Thursday, December 21
Minneapolis, MN
8:00 p.m. ET / 7:00 p.m. CT
Ball State University
8-4,0-0MAC
63
at
80
Minnesota
9-3,1-1Big Ten
1
2
F
Ball St.
27
36
63
Minnesota
39
41
80
Photo by: Minnesota Athletics
Short-Handed Cardinals Can't Complete Comeback at Minnesota
December 21, 2023 | Men's Basketball
MINNEAPOLIS – The Ball State men's basketball team trailed by seven points with 7:36 to play after being down by as many as 17 points in the first half, but Minnesota pulled away late on Thursday night at Williams Arena to win 80-63.
The Cardinals (8-4) got 26 points, seven rebounds and four blocks from Jalin Anderson, who led the charge midway through the second period, but the Golden Gophers (9-3) edged a short-handed Ball State group 16-6 in the final seven minutes to prevail.
Anderson hit a jumper with 10:54 to play to cut Minnesota's advantage to 55-48, and again cut the deficit to seven when he converted an and-1 to make the score 64-57 in favor of the Gophers. Ball State would get no closer from there on out.
Ball State was playing without the services of Ben Hendriks and Mickey Pearson Jr. The Cardinals welcome an 11-day break between games as a chance to recover from injuries and illness.
Basheer Jihad tallied 17 points, seven rebounds and two assists, while Davion Bailey (eight points), Jurica Zagorsak (seven) and Zane Doughty (five points and five rebounds) also contributed to the visiting offense.
Minnesota accumulated five players in double figures scoring including leading scorer Mike Mitchell Jr. (20 points) and Elijah Hawkins who went for 12 points, seven rebounds and nine assists.
The Cardinals trailed 39-27 at halftime after being plagued by points off turnovers, a category the hosts led 17-3 at the break. For the game, Minnesota won the rebounding battle 35-30 while committing fewer turnovers (14-6). Ball State shot 45.3 percent (24-53) from the field and 38.1 percent from distance. The Golden Gophers hit 52.6 percent (30-57) of their shots including 44.4 percent (8-18) on 3-pointers.
Ball State returns from Christmas Break beginning MAC play on Tuesday, Jan. 2 at Kent State.
The Cardinals (8-4) got 26 points, seven rebounds and four blocks from Jalin Anderson, who led the charge midway through the second period, but the Golden Gophers (9-3) edged a short-handed Ball State group 16-6 in the final seven minutes to prevail.
Anderson hit a jumper with 10:54 to play to cut Minnesota's advantage to 55-48, and again cut the deficit to seven when he converted an and-1 to make the score 64-57 in favor of the Gophers. Ball State would get no closer from there on out.
Ball State was playing without the services of Ben Hendriks and Mickey Pearson Jr. The Cardinals welcome an 11-day break between games as a chance to recover from injuries and illness.
Basheer Jihad tallied 17 points, seven rebounds and two assists, while Davion Bailey (eight points), Jurica Zagorsak (seven) and Zane Doughty (five points and five rebounds) also contributed to the visiting offense.
Minnesota accumulated five players in double figures scoring including leading scorer Mike Mitchell Jr. (20 points) and Elijah Hawkins who went for 12 points, seven rebounds and nine assists.
The Cardinals trailed 39-27 at halftime after being plagued by points off turnovers, a category the hosts led 17-3 at the break. For the game, Minnesota won the rebounding battle 35-30 while committing fewer turnovers (14-6). Ball State shot 45.3 percent (24-53) from the field and 38.1 percent from distance. The Golden Gophers hit 52.6 percent (30-57) of their shots including 44.4 percent (8-18) on 3-pointers.
Ball State returns from Christmas Break beginning MAC play on Tuesday, Jan. 2 at Kent State.
Team Stats
BSU
MINN
FG%
.453
.526
3FG%
.381
.444
FT%
.636
.545
RB
30
35
TO
14
6
STL
2
7
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
26
FGM
11
3FGM
3
FTM
1
Pts
17
FGM
5
3FGM
2
FTM
5
Pts
8
FGM
3
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Pts
7
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
C
/ Men's Basketball
C
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's Basketball
F
/ Men's BasketballG
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