Saturday, January 27
Muncie, IN
2:00 p.m.
Ball State University
vs
Northern Illinois
Photo by: Amber Pietz, Ball State Creative Services
Cardinals and Huskies Set for Saturday Showdown at Worthen
January 26, 2024 | Men's Basketball
The Ball State men's basketball team returns to Worthen Arena to host Northern Illinois at 2 p.m. on Saturday in the front end of two consecutive home games.
The game will be streamed on ESPN+, with Sam Neiger, Donnie Harmon and Tim Fields on the call. Mick Tidrow and David Eha handle the radio broadcast on WMUN 1340AM - 92.5FM.
The Cardinals (10-9, 2-5 MAC) and Huskies (6-12, 0-6 MAC) meet for the 102nd time in series history. Last season, Ball State won by double figures in both matchups with an 87-69 victory in DeKalb on Jan. 28 followed by an 87-77 triumph on Feb. 14 in Muncie.
Ball State trailed 11-0 early at Buffalo on Tuesday night, but dominated the rest of the way for an 87-59 win over the Bulls at Alumni Arena. Mickey Pearson Jr. went for his second straight double-double with 15 points and 11 rebounds, while Basheer Jihad tallied 20 points, nine rebounds and four assists to lead the Cardinals to their second road win in a row.
The Huskies enter Saturday's meeting having lost eight consecutive games, and they haven't won since Dec. 18 against Calumet College and haven't beat a Division I team since Nov. 25 at DePaul. NIU played common nonconference opponents with the Cardinals including Little Rock (won 98-93 on Nov. 18) and Indiana State (lost 90-67 on Dec. 5) in late 2023.
SCOUTING NORTHERN ILLINOIS: The Huskies went 13-19 (9-9 MAC) last season in Rashon Burno's second year as the Northern Illinois head coach. NIU got the No. 7 seed in the MAC Tournament and lost to Kent State in the quarterfinals.
The Huskies pace the MAC and rank No. 21 in NCAA Division I at 5.2 blocks per game, while they are second in the league with 21.9 free throw attempts and 12.1 fastbreak points per game. Northern Illinois' 77.1 points per game rank fourth in the MAC.
Junior guard David Coit leads the conference in 3-pointers made (57) and 3-point percentage (37.5) among qualifiers, while his 3.17 triples made per game ranks No. 17 nationally.
CARDINAL DIRECTIONS
BUFFALO BLOWOUT: The 28-point winning margin on Tuesday at Buffalo was Ball State's largest of the season against a Division I opponent and second-largest overall behind a 101-40 rout of Goshen in the Nov. 7 season opener.
The loss for the Bulls was their most lopsided in MAC play to date and second-worst overall.
DB FOR THREE: Junior guard Davion Bailey leads the Cardinals in 3-pointers made (35) and 3-point shooting (43.2 percent) so far this season, and his 2.33 triple made per game ranks third in the MAC.
The Indianapolis native's 18 total 3-pointers made in conference play slot him in at second in the league behind Northern Illinois' David Coit and his 22.
FREE THROWS FALLING: Redshirt junior Mickey Pearson Jr. ranks third in the Mid-American Conference in free throw shooting percentage at 86.9 (53 of 61), and first in conference games at 95.7 percent (22 of 23).
Bailey (91.3 percent, 21-23) and Ben Hendriks (80.0 percent, 20-25) have also been efficient at the foul line, while the Cardinals as a whole rank second in the MAC in free throw shooting at 76.1 percent.
PRODUCTIVE PAIR: Juniors Jihad (19.1 points per game) and Jalin Anderson (15.9) rank fourth and eighth in the MAC in average scoring, respectively.
The duo joins Toledo's Ra'Heim Moss (16.5 ppg, seventh) and Dante Maddox Jr. (15.4, tenth) as the only two tandems in the league to rank in the Top 10 in scoring.
TOP OF THE MAC: Ball State's first four games on its Mid-American Conference schedule included games against the three teams who finished at the top of the MAC in 2022-23.
