.33 ratio also leads the MAC in league games.
Davis was named the MAC West Player of the Week last week for his efforts leading the Cardinals to road wins over Central Michigan and Northern Illinois ... He averaged 9.0 points, 8.0 assists, 5.0 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game ... Davis handed out 16 assists while only committing three turnovers in 62 minutes of action for the week for a 5.33 assist/turnover ratio .
Davis is second in the MAC at 5.8 assists per game ... Davis currently ranks 13th in NCAA Division I in assists per game ... Ball State as a team is third in the MAC with 14.0 assists per game.
Road Tripping With The BSU . . .
Wednesday's game marks the fifth and final game in a stretch for the Cardinals in which they play four of five games on the road in Mid-American Conference play ... This is the first time since the 2006-07 season in which the Cardinals have faced a road stretch like this in MAC play ... Ball State won the first two road games during the stretch with wins at Central Michigan and Northern Illinois.
Ball State is one of three league teams this season that will play four road games in a five-game stretch ... Central Michigan is currently in a such stretch as it played at Eastern Michigan and Northern Illinois prior to Wednesday's home game ... The Chippewas hit the road for two straight travelling to Western Michigan and Bowling Green ... Kent State also has a similar stretch as it plays at Ohio, Akron Toledo and Central Michigan while only hosting Northern Illinois in a five-game stretch.
Vote For Coach Taylor . . .
Ball State men's basketball head coach, Billy Taylor, is proud to support Athletes In Action by participating in Infiniti's ongoing partnership with the National Association of Basketball Coaches, the NCAA and ESPN in the Infiniti Coaches' Charity Challenge ... The program includes a $100,000 donation to the winning coach's designated charity ... Expanding from 14 participating NABC coaches last season to 48 of the nation's top NCAA Division I Men's Basketball coaches this year, the total Infiniti contribution will be more than $300,000.
Fan participation will determine the ultimate winner over an eight-week period beginning January 18th by registering and voting on a custom microsite on www.ESPN.com/Infiniti.
Coaching Comparison . . .
Ball State is led by fifth-year head coach Billy Taylor ... Taylor has led the Cardinals to 60 wins over the past four-plus 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.
Buffalo is coached by 13th-year head coach Reggie Witherspoon ... Witherspoon ranks third in Buffalo history with 176 career victories and has led the Bulls to at least 17 wins in six out of the last eight seasons.
Last Time Out . . .
Ball State rallied from a 14-point first half deficit to take a late second half lead, but the Cardinals suffered a 59-55 loss at Ohio Saturday morning on ESPNU ... The Cardinals committed 22 turnovers in the loss and shot just 33.3 percent (17-of-51) from the field ... Ohio conversely connected on 40 percent (20-of-50) from the field and only committed 14 miscues.
Sophomore forward Chris Bond and senior forward Jarrod Jones posted double-doubles in the loss for the Cardinals ... Bond scored a team-high 14 points and grabbed 12 rebounds as he was a perfect 8-of-8 from the free throw line to offset his 3-of-10 night from the field.
Jones recorded his 27th career double-double as he scored 11 points and tied his career-high with 15 rebounds ... Bond and Jones are the first Cardinals to post double-doubles in the same game since February 9, 2011 at Bowling Green (Jones and Malik Perry).
Senior guard Randy Davis added 12 points as he was 4-of-8 from three-point land ... No other Cardinal scored at least five points in the loss.
Stepping Up At The Stripe . . .
Ball State connected on a season-high 88.2 percent (15-of-17) free throws Saturday afternoon at Ohio, marking the Cardinals' best free throw percentage in a game since shooting 90.9 percent (10-of-11) at Valparaiso December 1, 2007.
The Cardinals have hit 86.7 percent (26-of-30) over their past two games against Ohio (15-of-17) and Akron (11-of-13) ... The 86.7 percent clip over a two-game stretch is the best percentage in back-to-back games for the Cardinals since the 2001-02 season ... That year, Ball State connected on 94.1 percent (48-of-51) in consecutive games ... The Cardinals hit 28-of-30 (93.3%) at Northern Illinois February 5, 2002 and followed that up hitting 20-of-21 (95.2%) at Ohio February 9, 2002.
Behind The Numbers . . .
Ball State is 9-0 this season when it scores at least 70 points and was 14-4 last season when reaching the 70-point barrier ... The Cardinals are 12-3 this season when leading at the half with their only losses coming at No. 16 Arizona, vs. Eastern Michigan and vs. Akron ... Last season, the Cardinals were 12-2 when leading at the half ... Ball State is a perfect 9-0 this season when it hands out 15 or more assists ... Last year, the Cardinals were 10-2 when reaching at least 15 assists.
Ball State is 12-3 this season when it hits more free throws in a game than its opponent ... The two exceptions are at IUPUI (17-16) , against EMU (17-8) and at Ohio (15-14) ... The Cardinals are also 10-4 this season when senior forward Jarrod Jones leads the team in scoring.
Scouting The Cardinals . . .
