Ball State University Athletics
MBB Hosts Central Michigan Saturday on BSSN/ESPN3
January 09, 2015 | Men's Basketball
Ball State vs. Central Michigan
Saturday, Jan. 10; 4:30 p.m.
Worthen Arena (Muncie, Ind.)
TV: Ball State Sports Network/ESPN3
Radio: 104.1 WLBC
BSSN Affiliates: WIPB – Muncie; HTSN – Indianapolis; WHME – South Bend; WISE (MyTV 33.2) – Fort Wayne; WJTS – Jasper (tape delay)
It's hard to downplay the impact Franko House has made in the past two games for the Ball State men's basketball team.
With both games on the line in the closing minutes, House rose to the occasion and shouldered a heavy load to pull the Cardinals through.
The sophomore forward was directly involved in the final nine points last Saturday against Bethune-Cookman, setting Sean Sellers up for a 3-pointer and then scoring the Cardinals' final six points, all at the line, in a 51-48 win. Wednesday at Eastern Michigan, House was involved in the team's final seven points. He scored four of them and then assisted on Sellers' game-winning 3 in a 60-59 overtime victory.
In all, Ball State (6-6, 1-0 Mid-American Conference) has won three games in a row to even its record for the season. During that stretch, House has averaged 10 points, 7.7 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game.
On Wednesday, Ball State took down a team that already owned 11 wins on the year. The Cardinals will look to do it once again when Central Michigan (11-1, 1-0 MAC) visits Saturday.
While Eastern Michigan provided a challenge with one of the nation's top defenses, Central Michigan enters Saturday's game with one of the best offenses in the country. The Chippewas rank second nationally in scoring at 86 points per game.
Central Michigan shoots nearly 50 percent from the floor and better than 40 percent from the 3-point line. Their offensive execution has helped them to one of the biggest turnarounds in the country so far this season after a 10-21 campaign a year ago.
In fact, both Ball State and Central Michigan have already surpassed their win totals from last season. The rise of both programs has mirrored the improvement throughout the league, which is rated as high as the 11th-best conference in the country.
The Cardinals and Chippewas have combined to produce some exciting games recently with the past three meetings decided by six points or fewer. Ball State bounced back from a triple-overtime road loss to Central Michigan last season by beating the Chippewas 74-71 at home.
Ball State has traditionally fared well at home against Central Michigan, boasting a 37-5 all-time record in Muncie and a 20-2 mark inside Worthen Arena against the Chippewas.
Saturday's game is part of a men's/women's doubleheader at Worthen Arena. The action tips off at 2 p.m. with the Ball State women's team hosting Western Michigan.