The Cardinals played at Kent State, who was voted second in the MAC preseason coaches poll, on Jan. 2 and preseason league favorite Akron on Jan. 9. Ball State's matchup on Jan. 13, Toledo, won the MAC regular season crown in 2022-23.
BANKING ON BASHEER: Jihad leads the team in scoring, rebounding (7.5 per game) and field goal percentage (48.2) among Cardinals averaging at least four field goal attempts this season. Jihad has established or tied career highs in scoring six times already this season, including on Jan. 20 against Miami (29 points).
The Detroit native's scoring average has nearly tripled over last year (7.1), while his rebounding average has doubled (3.6). Jihad started only one game in his first two seasons at Ball State, but has been a mainstay in the starting lineup as an upperclassman now.
JALIN JAMS: Anderson, a transfer out of Loyola Marymount in Los Angeles, leads the Ball State backcourt in scoring and the team in assists (4.7 per game) as the Cardinals' lead guard. The leads the MAC in steals (18) in conference play and is second overall at 33 total steals so far.
The Jackson, Tenn., native boasts Ball State's highest offensive output (29 points against Old Dominion) so far and is on pace to set career bests for points while already establishing his career high for single season assists, rebounds and steals. Anderson has shown a penchant for explosive offensive performances, posting six 20+ point games so far this season.
EMERGENCE OF BIG BEN: Redshirt junior center Ben Hendriks had started each of the last six games before missing the Dec. 21 game at Minnesota, totaling career-highs of 11 points and seven rebounds in the Dec. 2 win over Bellarmine and 32 minutes played in the Dec. 10 win against SIUE.
Hendriks already surpassed his career-bests for points (92), rebounds (60), assists (15), blocks (17) and steals (four) in a season through the schedule's first 19 games. The big man has seen increased playing time over his last 14 contests, averaging 20.4 minutes per game after playing 6.8 per in the first four games.
PLAYER OF THE WEEK X2: Jihad was named the Mid-American Conference Men's Basketball Co-Player of the Week on both Dec. 4 and Dec. 11.
Jihad averaged 24.3 points and 8.8 rebounds per game, setting career highs in scoring three times over the four-game stretch to lead Ball State to a 3-1 record.
WINNING IN WORTHEN: The Cardinals clinched an undefeated home nonconference slate for the fourth straight season with the Dec. 10 decision over the Cougars.
Ball State has won 19 consecutive nonconference contests at Worthen Arena, with its last loss being on Dec. 3, 2019 to Loyola (Chicago).
1,300 WINS: The Ball State men's basketball team recorded win No. 1,300 in program history with the Dec. 2 decision against Bellarmine. The Cardinals are the tenth current MAC men's basketball team to reach that milestone.
MAC Program Wins (as of Dec. 4, 2023)
Akron - 1,697
Ball State - 1,300
Buffalo - 1,279
Bowling Green - 1,452
Central Michigan - 1,356
Eastern Michigan - 1,292
Kent State - 1,332
Miami (OH) - 1,436
Northern Illinois - 1,315
Ohio - 1,614
Toledo - 1,551
Western Michigan - 1,372
MILESTONE WATCH: Jihad and Pearson Jr. both scored their 500th career points in the second half on Dec. 16 against Indiana St, with Jihad hitting the figure with a 3-pointer and Pearson Jr. getting to the total on a layup.
Pearson Jr. tallied 23 of those points playing at TCU, while Anderson (906) boasts the most career points in NCAA Division I on the current roster.
Up Next
Ball State stays at home and hosts Bowling Green at 7 p.m. on Tuesday.
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The game will be streamed on ESPN+, with Sam Neiger, Donnie Harmon and Tim Fields on the call. Mick Tidrow and David Eha handle the radio broadcast on WMUN 1340AM - 92.5FM.
The Cardinals (10-9, 2-5 MAC) and Huskies (6-12, 0-6 MAC) meet for the 102nd time in series history. Last season, Ball State won by double figures in both matchups with an 87-69 victory in DeKalb on Jan. 28 followed by an 87-77 triumph on Feb. 14 in Muncie.
