Wednesday, December 1
Macomb, Ill.
7 p.m.
Ball State University
3-4,0-0MAC
80
at
93
Western Illinois
6-2,0-0Summit L
1
2
F
Ball State
33
47
80
Western Ill.
44
49
93
Photo by: Chad Smith
Ball State Drops Tough One to Western Illinois
December 01, 2021 | Men's Basketball
MACOMB, Ill. – The Ball State men's basketball team was back on the hardwood on Wednesday against Western Illinois in Western Hall. The Cardinals were led by Luke Bumbalough with 17 points as BSU had four finish in double figures. BSU fell to 3-4 on the year, while WIU improved to 6-2 on the season behind a 93-80 victory.
Bumbalough finished in double digits for the fourth-straight game and led the team with a game-high nine rebounds. Miryne Thomas posted a 14-point performance for back-to-back games in double figures. Jaylin Sellers recorded a career-high 11 points. Demarius Jacobs made it four players in double digits with 10 points.
Western Illinois started the game on a 14-5 run. The Cardinals responded and got hot from 3-point range. Ball State went on a 10-0 run and gained a 15-14 lead with 12:54 left in the first half. During the run, Mickey Pearson Jr. and Sellers each knocked down a 3, while Bumbalough added four points.
The Leathernecks answered with a 14-4 run and took a 28-19 lead with 8:38 left in the first. During the run, all four of Ball State's points came from the free-throw line, two by Sellers and two by Thomas.
Thomas ended the 5:26 drought from the field, as he made a driving layup and made the score 28-21, with 7:28 left in the half. WIU then went on a 6-0 run and extended its lead to 34-21 with 4:31 left in the first. Ball State followed with an 8-2 run and pulled with seven, 36-29, with 2:34 remaining in the half.
Western Illinois ended the half on an 8-4 run and took a 44-33 lead into the break.
Demarius Jacobs started the second half with a big and-1 and made the score 44-36. After a made basket by WIU, Jacobs drained a 3-pointer on a kickout by Payton Sparks.
Neither team scored again until there was 17:57 left in the game, when WIU made a free throw. Thomas made a layup to cut the deficit to seven, 48-41.
Western Illinois extended its lead to 63-49 with 12:54 left in the game.
The Cardinals went on a run and pulled within 10, 70-60, with 8:51 left as Pearson made a 3-pointer. During the run, Bumbalough converted an and-1 opportunity. A minute later, Jalin Windham was fouled on a 3-point attempt and went to the line for three shots. Windham converted on all three and pulled BSU within seven, 70-63.
The Leathernecks reached their largest lead of 19, 92-73, with 1:53 left in the game. The deficit was too much for Ball State to overcome as Western Illinois went on to win the game 93-80.
Colton Sandage posted a game-high 33 points behind a 7-for-9 performance from long range. Trenton Massner notched 18 points and a team-high eight rebounds. Luka Barisic finshed with 14 points and Tamell Pearson added 13 points.
Ball State will be back in action on Wednesday, Dec. 8, for a trip to Cincinnati, Ohio, and a matchup against Xavier.
From the Coach – Head Coach James Whitford
"We've made a lot of strides in three weeks and have to be in position to win this game three weeks from now. I thought Blake helped us coming off the bench with physicality. We had some guys that weren't at their best today. The back-breaking moment was when they pushed it to 15. We got a little overwhelmed and something bad happen on our end. We didn't talk on transition, and they got three shots in. Those are the young team mistakes. When we cut it to seven, it would have been four."
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Bumbalough finished in double digits for the fourth-straight game and led the team with a game-high nine rebounds. Miryne Thomas posted a 14-point performance for back-to-back games in double figures. Jaylin Sellers recorded a career-high 11 points. Demarius Jacobs made it four players in double digits with 10 points.
Western Illinois started the game on a 14-5 run. The Cardinals responded and got hot from 3-point range. Ball State went on a 10-0 run and gained a 15-14 lead with 12:54 left in the first half. During the run, Mickey Pearson Jr. and Sellers each knocked down a 3, while Bumbalough added four points.
The Leathernecks answered with a 14-4 run and took a 28-19 lead with 8:38 left in the first. During the run, all four of Ball State's points came from the free-throw line, two by Sellers and two by Thomas.
Thomas ended the 5:26 drought from the field, as he made a driving layup and made the score 28-21, with 7:28 left in the half. WIU then went on a 6-0 run and extended its lead to 34-21 with 4:31 left in the first. Ball State followed with an 8-2 run and pulled with seven, 36-29, with 2:34 remaining in the half.
Western Illinois ended the half on an 8-4 run and took a 44-33 lead into the break.
Demarius Jacobs started the second half with a big and-1 and made the score 44-36. After a made basket by WIU, Jacobs drained a 3-pointer on a kickout by Payton Sparks.
Neither team scored again until there was 17:57 left in the game, when WIU made a free throw. Thomas made a layup to cut the deficit to seven, 48-41.
Western Illinois extended its lead to 63-49 with 12:54 left in the game.
The Cardinals went on a run and pulled within 10, 70-60, with 8:51 left as Pearson made a 3-pointer. During the run, Bumbalough converted an and-1 opportunity. A minute later, Jalin Windham was fouled on a 3-point attempt and went to the line for three shots. Windham converted on all three and pulled BSU within seven, 70-63.
The Leathernecks reached their largest lead of 19, 92-73, with 1:53 left in the game. The deficit was too much for Ball State to overcome as Western Illinois went on to win the game 93-80.
Colton Sandage posted a game-high 33 points behind a 7-for-9 performance from long range. Trenton Massner notched 18 points and a team-high eight rebounds. Luka Barisic finshed with 14 points and Tamell Pearson added 13 points.
Ball State will be back in action on Wednesday, Dec. 8, for a trip to Cincinnati, Ohio, and a matchup against Xavier.
From the Coach – Head Coach James Whitford
"We've made a lot of strides in three weeks and have to be in position to win this game three weeks from now. I thought Blake helped us coming off the bench with physicality. We had some guys that weren't at their best today. The back-breaking moment was when they pushed it to 15. We got a little overwhelmed and something bad happen on our end. We didn't talk on transition, and they got three shots in. Those are the young team mistakes. When we cut it to seven, it would have been four."
Follow the Cardinals
*For tickets call 1-888-BSU-TICKET or 765-285-1474, or click here.
Team Stats
BSU
WIU
FG%
.491
.463
3FG%
.500
.452
FT%
.724
.630
RB
37
35
TO
17
8
STL
6
10
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
17
FGM
5
3FGM
2
FTM
5
Pts
14
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
4
Pts
11
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
2
Pts
10
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
1
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
F
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
C
/ Men's Basketball
F
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