Tuesday, January 29
Buffalo, N.Y.
7:00 PM ET
Ball State University
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83
Buffalo
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Ball St.
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Buffalo
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Photo by: Paul Hokanson
Cardinals Latest to Fall Victim to No. 18 Buffalo’s Home Winning Streak
January 29, 2019 | Men's Basketball
K.J. Walton scored 18 points, Blake Huggins grabs 10 rebounds in loss to MAC leader
BUFFALO -- Ball State suffered an 83-59 loss Tuesday night at No. 18/17 Buffalo, as the Bulls extended the nation's second-longest home winning streak.
Buffalo (19-2, 7-1 MAC) won its 14th straight Mid-American Conference home game and claimed its 21st consecutive win overall at Alumni Arena. Only Houston (30) has a longer home streak than the defending MAC champion.
Ball State (11-10, 2-6 MAC) played on the road for the fourth time in the past five games and will return home this weekend.
The backcourt tandem of Dontay Caruthers (21 points) and All-MAC first teamer C.J. Massinburg (16) led the way offensively for Buffalo.
The Bulls didn't have a great shooting night but found success getting the ball to the rim and running the fastbreak, especially as they pulled away in the second half. UB owned an 50-34 advantage in the paint and led 20-10 in transition.
"They were really extending and denying and not letting us catch anywhere, and I thought they did a great job defensively," Ball State head coach James Whitford said. "I thought we defended well enough for much of the game, but eventually we broke down in transition. They have such relentlessness to them."
K.J. Walton led Ball State with 18 points on 8-of-14 of shooting but fouled out with six minutes to play. Zach Gunn fouled out earlier in the second half, and the already-shorthanded Cardinals also played the majority of the game without an injured Trey Moses.
With Moses sidelined early, redshirt freshman big man Blake Huggins saw the most extensive action of his career and responded. Huggins scored six points and pulled down 10 rebounds in 19 minutes of action.
"I thought Blake was a real bright spot for us," Whitford said. "I thought he really impacted the game defensively. Physically, he really made a difference for us."
It was not a pretty offensive performance on either side in the first half, with the teams combining to shoot 3-for-32 from beyond the arc. The Cardinals finished the night 2-for-23 from deep.
Ball State trimmed a 13-point deficit to six near the 4-minute mark of the first half, but Buffalo closed the half strong to get all of those points back and take a 35-22 lead into the locker room.
The Bulls extended their lead in the second half, connecting on 51 percent from the floor after the break while the Cardinals continued to struggle.
Ball State will return to Muncie for an early tipoff Saturday. The Cardinals will host Kent State at noon on Social Media Day at Worthen Arena. The game will be televised on CBS Sports Network.
Buffalo (19-2, 7-1 MAC) won its 14th straight Mid-American Conference home game and claimed its 21st consecutive win overall at Alumni Arena. Only Houston (30) has a longer home streak than the defending MAC champion.
Ball State (11-10, 2-6 MAC) played on the road for the fourth time in the past five games and will return home this weekend.
The backcourt tandem of Dontay Caruthers (21 points) and All-MAC first teamer C.J. Massinburg (16) led the way offensively for Buffalo.
The Bulls didn't have a great shooting night but found success getting the ball to the rim and running the fastbreak, especially as they pulled away in the second half. UB owned an 50-34 advantage in the paint and led 20-10 in transition.
"They were really extending and denying and not letting us catch anywhere, and I thought they did a great job defensively," Ball State head coach James Whitford said. "I thought we defended well enough for much of the game, but eventually we broke down in transition. They have such relentlessness to them."
K.J. Walton led Ball State with 18 points on 8-of-14 of shooting but fouled out with six minutes to play. Zach Gunn fouled out earlier in the second half, and the already-shorthanded Cardinals also played the majority of the game without an injured Trey Moses.
With Moses sidelined early, redshirt freshman big man Blake Huggins saw the most extensive action of his career and responded. Huggins scored six points and pulled down 10 rebounds in 19 minutes of action.
"I thought Blake was a real bright spot for us," Whitford said. "I thought he really impacted the game defensively. Physically, he really made a difference for us."
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— Ball State Basketball (@BallStateMBB) January 30, 2019
Blake Huggins with the SWAT on Buffalo's Dontay Caruthers!
TP leads the break, and Tahj finishes.#ChirpChirp | #WeFly | #BSUvsUB pic.twitter.com/uStwbvf1KS
It was not a pretty offensive performance on either side in the first half, with the teams combining to shoot 3-for-32 from beyond the arc. The Cardinals finished the night 2-for-23 from deep.
Ball State trimmed a 13-point deficit to six near the 4-minute mark of the first half, but Buffalo closed the half strong to get all of those points back and take a 35-22 lead into the locker room.
The Bulls extended their lead in the second half, connecting on 51 percent from the floor after the break while the Cardinals continued to struggle.
Ball State will return to Muncie for an early tipoff Saturday. The Cardinals will host Kent State at noon on Social Media Day at Worthen Arena. The game will be televised on CBS Sports Network.
"Buffalo is the most athletically gifted of the teams we've played."
— Ball State Basketball (@BallStateMBB) January 30, 2019
Coach Whitford on tonight's lost at nationally ranked Buffalo. pic.twitter.com/AzAMemH4un
On the bright spot of Blake Huggins' performance off the bench in the most extensive minutes of his career ... pic.twitter.com/4xZjJXyvqY
— Ball State Basketball (@BallStateMBB) January 30, 2019
Team Stats
M-47
M-86
FG%
.323
.432
3FG%
.087
.226
FT%
.682
.500
RB
48
51
TO
18
8
STL
6
7
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
18
FGM
8
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Pts
13
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
3
Pts
6
FGM
2
3FGM
1
FTM
1
Pts
6
FGM
1
3FGM
0
FTM
4
Players Mentioned
C
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