Saturday, January 27
Muncie, IN
2:00 p.m.
Ball State University
11-9,3-5MAC
81
vs
71
Northern Illinois
6-13,0-7MAC
1
2
F
NIU
26
45
71
Ball St.
39
42
81
Photo by: Heather Parker
Men's Basketball Cruises to Win over Northern Illinois
January 27, 2024 | Men's Basketball
MUNCIE, Ind. – The Ball State men's basketball team cruised to an 81-71 win over Northern Illinois on Saturday afternoon at Worthen Arena behind a big performance from its big guy and balanced scoring behind him.
The Cardinals (11-9, 3-5 Mid-American Conference) got out to a 39-26 advantage at halftime over the Huskies (6-13, 0-7 MAC) and saw their edge peak at 20 points before the visitors made a late comeback attempt.
Trailing 14-11 early, Ball State went on a 21-4 scoring run from the 12:19 mark to the 5:47 mark of the opening period to regain the edge and create separation. Trent Middleton Jr. scored eight points and Basheer Jihad had seven during the stretch for the Cardinals.
The hosts got a 28-point, 14-rebound performance from Jihad to help secure the win over a Northern Illinois group that got to the basket on multiple possessions late to decrease its deficit to 75-69 with 1:43 to play. Mason Jones hit a layup and Jalin Anderson made two free throws on the next two possessions for the Cardinals to secure the win.
Davion Bailey (13 points, four rebounds, two steals), Anderson (11 points, seven rebounds, six assists), Jones (10 points, four rebounds) and Middleton Jr. (10 points, two assists) provided double-digit scoring for the hosts, who got nine points, six rebounds and four assists from Mickey Pearson Jr.
Ball State shot 47.2 percent (25 of 53) from the field for the game including 47.1 percent (8 of 17) from distance while going 88.5 percent (23 of 26) at the charity stripe. NIU was limited to 43.9 percent (29-66) shooting and 22.2 percent (4-18) on 3-pointers to be saddled with the loss.
The trio of David Coit (25 points), Zarique Nutter (20) and Xavier Amos (13) provided the bulk of the offense for the Huskies, who had only 13 points from the rest of the team. The Cardinals controlled the rebounding (40-29) and points in the paint (42-26) categories.
Ball State will look to claim its fourth win in five tries on Tuesday at 7 p.m. when the Cardinals host Bowling Green.
The Cardinals (11-9, 3-5 Mid-American Conference) got out to a 39-26 advantage at halftime over the Huskies (6-13, 0-7 MAC) and saw their edge peak at 20 points before the visitors made a late comeback attempt.
Trailing 14-11 early, Ball State went on a 21-4 scoring run from the 12:19 mark to the 5:47 mark of the opening period to regain the edge and create separation. Trent Middleton Jr. scored eight points and Basheer Jihad had seven during the stretch for the Cardinals.
The hosts got a 28-point, 14-rebound performance from Jihad to help secure the win over a Northern Illinois group that got to the basket on multiple possessions late to decrease its deficit to 75-69 with 1:43 to play. Mason Jones hit a layup and Jalin Anderson made two free throws on the next two possessions for the Cardinals to secure the win.
Davion Bailey (13 points, four rebounds, two steals), Anderson (11 points, seven rebounds, six assists), Jones (10 points, four rebounds) and Middleton Jr. (10 points, two assists) provided double-digit scoring for the hosts, who got nine points, six rebounds and four assists from Mickey Pearson Jr.
Ball State shot 47.2 percent (25 of 53) from the field for the game including 47.1 percent (8 of 17) from distance while going 88.5 percent (23 of 26) at the charity stripe. NIU was limited to 43.9 percent (29-66) shooting and 22.2 percent (4-18) on 3-pointers to be saddled with the loss.
The trio of David Coit (25 points), Zarique Nutter (20) and Xavier Amos (13) provided the bulk of the offense for the Huskies, who had only 13 points from the rest of the team. The Cardinals controlled the rebounding (40-29) and points in the paint (42-26) categories.
Ball State will look to claim its fourth win in five tries on Tuesday at 7 p.m. when the Cardinals host Bowling Green.
Team Stats
NIU
BSU
FG%
.439
.472
3FG%
.222
.471
FT%
.692
.885
RB
29
40
TO
6
13
STL
4
4
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
28
FGM
9
3FGM
2
FTM
8
Pts
13
FGM
5
3FGM
3
FTM
0
Pts
11
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
5
Pts
10
FGM
3
3FGM
2
FTM
2
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's Basketball
F
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
F
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