Ball State trailed 11-0 early at Buffalo on Tuesday night, but dominated the rest of the way for an 87-59 win over the Bulls at Alumni Arena. Mickey Pearson Jr. went for his second straight double-double with 15 points and 11 rebounds, while Basheer Jihad tallied 20 points, nine rebounds and four assists to lead the Cardinals to their second road win in a row.
The Huskies enter Saturday's meeting having lost eight consecutive games, and they haven't won since Dec. 18 against Calumet College and haven't beat a Division I team since Nov. 25 at DePaul. NIU played common nonconference opponents with the Cardinals including Little Rock (won 98-93 on Nov. 18) and Indiana State (lost 90-67 on Dec. 5) in late 2023.
SCOUTING NORTHERN ILLINOIS: The Huskies went 13-19 (9-9 MAC) last season in Rashon Burno's second year as the Northern Illinois head coach. NIU got the No. 7 seed in the MAC Tournament and lost to Kent State in the quarterfinals.
The Huskies pace the MAC and rank No. 21 in NCAA Division I at 5.2 blocks per game, while they are second in the league with 21.9 free throw attempts and 12.1 fastbreak points per game. Northern Illinois' 77.1 points per game rank fourth in the MAC.
Junior guard David Coit leads the conference in 3-pointers made (57) and 3-point percentage (37.5) among qualifiers, while his 3.17 triples made per game ranks No. 17 nationally.
CARDINAL DIRECTIONS
- Basheer Jihad leads the Cardinals in scoring (19.1 points per game) and rebounding (7.5) averages. The junior forward out of Detroit has led the Cardinals in scoring 12 games so far, scoring in double-figures 18 times, including nine games with 20+ points. The big man's total points (362) and scoring average rank third and fourth, respectively, in the Mid-American Conference, while his rebounding average is fifth.
- The Cardinals lead the MAC and rank No. 40 nationally in fewest fouls committed per game (15.0), while being second in the league in 3-point shooting (37.3 percent) and free throw shooting (76.1 percent), with those marks ranking No. 36 and No. 32 in NCAA Division I, respectively.
- Ball State's 20 wins last year were its most since 2016-17 when that team won 21. This season's Cardinals will look for back-to-back 20-win schedules for the first time since that 2016-17 season.
- The Cardinals are a young group, as the roster includes only one senior or graduate student (Ethan Brittain-Watts). Ball State returns only 21.5 percent of minutes played and 19.6 percent of points scored from last year's team.
- Brittain-Watts (Boston University), Jalin Anderson (Loyola Marymount) and Davion Bailey (Southeastern CC) form Ball State's trio of transfers.
- Joey Brown (Indianapolis), Zane Doughty (Indianapolis), Mason Jones (Valparaiso, Ind.), Trent Middleton Jr. (Philadelphia) and Jurica Zagorsak (Zadar, Croatia) are the Cardinals' quintet of true freshmen.
- Ball State recently signed forward Jai Anthoni Bearden (Phoenix, Ariz.) and guard Jermarhi "Fatt" Hill (Bessemer, Ala.) to national letters of intent to form the Cardinals' 2024 recruiting class.
BUFFALO BLOWOUT: The 28-point winning margin on Tuesday at Buffalo was Ball State's largest of the season against a Division I opponent and second-largest overall behind a 101-40 rout of Goshen in the Nov. 7 season opener.
The loss for the Bulls was their most lopsided in MAC play to date and second-worst overall.
DB FOR THREE: Junior guard Davion Bailey leads the Cardinals in 3-pointers made (35) and 3-point shooting (43.2 percent) so far this season, and his 2.33 triple made per game ranks third in the MAC.
The Indianapolis native's 18 total 3-pointers made in conference play slot him in at second in the league behind Northern Illinois' David Coit and his 22.
FREE THROWS FALLING: Redshirt junior Mickey Pearson Jr. ranks third in the Mid-American Conference in free throw shooting percentage at 86.9 (53 of 61), and first in conference games at 95.7 percent (22 of 23).
Bailey (91.3 percent, 21-23) and Ben Hendriks (80.0 percent, 20-25) have also been efficient at the foul line, while the Cardinals as a whole rank second in the MAC in free throw shooting at 76.1 percent.