Ball State enters Wednesday's game with a 12-7 overall record and a 4-3 mark in Mid-American Conference play ... The Cardinals have dropped back-to-back games to MAC East foes falling to Akron and Ohio ... Ball State is averaging 65.7 points per game while allowing just 58.8 points per game ... The Cardinals are shooting 43.5 percent (418-of-962) from the field and 33.0 percent (122-of-370) from long range ... Opponents are shooting 38.3 percent (388-of-1013) from the field and 30.2 percent (111-of-367) from three-point land.
Senior forward Jarrod Jones leads the team in scoring at 17.1 points per game and on the glass at 8.8 rebounds per game ... Jones is shooting 54.2 percent (116-of-214) from the field and 82.2 percent (83-of-101) from the free throw line ... Sophomore Jesse Berry is second on the team in scoring at 9.6 points per game and is tied for the team lead with 27 three-pointers.
Senior guard Randy Davis leads the team with 110 assists while chipping in 8.8 points per game ... Davis is one of four Cardinals with at least 24 three-pointers as he is tied for the team lead with 27 ... Sophomore forward Chris Bond is second on the team in rebounding at 4.8 boards per game while chipping in 7.6 points per game.
Scouting The Bulls . . .
Buffalo enters Wednesday's game with a 12-6 overall record and a 5-2 mark in Mid-American Conference play ... The Bulls have won four straight with wins over Akron, Bowling Green, Eastern Michigan and Northern Illinois ... Buffalo is averaging 73.6 points per game while holding opponents to 64.9 points per game ... The Bulls are shooting 46.0 percent (456-of-992) from the field and 35.9 percent (118-of-329) from three-point land ... Opponents are shooting 38.0 percent (407-of-1072) from the field and 30.3 percent (118-of-389) from long range.
Sophomore forward Javon McCrea, the reigning MAC Freshman of the Year, leads the team in scoring at 16.4 points per game and is tied for the team lead on the glass with 7.5 rebounds per game ... McCrea is shooting 58.3 percent (119-of-204) from the field and has 26 steals ... Mitchell Watt is second on team in scoring at 14.9 points per game and tied for the team lead on the glass at 7.5 caroms per game.
Guard Zach Filzen rounds out the Bulls in double figures scoring at 12.2 points per game and leads the team with 55 three-pointers while shooting 42.6 percent from long range ... Jarod Oldham leads the team with 112 assists and a team-high 29 steals.
Double-Dipping . . .
Senior forward Jarrod Jones has posted six double-doubles this to raise his career total to 27 double-doubles ... Jones has accomplished the feat this season against Calumet College, Texas Southern, SIU Edwardsville, Florida A&M, Eastern Michigan and Ohio.
Jones recorded 11 points and 15 rebounds against Ohio Saturday while sophomore forward Chris Bond posted his first double dip of the season with 14 points and 12 rebounds ... Jones and Bond became the first Cardinals' duo since February 9, 2011 at Bowling Green (Jones and Malik Perry) to accomplish the feat.
Coming Off The Bench . . .
Sophomore guard Jesse Berry is second on the Cardinals in scoring at 9.6 points per game even though he hasn't started a game this year ... Berry has played all 19 games as a reserve and averages 22.5 minutes per game and has hit a team-high 27 three-pointers.
Berry is fifth in the MAC in bench scoring among players who have started less than half the games they have appeared in this season ... Curtis Dennis of Toledo is averaging 12.6 points per game in 12 games off the bench after missing the first semester ... Miami's Brian Sullivan is second off the bench chipping in 10.3 points per game in 19 games, 15 as a reserve.
1.) Curtis Dennis, Toledo (12.6 ppg/12-0)
2.) Brian Sullivan, Miami (10.3 ppg, 19-4)
3.) Nick Harney, Akron (10.1 ppg/16-0)
4.) Chris Evans, Kent State (9.7 ppg, 20-2)
5.) Jesse Berry, Ball State (9.6 ppg, 15-0)
6.) Quincy Diggs, Akron (9.5 ppg, 21-7)
7.) Reggie Keely, Ohio (9.0 ppg, 21-0)
Cashing In The Freebies . . .
Ball State seniors Randy Davis and Jarrod Jones rank in the top five in the Mid-American Conference this season in free throw percentage, the only team with two players in the top five ... Davis is third in the MAC from the line, hitting 86.9 percent (53-of-61), while Jones is fifth in the conference at 82.2 percent (83-of-101).
Davis had a stretch of 26 straight free throws made earlier this season, which was a career-high ... He posted 22 straight on two different occasions last year ... The Ball State record for consecutive free throws made is 41 set by Larry Bullington in 1971-72.
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 game leading the MAC and ranking 18th in NCAA Division I in scoring defense holding opponents to a 58.8 point per game average ... Also, the Cardinals are second in the MAC in field goal percentage defense at 38.2 percent, which places them 14th in the nation ... Ball State is 37th in the country and third in the MAC in three-point field goal defense, holding opponents to 30.2 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.
Jones' Scoring Numbers . . .
