Men's Hoops Looks to Bounce Back Saturday versus Howard

Game 6
Ball State (3-2, 0-0 MAC) vs. Howard (0-6, 0-0 MEAC)
Saturday, Nov. 23 (3:30 p.m.)
Muncie, Ind. (Worthen Arena)
Watch: ESPN+ | Listen: 96.7/104.9 | Live Stats

Ball State is hosting its annual Toys for Tots collection in conjunction with Saturday's basketball doubleheader at Worthen Arena. The women's team hosts Butler at 1 p.m. Fans will receive specially-priced tickets and students will earn Student Rewards bonus points with the donation of a toy.

Setting the Stage
• Ball State welcomes Howard to Worthen Arena for the second straight season. The Cardinals won last year's meeting, 98-71. Saturday's matchup is the second in a string of five straight games at Worthen Arena for BSU, while Howard will be playing its sixth straight away from home.

• Ball State enters this year's contest looking to bounce back from a 59-57 loss to reigning Horizon League champion Northern Kentucky in the opener of the homestand. Kyle Mallers scored a team-high 17 points, all in the second half of that game. Howard is in search of its first win of the season, most recently falling Thursday at Marshall, 91-63.

The Matchup
• Last year's matchup at Worthen Arena was the first ever between Ball State and Howard. The Cardinals are 15-2 all-time against the MEAC, with their only losses coming to South Carolina State in 1993 and Coppin State in 1994. The Cardinals are 10-0 against the MEAC since 2009.

• BSU guard Ishmael El-Amin made his first career start in the Howard game last year in place of an injured K.J. Walton. El-Amin scored a then-career-high 15 points on 5-of-8 shooting but suffered a wrist injury in the game that kept him out for two months.

• Howard is playing its first season under head coach Kenneth Blakeney. The former Duke Blue Devil brings quite a pedigree, having played for Mike Krzyzewski and later served as an assistant coach for Lefty Driesell at James Madison, Mike Brey at Delaware and Tommy Amaker at Harvard. Senior guard Charles Williams, a preseason All-MEAC pick, leads the Bison at 17.8 points per game. Williams ranks 14th nationally in both field goal attempts (90) and free throw attempts (35).

• Ball State's loss to Northern Kentucky snapped a 17-game home, non-conference winning streak for BSU. The Cardinals will look to start a new streak against Howard.

What's Trending
• Ball State is two decent foul-shooting performances away from being 5-0. The Cardinals hit just 9-for-26 at the stripe in Wednesday's two-point loss to Northern Kentucky. BSU was 6-for-15 at the line at Evansville, a game in which the Cardinals trailed by just one in the closing seconds.

• The NKU game marked the first time this season Ball State was outscored in the second half (38-35). The Cardinals had won each of the previous four second halves by double digits.

• Ball State has held four of its five opponents to fewer than 60 points. The Cardinals rank 22nd in the country in scoring defense, allowing just 56.8 points per game.

• Senior forward Kyle Mallers connected on four 3-pointers in the second half against Northern Kentucky. He leads the Cardinals at 46.2 percent from the 3-point line, and that includes a 1-for-6 performance at Evansville. He is at 55 percent over the other four games.

Men's Hoops Looks to Bounce Back Saturday versus Howard

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Players Mentioned

Ishmael El-Amin

Kyle Mallers

K.J. Walton