PRODUCTIVE PAIR: Juniors Jihad (19.1 points per game) and Jalin Anderson (15.9) rank fourth and eighth in the MAC in average scoring, respectively.
The duo joins Toledo's Ra'Heim Moss (16.5 ppg, seventh) and Dante Maddox Jr. (15.4, tenth) as the only two tandems in the league to rank in the Top 10 in scoring.
TOP OF THE MAC: Ball State's first four games on its Mid-American Conference schedule included games against the three teams who finished at the top of the MAC in 2022-23.
The Cardinals played at Kent State, who was voted second in the MAC preseason coaches poll, on Jan. 2 and preseason league favorite Akron on Jan. 9. Ball State's matchup on Jan. 13, Toledo, won the MAC regular season crown in 2022-23.
BANKING ON BASHEER: Jihad leads the team in scoring, rebounding (7.5 per game) and field goal percentage (48.2) among Cardinals averaging at least four field goal attempts this season. Jihad has established or tied career highs in scoring six times already this season, including on Jan. 20 against Miami (29 points).
The Detroit native's scoring average has nearly tripled over last year (7.1), while his rebounding average has doubled (3.6). Jihad started only one game in his first two seasons at Ball State, but has been a mainstay in the starting lineup as an upperclassman now.
JALIN JAMS: Anderson, a transfer out of Loyola Marymount in Los Angeles, leads the Ball State backcourt in scoring and the team in assists (4.7 per game) as the Cardinals' lead guard. The leads the MAC in steals (18) in conference play and is second overall at 33 total steals so far.
The Jackson, Tenn., native boasts Ball State's highest offensive output (29 points against Old Dominion) so far and is on pace to set career bests for points while already establishing his career high for single season assists, rebounds and steals. Anderson has shown a penchant for explosive offensive performances, posting six 20+ point games so far this season.
EMERGENCE OF BIG BEN: Redshirt junior center Ben Hendriks had started each of the last six games before missing the Dec. 21 game at Minnesota, totaling career-highs of 11 points and seven rebounds in the Dec. 2 win over Bellarmine and 32 minutes played in the Dec. 10 win against SIUE.
Hendriks already surpassed his career-bests for points (92), rebounds (60), assists (15), blocks (17) and steals (four) in a season through the schedule's first 19 games. The big man has seen increased playing time over his last 14 contests, averaging 20.4 minutes per game after playing 6.8 per in the first four games.
PLAYER OF THE WEEK X2: Jihad was named the Mid-American Conference Men's Basketball Co-Player of the Week on both Dec. 4 and Dec. 11.
Jihad averaged 24.3 points and 8.8 rebounds per game, setting career highs in scoring three times over the four-game stretch to lead Ball State to a 3-1 record.
WINNING IN WORTHEN: The Cardinals clinched an undefeated home nonconference slate for the fourth straight season with the Dec. 10 decision over the Cougars.
Ball State has won 19 consecutive nonconference contests at Worthen Arena, with its last loss being on Dec. 3, 2019 to Loyola (Chicago).
1,300 WINS: The Ball State men's basketball team recorded win No. 1,300 in program history with the Dec. 2 decision against Bellarmine. The Cardinals are the tenth current MAC men's basketball team to reach that milestone.
MAC Program Wins (as of Dec. 4, 2023)
Akron - 1,697
Ball State - 1,300
Buffalo - 1,279
Bowling Green - 1,452
Central Michigan - 1,356
Eastern Michigan - 1,292
Kent State - 1,332
Miami (OH) - 1,436
Northern Illinois - 1,315
Ohio - 1,614
Toledo - 1,551
Western Michigan - 1,372
MILESTONE WATCH: Jihad and Pearson Jr. both scored their 500th career points in the second half on Dec. 16 against Indiana St, with Jihad hitting the figure with a 3-pointer and Pearson Jr. getting to the total on a layup.
Pearson Jr. tallied 23 of those points playing at TCU, while Anderson (906) boasts the most career points in NCAA Division I on the current roster.
Up Next
Ball State stays at home and hosts Bowling Green at 7 p.m. on Tuesday.
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