Ball State Starts 2023 with MAC Opener at Toledo

MUNCIE, Ind. – The Ball State men's basketball team begins 2023 with the Mid-American Conference opener on the road against Toledo on Tuesday. The game is scheduled for a 7 p.m. tip on CBS Sport Network.

Last Time Out
Ball State ended 2022 with a 70-63 victory over Chicago State and improved to 9-4 on the season. Jarron Coleman led BSU with 16 points and added five rebounds, two assists, a block and a steal. He has posted double-digit points in 12-consecutive contests. Jaylin Sellers finished with 14 points, a game-high three steals, two rebounds, an assist, and a block. He has scored in double figures in four-straight games. Payton Sparks recorded a game-high eight rebounds and dished out a game-high four assists. He added two blocked shots. For the second-straight contest, Demarius Jacobs has produced four blocks, which tied a career best. Jacobs chipped in with 11 points, six rebounds, two assists, and two steals.

Sensational Sellers
Sellers leads the team with 14.4 points per game and has led the squad in scoring in three of the last four contests. He paces the team shooting 58.3 percent from 3-point range. He is shooting 54.1 percent from the field. He has recorded 20 or more points in four games this season. He has collected 4.3 boards per game. Sellers has added 10 assists, 10 steals, and two blocks.

Spark Plug
Sparks leads the team with 8.0 rebounds per game. He is second on the team averaging 13.5 points a game. He is shooting 61.8 percent from the field. His 3.15 offensive rebounds per game have him tied for 40th in the country and are third in the conference. Sparks is tied for 89th in the nation with 8.0 rebounds per game, which is fourth in the MAC. His four double-doubles are tied for 55th in the NCAA and tied for second in the MAC. He is second on the squad with 11 blocks, third on the team with 27 assists, and he has added six steals.

Spreading the Love
The Cardinals have four players averaging double-digit points through 13 games of the season. Coleman is third on the team with 13.3 points per game. He leads the team with 46 assists. He is third on the team with 5.0 boards per contest and is second on the squad in steals with 19. Coleman has nine blocked shots for the year. Jacobs is averaging 12.1 points per contest to close out the double-digit scorers. He leads the team with 24 blocks and 21 steals. His 24 blocks are tied for 49th in the country and leads the MAC. He is averaging 1.85 blocks per game, which is 42nd in the NCAA and is the best in the conference. His 43 assists are second on the team. Jacobs has collected 4.2 rebounds per game. Mickey Pearson Jr. is second on the team with 5.1 rebounds a game and is averaging 7.2 points a contest.

Taking Advantage at the Free-Throw Line
As a team, the Cardinals are averaging 25.8 free throws per game, which is eighth in the NCAA and leads the MAC. Ball State is averaging 17.5 free-throws made per contest, which is 15th in the nation and leads the conference. Sparks is tied for 11th in the nation with 100 free-throw attempts, which is second in the MAC. The Cardinals are one of just nine teams in the NCAA that have made more free throws than their opponents have attempted. Ball State is joined by Creighton, Dayton, Iowa, New Mexico, North Carolina, Purdue, VCU, and Virginia as programs that have made more free throws than opponents have attempted.

Effective Shooting
The Cardinals are currently tied for 31st in the NCAA as the team is shooting 48.6 percent from the field, which leads the MAC. Ball State has been effective from behind the arc with a combined 38.1 percent from 3-point range, which is tied for 27th in the country and the best in the MAC.

Series History with Toledo
The Cardinals and Rockets have met 102 times. Toledo comes into Tuesday's game with a 53-49 series advantage. BSU and UT split the series last season, with both teams winning at home. Ball State won the last meeting 93-83. The Rockets lead the series 33-15 in Toledo.

Scouting the Rockets
RayJ Dennis and JT Shumate are tied for the team lead averaging 19.1 points per game. They are tied for 35th in the NCAA and tied for fourth in the MAC. Dennis paces the team with 78 assists and 20 steals. Dennis is averaging 4.4 rebounds per game and has three blocks on the season. Shumate is averaging 4.6 boards per contest to go along with 23 assists and six steals. Shumate leads the squad with 20 blocks, which are tied for 88th in the country and second in the MAC. Setric Millner Jr. has a team-best 7.0 rebounds per game. Millner is averaging 15.0 points per game and has 21 assists, 14 steals, with five blocks. As a team, Toledo is averaging 85.0 points per game, which is tied for seventh in the NCAA and best in the conference.

Tale of the Tape

BSU	Category	UT
76.5	POINTS PER GAME	85.0
65.8	OPP. POINTS PER GAME	79.5
.486	FIELD GOAL PERCENTAGE	.484
.412	OPP. FIELD GOAL PERCENTAGE	.456
.381	3-POINT FIELD GOAL PERCENTAGE	.375
.353	OPP. 3-POINT FIELD GOAL PERCENTAGE	.380
.676	FREE THROW PERCENTAGE	.755
35.5	REBOUNDS PER GAME	36.5
2.8	REBOUNDING MARGIN	2.3
13.5	ASSISTS PER GAME	15.3
12.6	TURNOVERS PER GAME	11.3
0.3	TURNOVER MARGIN	2.2
6.6	STEALS PER GAME	7.3
4.7	BLOCKS PER GAME	3.1

All of BSU's games are presented on the Ball State Gainbridge Radio Network on Woof Boom stations 96.7 FM, 102.9 FM, 104.9 FM, WLBC HD2, and the stream of 967BlakeFM.com as well as WERKFM.net.

For general and season ticket information, please click here or call 1-888-BSU-TICKET (756-285-1474).

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Players Mentioned

Jarron Coleman

Demarius Jacobs

Mickey Pearson Jr.

Jaylin Sellers

Payton Sparks