Saturday, December 16
Indianapolis, IN
1:45 p.m.
Ball State University
8-3,0-0MAC
72
vs
83
Indiana State
10-1,2-0MVC
1
2
F
Indiana St.
40
43
83
Ball St.
29
43
72
Furious Second Half Rally Falls Short for Cardinals
December 16, 2023 | Men's Basketball
Ball State Nearly Overcame a 23-Point Deficit to Indiana State
INDIANAPOLIS – The Ball State men's basketball team rallied from a 23-point deficit midway through the second half to get within four points (76-72) at the 1:35 mark, but couldn't complete the comeback and fell 83-72 to Indiana State at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on Saturday afternoon in the Indy Classic Powered by Gainbridge.
The Cardinals (8-3) started strong with early 7-1 and 14-8 leads, but the Sycamores (10-1) closed the half on a 32-15 scoring run to go into the break up 40-29. Trent Middleton Jr. hit back-to-back 3-pointers, the second of which coming at the 5:40 mark, to tie the score at 25-25.
Indiana State closed the first period strong and opened the second half on a 21-9 run to increase its edge to 61-38 with 13:20 to play. The Cardinals steadily cut into the Sycamore's advantage, culminating with a Jalin Anderson 3-pointer at the top of the key with a minute-and-a-half to play to get within striking distance. Indiana State's leading scorer Isaiah Swope hit a 3-pointer and two free throws to clinch the win.
Anderson went for 18 points, eight rebounds and six assists, hitting multiple jumpers early and late in the game to provide an offensive spark for the Cardinals, who shot 43.3 percent (26 of 60) from the field, including 45.8 percent (11 of 24) from beyond the arc.
True freshman Mason Jones scored seven straight points for Ball State late in the game to get the Cardinals within striking distance and scored 10 of his career-best 12 points in the second half. Junior guard Davion Bailey came back for his first game in three weeks (injury) to score 12 points in 23 minutes, adding back-to-back 3-pointers of his own in the middle of the second period to aid in the comeback effort.
Basheer Jihad (10 points, six rebounds) and Mickey Pearson Jr. (seven points, five rebounds) both recorded their 500th career points during the game, which represented Ball State's first neutral site contest on the calendar. Middleton Jr. finished with nine points on a trio of 3-pointers.
Indiana State's Ryan Conwell went for a game-high 27 points to lead the Sycamores to victory. Indiana State, who led NCAA Division I in effective field goal percentage entering Saturday, shot 51.9 percent (28-54) for the game, but 37.5 percent (9-24) from distance. The Sycamores doubled up the Cardinals at the free throw line (18-23 compared to 9-12).
Ball State is scheduled to play at Minnesota at 8 p.m. ET (7 p.m. CT) on Thursday in the Cardinals final nonconference game and final game before the calendar turns to 2024.
The Cardinals (8-3) started strong with early 7-1 and 14-8 leads, but the Sycamores (10-1) closed the half on a 32-15 scoring run to go into the break up 40-29. Trent Middleton Jr. hit back-to-back 3-pointers, the second of which coming at the 5:40 mark, to tie the score at 25-25.
Indiana State closed the first period strong and opened the second half on a 21-9 run to increase its edge to 61-38 with 13:20 to play. The Cardinals steadily cut into the Sycamore's advantage, culminating with a Jalin Anderson 3-pointer at the top of the key with a minute-and-a-half to play to get within striking distance. Indiana State's leading scorer Isaiah Swope hit a 3-pointer and two free throws to clinch the win.
Anderson went for 18 points, eight rebounds and six assists, hitting multiple jumpers early and late in the game to provide an offensive spark for the Cardinals, who shot 43.3 percent (26 of 60) from the field, including 45.8 percent (11 of 24) from beyond the arc.
True freshman Mason Jones scored seven straight points for Ball State late in the game to get the Cardinals within striking distance and scored 10 of his career-best 12 points in the second half. Junior guard Davion Bailey came back for his first game in three weeks (injury) to score 12 points in 23 minutes, adding back-to-back 3-pointers of his own in the middle of the second period to aid in the comeback effort.
Basheer Jihad (10 points, six rebounds) and Mickey Pearson Jr. (seven points, five rebounds) both recorded their 500th career points during the game, which represented Ball State's first neutral site contest on the calendar. Middleton Jr. finished with nine points on a trio of 3-pointers.
Indiana State's Ryan Conwell went for a game-high 27 points to lead the Sycamores to victory. Indiana State, who led NCAA Division I in effective field goal percentage entering Saturday, shot 51.9 percent (28-54) for the game, but 37.5 percent (9-24) from distance. The Sycamores doubled up the Cardinals at the free throw line (18-23 compared to 9-12).
Ball State is scheduled to play at Minnesota at 8 p.m. ET (7 p.m. CT) on Thursday in the Cardinals final nonconference game and final game before the calendar turns to 2024.
Team Stats
INS
BSU
FG%
.519
.433
3FG%
.375
.458
FT%
.783
.750
RB
30
32
TO
10
14
STL
7
8
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
18
FGM
7
3FGM
2
FTM
2
Pts
12
FGM
5
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Pts
12
FGM
3
3FGM
2
FTM
4
Pts
10
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
3
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
F
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