Men’s Hoops Set for Coppin State Monday in Vegas

Game 4
Ball State (1-2, 0-0 MAC) vs. Coppin State (0-5, 0-0 MEAC)
Men Who Speak Up Main Event
Monday, Nov. 21 (12:30 p.m. PT/3:30 ET)
MGM Grand Garden Arena (Las Vegas, Nevada)
Watch (YouTube) | Listen (WLBC) | Live Stats

Opening Tip
• Ball State is set for two games at the Men Who Speak Up Main Event, starting Monday afternoon against Coppin State. The Cardinals will then play Wednesday against Southern Utah. BSU played two previous games as part of the event, both on the road -- an 85-64 win Nov. 11 at Saint Louis and a 77-59 loss Friday at Alabama.

• Coppin State is coming off a 94-51 loss Friday at Utah. It was the fourth game in a five-day stretch for the Eagles. The team finished 9-22 last season and 6-10 in the MEAC.

• Senior forward Franko House is 31 points away from becoming the 29th 1,000-point scorer in Ball State history. House has scored double figures in all three games this season and is averaging 18.0 points per contest.

• Sophomore big man Trey Moses has been efficient in the paint over the past two games, making 11 of 18 shots (61.1 percent). He scored double figures in both games.

• Ball State is looking to get on track from the 3-point line. The Cardinals return their top outside threats from a team that shot 37.2 percent from deep last season. They made 13 of 23 from beyond the arc in the season opener at Saint Louis but have connected on just 4 of 17 in each of the past two games (23.5 percent).

• Ball State features two of the top 10 scorers in the Mid-American Conference through three games in sophomore point guard Tayler Persons (20.7 ppg, 5th) and senior forward Franko House (18.0 ppg, 9th). Persons is seeing his first action for the Cardinals after sitting out last season as a transfer from Northern Kentucky.

• Ball State checks in at No. 133 in the Ken Pomeroy ratings. The Cardinals reached as high as No. 127 last season and finished at No. 155 for their best year-end rating since 2004-05.

Ball State in Vegas
• The Men Who Speak Up Main Event marks the fourth trip to Las Vegas in the history of Ball State's program.
• The Cardinals' most recent trip came in November 2006 with two games as part of the Las Vegas Holiday Invitational. The team lost to Kansas and Western Kentucky at Orleans Arena.
• The Cardinals also played a road game at UNLV in December 1995 and competed in the UNLV Holiday Classic in December 1985.

All-Time vs. Coppin State
• Monday's meeting will be the fourth between Ball State and Coppin State. The Cardinals lead the all-time series 2-1.
• Ball State defeated Coppin State 71-66 in Muncie in the 1989 Cardinal Varsity Club Classic.
• Coppin State earned a 76-75 victory in 1994 at Michigan State's Oldsmobile Spartan Classic.
• The most recent meeting came in 1995 with Ball State winning 78-55 at Worthen Arena in Muncie.

Busy Start
• Ball State is in the midst of a busy stretch that will see the team play seven times in the season's first 19 days.
• The Men Who Speak Up Main Event is part of a stretch of four straight games the Cardinals will play away from home.

Teague Cleaning the Glass
• Redshirt freshman forward Tahjai Teague has made a big impact on the glass early this season.
• Teague has led Ball State in rebounding in two of the three games, including a season-high 11 boards the last time out against Alabama.
• He also leads the Cardinals with six blocks.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Franko House

Trey Moses

Tayler Persons

Tahjai Teague