Cardinals Visit Bowling Green for Tuesday Matchup of Division Leaders

Game 20
Ball State (11-8, 4-2 MAC) at Bowling Green (15-5, 6-1 MAC)
Tuesday, Jan. 28 (7 p.m. ET)
Bowling Green, Ohio (Stroh Center)
Watch: ESPN+ | Listen: 96.7/104.9 | Live Stats

Setting the Stage
• Ball State is set to play on the road for the fourth time in a five-game stretch when the Cardinals visit MAC leader and preseason conference favorite Bowling Green. The Falcons are tied with fellow East Division team Akron for the best league record at 6-1, while Ball State is tied with Central Michigan for the top spot in the West Division at 4-2.

• Ball State is looking to bounce back from a 71-66 loss at Central Michigan. Tahjai Teague's third double-double in the past four games, highlighted by a career-best 18 rebounds, was not enough for the Cardinals to overcome 28 turnovers. Bowling Green is riding a six-game winning streak, most recently earning an 85-79 road victory over rival Toledo.

The Matchup
• Ball State and Bowling Green met twice last season. The Falcons edged the Cardinals 79-78 during the regular season in Bowling Green and then eliminated BSU from the MAC Tournament in the quarterfinals, 99-86. The Falcons went on to reach the MAC Tournament championship game where they fell to Buffalo.

• Saturday's matchup is the first of two cross-divisional meetings this season between the teams who will square off again Feb. 15 in Muncie.

• During Bowling Green's six-game winning streak, four of the wins have been decided by a single possession. The Falcons have won the six games by an average of 4.2 points. Their last loss came at Kent State in the league opener.

• Bowling Green features returning All-MAC guard Justin Turner who leads the team in scoring at 17.6 points per game. Turner missed six games to injury late in the non-conference schedule. The Falcons are 12-2 with him in the lineup this season.

• Bowling Green features two additional double-figure scorers in Dylan Frye (14.5 ppg) and Daeqwon Plowden (13.5). Frye has been the Falcons' top scorer in conference play at 16.1 points per game.

What's Trending
• Tahjai Teague recorded 17 points, 18 rebounds and five blocked shots in Saturday's loss at Central Michigan for his third double-double in the past four games, his seventh of the season and the 21st of his career. Teague ranks second among active MAC players only to Toledo's Willie Jackson (24) in career double-doubles. He ranks ninth among active D-I players and seventh in BSU history with 848 career rebounds.

• Tahjai Teague is averaging a double-double in conference play at 17.2 points and 11.0 rebounds per game.

• Ball State entered Saturday's game at Central Michigan leading the MAC in assist-to -turnover ratio in MAC play at 1.3-to-1. The Cardinals, however, managed just seven assists and 28 turnovers against the Chippewas.

• Offensively, nearly 38.9 percent of Ball State's production comes from the 3-point line. That ranks 23rd in the country.

• Defensively, Ball State has allowed only 348 3-point attempts this season (18.3 per game), the fewest of any team in the MAC.

Cardinals Visit Bowling Green for Tuesday Matchup of Division Leaders

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Players Mentioned

Tahjai Teague