Senior forward Jarrod Jones leads the Cardinals and is second in the Mid-American Conference in scoring at 17.1 points per game ... Jones ranks 77th in NCAA Division I in scoring this season ... He ranks 43rd in the country in field goal percentage at 54.2 percent (116-of-214), which is seventh best in the MAC.
Jones has scored at least 20 points in nine of the 19 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 ... He 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 19 games of 20-plus points in his career, including 25 points last time out against Akron.
Climbing The Charts . . .
Senior forward Jarrod Jones moved into eighth place in Ball State history with 1,506 career points and is third all-time with 887 rebounds ... Jones surpassed Theron Smith and Steve Payne on the rebounding list with his 15 boards against Ohio ... Additionally, Jones is third all-time with 110 career starts ... Senior guard Randy Davis moved up to fourth all-time in assists with 412, surpassing Scott Nichols.
Scoring
6. Theron Smith, 1999-02 1,599
7. Duane Clemens, 1996-00 1,585
8. Jarrod Jones, 2008-11 1,506
9. Steve Payne, 1992-95 1,440
10. Peyton Stovall, 2003-08 1,383
11. Dan Palombizio, 1984-86 1,369
Rebounding
1. Ed Butler, 1961-64 1231
2. Randy Boarden, 1975-79 1000
3. Jarrod Jones, 2008-11 887
4. Steve Payne, 1992-95 885
5. Theron Smith, 1999-2002 882
Game Started
1. Bonzi Wells, 1994-98 114
2. Peyton Stovall, 2003-08 113
3. Jarrod Jones, 2008-11 110
3. Duane Clemens, 1996-2000 109
5. Randy Zachary, 1993-97 100
Assists
2. Chris Shelton (1982-86) 481
3. Mike Spicer (1988-92) 430
4. Randy Davis, 2008-11 410
5. Scott Nichols (1986-90) 406
6. Bonzi Wells, 1994-98 386
Leading The MAC . . .
Senior forward Jarrod Jones is the Mid-American Conference career active leading scorer with 1,506 points and is the career active rebound leader at 887 boards ... Jones leads the active scoring leaders by 146 points as Kent State's Justin Greene is second at 1,360 points and Ohio's D.J. Cooper is third on the list at 1,344 points ... He also owns a 164-rebound lead as Greene is second on the active list at 723 rebounds ... Miami's Julian Mavunga is third on the list at 713 caroms.
Cardinals On ESPNU . . .
The Cardinals have been chosen for an ESPNU national telecast for their game February 11 at Kent State ... Tip-off for that game is set for 11 a.m. at the M.A.C.C. in Kent, Ohio.
Additionally, the February 22 game at Western Michigan is also a STO broadcast ... The Cardinals also have one additional Ball State Sports Network broadcast after Saturday's game with their February 25 game at Eastern Michigan ... Ball State also has its February 8 game against Bowling Green being broadcast by BSU Sports Link.
Home, Sweet Home . . .
Last Tuesday's game marked the 292nd game all-time for the Cardinals at Worthen Arena since it opened January 15, 1992 (previously named University Arena) ... Ball State owns a 214-78 record all-time at Worthen Arena as it has won 73.0 percent of its games at home ... The Cardinals are 7-2 so far this season at home with wins over IUPUI, Calumet College, Texas Southern, Butler, Chicago State, Florida A&M and Western Michigan.
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.
Jones' Weekly Honors . . .
Senior forward Jarrod Jones has been named the Mid-American Conference West Division Player of the Week four times this season ... Jones is the only play in the MAC this season to earn multiple honors and has now garnered weekly accolades 10 times in his career.
Jones picked up his most recent honor last week after leading the Cardinals to two victories, including a 78-69 win over preseason MAC West Division favorite Western Michigan ... He averaged 17.5 points and 9.5 rebounds per game in the two victories.
Jones has picked up MAC West Player of the Week honors this season Nov. 14, Dec. 12 and Jan. 2.
Jones Earns Pre-MAC Honor . . .
Senior forward Jarrod Jones was named one of five All-Mid-American Conference selections by CollegeHoops.net for his play in the pre-conference schedule ... Jones ranked second in the MAC in scoring at 18.1 points per game and 8.2 rebounds per game in non-conference play ... He has earned MAC West Player of the Week honors three times this season, the only player in the league to win multiple honors.
Joining Jones on the pre-conference team is Miami's Julian Mavunga, Ohio's D. J. Cooper, Buffalo's Javon McCrea and Toledo's Rian Pearson.
Davis - Cousy Award Candidate . . .
For the second year in a row, Ball State senior point guard Randy Davis has been named one of 59 candidates for the 2012 Bob Cousy Collegiate Point Guard of the Year Award ... The annual honor, named for Hall of Famer and former Boston Celtic Bob Cousy, recognizes the top point guards in college basketball ... Davis is one of just two players from the Mid-American Conference (D.J. Cooper, Ohio) among the 2012 nominees and is just one of 12 players in the country that has made the exclusive list for two straight years
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.
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).
Looking Ahead . . .
The Cardinals head home Saturday afternoon for the first of two straight home games as they host rival Miami at 4 p.m. ... Ball State begins a stretch of four home games in its next five Saturday afternoon.
