Saturday, March 2
Kalamazoo, Mich.
4:30 PM ET
Ball State University
15-14, 6-10MAC
60
at
58
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Western Michigan
8-21, 2-14MAC
1
2
F
Ball State
34
26
60
Western Michigan
34
24
58
Photo by: Ball State University Creative Services
Cardinals D-up, Attack Rim in Tight Road Win at Western Michigan
March 02, 2019 | Men's Basketball
Ball State scores nearly three quarters of points in paint, sweeps season series
KALAMAZOO, Mich. -- The Ball State men's basketball team played fast when it could, ground things out when it had to and held on in the final seconds for a 60-58 win at Western Michigan.
The Broncos came back from 11-point deficits to tie the score in both halves but never went over the top. Brachen Hazen's dunk with 2 minutes to play put the Cardinals ahead for good, as BSU snapped a three-game losing skid and swept the season series from WMU.
Ball State's starting backcourt duo of Tayler Persons and K.J. Walton carried the scoring load early and finished with 18 and 15 points, respectively. Tahjai Teague added 11, and Ishmael El-Amin came off the bench to score seven key points.
Ball State (15-14, 10-6 MAC) controlled the second half, but Western Michigan (8-21, 2-14 MAC) used an 8-0 run to even the game at 55 with 3:01 to play. After empty trips by both teams, Hazen and Trey Moses worked a two-man game, with Moses finding Hazen for a driving slam.
The Cardinals added three free throws over their next two trips and then held on down the stretch. Down three with 15 seconds to play, WMU's DJ Houston hit one free throw and missed the second on purpose. The Broncos got the rebound, and then Ball State dodged Seth Dugan's look at rim and Jared Printy's fall-away 3-pointer at the buzzer.
A last-second 3 from WMU's William Boyer-Richard was what tied the score at the half. Ball State led up until then thanks to its attacking guards and its ability to protect the ball. After registering 21 turnovers in each of the past two games, the Cardinals had only three in the first half before finishing with 13 (WMU had 22).
"We're always trying to play fast, but it was certainly an emphasis today," Ball State head coach James Whitford said, "and it was helped by the fact we got a lot of stops."
Largely because of its guards' ability to penetrate, Ball State outscored Western Michigan 28-6 in the paint in the first half and 44-22 for the game. It helped BSU overcome a 2-for-14 shooting performance from beyond the arc.
"A lot of (the paint points) were on pick-and-rolls, a lot of them were on drives," Whitford said. "We needed to today because we certainly weren't making any shots … We maintained our poise for 40 minutes, and that was the key for us."
The Cardinals withstood a remarkable 20-20 performance from Dugan, who keyed Western Michigan's second-half rally. BSU also won despite a massive, 48-30 deficit on the glass. It was the Cardinals' first win this season when being outrebounded.
Ball State travels to play Tuesday at 7 p.m. against Eastern Michigan on ESPN+ and then returns home to host Northern Illinois Friday at 7 p.m. for the fourth annual #MuncieOut in the regular season finale at Worthen Arena.
The Cardinals and Huskies are tied for the No. 9 spot in the overall MAC standings after Saturday's action. They are one game behind Miami and Akron, who are tied for seventh. Seeds 4-8 host games against seeds 9-12 in the opening round of the MAC Tournament.
The Broncos came back from 11-point deficits to tie the score in both halves but never went over the top. Brachen Hazen's dunk with 2 minutes to play put the Cardinals ahead for good, as BSU snapped a three-game losing skid and swept the season series from WMU.
Ball State's starting backcourt duo of Tayler Persons and K.J. Walton carried the scoring load early and finished with 18 and 15 points, respectively. Tahjai Teague added 11, and Ishmael El-Amin came off the bench to score seven key points.
Ball State (15-14, 10-6 MAC) controlled the second half, but Western Michigan (8-21, 2-14 MAC) used an 8-0 run to even the game at 55 with 3:01 to play. After empty trips by both teams, Hazen and Trey Moses worked a two-man game, with Moses finding Hazen for a driving slam.
The Cardinals added three free throws over their next two trips and then held on down the stretch. Down three with 15 seconds to play, WMU's DJ Houston hit one free throw and missed the second on purpose. The Broncos got the rebound, and then Ball State dodged Seth Dugan's look at rim and Jared Printy's fall-away 3-pointer at the buzzer.
This is how you answer an 8-0 run ??
— Ball State Basketball (@BallStateMBB) March 2, 2019
Brachen ?? Trey ?? Brachen … ?? #ChirpChirp | #WeFly | #BSUvsWMU pic.twitter.com/pU5vOAWS5m
A last-second 3 from WMU's William Boyer-Richard was what tied the score at the half. Ball State led up until then thanks to its attacking guards and its ability to protect the ball. After registering 21 turnovers in each of the past two games, the Cardinals had only three in the first half before finishing with 13 (WMU had 22).
"We're always trying to play fast, but it was certainly an emphasis today," Ball State head coach James Whitford said, "and it was helped by the fact we got a lot of stops."
Largely because of its guards' ability to penetrate, Ball State outscored Western Michigan 28-6 in the paint in the first half and 44-22 for the game. It helped BSU overcome a 2-for-14 shooting performance from beyond the arc.
"A lot of (the paint points) were on pick-and-rolls, a lot of them were on drives," Whitford said. "We needed to today because we certainly weren't making any shots … We maintained our poise for 40 minutes, and that was the key for us."
The Cardinals withstood a remarkable 20-20 performance from Dugan, who keyed Western Michigan's second-half rally. BSU also won despite a massive, 48-30 deficit on the glass. It was the Cardinals' first win this season when being outrebounded.
Ball State travels to play Tuesday at 7 p.m. against Eastern Michigan on ESPN+ and then returns home to host Northern Illinois Friday at 7 p.m. for the fourth annual #MuncieOut in the regular season finale at Worthen Arena.
The Cardinals and Huskies are tied for the No. 9 spot in the overall MAC standings after Saturday's action. They are one game behind Miami and Akron, who are tied for seventh. Seeds 4-8 host games against seeds 9-12 in the opening round of the MAC Tournament.
Coach Whitford discusses his team's mentality coming into today's game and the Cardinals' road victory over Western Michigan ... pic.twitter.com/MSsEp0npCb
— Ball State Basketball (@BallStateMBB) March 2, 2019
Team Stats
BSU
WMU
FG%
.448
.368
3FG%
.143
.300
FT%
.500
.526
RB
30
48
TO
13
22
STL
10
2
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
18
FGM
9
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Pts
15
FGM
6
3FGM
0
FTM
3
Pts
11
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
1
Pts
7
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's Basketball
F
/ Men's Basketball
C
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's BasketballG
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