Ball State University
Central Michigan
Cards Back At Home After Big Win
February 26, 2021 | Men's Basketball
| Ball State (8-11, 6-8) vs. Central Michigan (6-14, 2-11) | |
| Date | Saturday, Feb. 27 |
| Time | 1 pm ET |
| Location | Worthen Arena - Muncie |
| Television | ESPN3Â (Joel Godett, David Eha)Â (Watch) |
| Radio | 96.7 and 104.9 FM (Jeff Weller, Scot Bunnell) (Listen) |
| Tickets | NONE AVAILABLE |
| Game Notes | Ball State  |  Central Michigan |
| Live Stats | Live Stats |
| Social Media | Twitter  |   Instagram |
After a resounding win over Kent State on Wednesday, the Ball State men's basketball team returns to Worthen Arena to host Central Michigan. The Cardinals have two home games left on the schedule and are playing their sixth straight game at home. CMU has lost seven straight games and are in 10th place in the MAC.
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The Starting 5Â -Â The Top 5 Storylines For This Game
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1. CARDS AND CENTRAL - THE SERIES
Saturday's game is the 105th meeting between Ball State and Central Michigan, with Ball State 67-37 all-time against CMU. Ball State is 41-7 against CMU in Muncie. The Cardinals have won five of the last eight meetings and the two teams have split each of the last three seasons.
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2. CARDINALS HAVE BEATEN THE LEAGUE'S BEST
Ball State owns three wins against the top six teams in the MAC, including wins over the current No. 1 and No. 4. In this strange year of scheduling, the Cardinals have played six games against the MAC's top four teams (2-4) and just three games against the bottom four teams (3-0). BSU's wins over Toledo, Kent State and Bowling Green have come by an average margin of 19.0 points.Â
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3. CLOSE TO A FULL DECK DOWN THE STRETCH
Everyone on BSU's eligible roster is now available, aside from transfer Reggie Jones. In total, Cardinal players have missed 49 games in addition to Ishmael El-Amin missing the second half of the first Buffalo game. As Ball State heads into the stretch run of the season, time is needed for newly-available players to find chemistry and rhythm. Here's a breakdown of games missed by player:
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| Player | Games Missed |
| Reggie Jones | 18 |
| Jarron Coleman | 10 |
| Jalen Windham | Â 8 |
| Thomas/Walton/Gunn | Â 3 |
| Hazen    |  2 |
| Huggins | Â 1 |
| El-Amin | 2nd half at Buffalo |
4. COMING OFF THEIR BEST PERFORMANCE
BSU comes into Saturday's game having delivered its best performance of the season in the 90-71 win over Kent State. Jarron Coleman dropped 26 points - 20 in the 1st half - and Ball State hit 13 shots from 3-point range. Also holding Kent star Danny Pippen to six points, James Whitford called it BSU's best performance of the year "on both sides of the ball."
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5. STANDINGS CHECK
A Ball State win put the Cards into the 8-team championship. BSU is currently the No. 8 team in the standings with two home games in the coming days. The Cardinals can improve positioning by winning and getting some help, but Miami would hold a head-to-head tiebreaker. The Cardinals are 2 games out of 6th behind Bowling Green.
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