Friday, January 4
Toledo, Ohio
7:00 PM ET
Ball State University
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Toledo
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Ball St.
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Photo by: Steve Woltmann
Cardinals Lock Down Sizzling Toledo Squad in MAC-Opening Victory
January 04, 2019 | Men's Basketball
BSU wins for ninth time in past 10 games, runs winning streak over Rockets to five
TOLEDO, Ohio -- Something about playing Toledo lately seems to bring out the best in the Ball State men's basketball team.
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The Cardinals swept the Rockets in each of the past two years and were looking for a fifth straight win in the series Friday night to open Mid-American Conference play.
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Mission accomplished.
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Ball State led wire-to-wire in an 79-64 victory at Savage Hall, knocking off one of the league's best. It was the fourth straight meeting with Toledo in which the Cardinals never trailed.
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"Every game in this league is hard," Ball State head coach James Whitford said. "This is a hard place to play, and they have a good team. I thought we played really well tonight, and we won this game really by being elite defensively."
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This was a Rocket squad coming off a MAC West Division championship last year and playing even better so far this season. UT (12-2, 0-1 MAC) had won 10 in a row, was on the cusp of the top 50 in most of the major rating systems and was ranked third in the latest CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25.
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But Ball State (10-4, 1-0 MAC) scored the first nine points Friday and controlled the action all the way, winning for the ninth time in the past 10 games.
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Tayler Persons led four double-figure scorers with 21 points, while Tahjai Teague logged his second double-double of the year with 20 points and 12 rebounds. Teague was 3-for-4 from 3-point range.
But it was the defensive end of the floor where Ball State really made it happen. Toledo entered the night ranked 33rd nationally in scoring at nearly 83 points per game. Friday night, the Rockets shot just 36 percent and connected on only 8-of-30 from 3-point range.
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Persons locked down Toledo leading scorer Jaelan Sanford, holding him scoreless in the first half. Sanford managed 12 in the second half but still finished nearly six below his average, and the Cardinals only expanded the lead.Â
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Kyle Mallers keyed in on the MAC's leading 3-point shooter Nate Navigato, holding him to 1-for-7 shooting and 0-for-4 from deep. And Teague, while he racked up numbers on the offensive end, had just as great an impact defensively.
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"(Teague) scored the ball well tonight, but he is so good defensively because of his length and versatility," Whitford said. "And he's such a smart basketball player. His ability to think the game and understand the game and sniff things out is as good as I've seen in a long time. He defended a lot of different guys, and we has great out there."
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Seven quick points from Sanford after halftime helped trim a 12-point Ball State lead to seven, but Persons answered with back-to-back buckets in the lane. The Cardinals led by double figures the rest of the way and stretched it to as many as 24.
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Ball State did damage inside all night long, doubling up Toledo 48-24 in the paint. Trey Moses went to work in the post on the way to 17 points, climbing within three of the 1,000-point mark for his career. K.J. Walton slashed his way to 14.
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Chris Darrington led the way with 13 points for Toledo, which now travels to play Buffalo in its second league game.
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Ball State will return to Muncie to continue MAC play Tuesday night. The Cardinals will host preseason West Division favorite Eastern Michigan at 7 p.m.
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The Cardinals swept the Rockets in each of the past two years and were looking for a fifth straight win in the series Friday night to open Mid-American Conference play.
Â
Mission accomplished.
Â
Ball State led wire-to-wire in an 79-64 victory at Savage Hall, knocking off one of the league's best. It was the fourth straight meeting with Toledo in which the Cardinals never trailed.
Â
"Every game in this league is hard," Ball State head coach James Whitford said. "This is a hard place to play, and they have a good team. I thought we played really well tonight, and we won this game really by being elite defensively."
Â
This was a Rocket squad coming off a MAC West Division championship last year and playing even better so far this season. UT (12-2, 0-1 MAC) had won 10 in a row, was on the cusp of the top 50 in most of the major rating systems and was ranked third in the latest CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25.
Â
But Ball State (10-4, 1-0 MAC) scored the first nine points Friday and controlled the action all the way, winning for the ninth time in the past 10 games.
Â
Tayler Persons led four double-figure scorers with 21 points, while Tahjai Teague logged his second double-double of the year with 20 points and 12 rebounds. Teague was 3-for-4 from 3-point range.
ÂThe call from @JoelGodett on the Ball State Radio network was probably something like, "Tahjai Teague, RISE AND ROCK!"#ChirpChirp | #WeFly | #BSUvsTOL pic.twitter.com/WKcIrNRZDD
— Ball State Basketball (@BallStateMBB) January 5, 2019
But it was the defensive end of the floor where Ball State really made it happen. Toledo entered the night ranked 33rd nationally in scoring at nearly 83 points per game. Friday night, the Rockets shot just 36 percent and connected on only 8-of-30 from 3-point range.
Â
Persons locked down Toledo leading scorer Jaelan Sanford, holding him scoreless in the first half. Sanford managed 12 in the second half but still finished nearly six below his average, and the Cardinals only expanded the lead.Â
Â
Kyle Mallers keyed in on the MAC's leading 3-point shooter Nate Navigato, holding him to 1-for-7 shooting and 0-for-4 from deep. And Teague, while he racked up numbers on the offensive end, had just as great an impact defensively.
Â
"(Teague) scored the ball well tonight, but he is so good defensively because of his length and versatility," Whitford said. "And he's such a smart basketball player. His ability to think the game and understand the game and sniff things out is as good as I've seen in a long time. He defended a lot of different guys, and we has great out there."
Â
Seven quick points from Sanford after halftime helped trim a 12-point Ball State lead to seven, but Persons answered with back-to-back buckets in the lane. The Cardinals led by double figures the rest of the way and stretched it to as many as 24.
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ÂLOOK OUT BELOW.@BallStateMBB's K.J. Walton stuffs with authority. pic.twitter.com/dMcjZv7urX
— CBS Sports Network (@CBSSportsNet) January 5, 2019
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Ball State did damage inside all night long, doubling up Toledo 48-24 in the paint. Trey Moses went to work in the post on the way to 17 points, climbing within three of the 1,000-point mark for his career. K.J. Walton slashed his way to 14.
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Chris Darrington led the way with 13 points for Toledo, which now travels to play Buffalo in its second league game.
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Ball State will return to Muncie to continue MAC play Tuesday night. The Cardinals will host preseason West Division favorite Eastern Michigan at 7 p.m.
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Â"Every game in this league is hard. This is a hard place to play, and they're a good team ... We won this game by being elite defensively."
— Ball State Basketball (@BallStateMBB) January 5, 2019
Coach Whitford on handing Toledo just its second loss of the season tonight.#ChirpChirp | #WeFly | #BSUvsTOL pic.twitter.com/mDR8PIApEO
Team Stats
M-47
M-709
FG%
.484
.362
3FG%
.286
.267
FT%
.765
.667
RB
40
39
TO
10
13
STL
4
2
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
21
FGM
10
3FGM
1
FTM
0
Pts
20
FGM
8
3FGM
3
FTM
1
Pts
17
FGM
6
3FGM
0
FTM
5
Pts
14
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
4
Players Mentioned
F
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