Saturday, February 1
Buffalo, N.Y.
5 PM
Ball State University
at
Buffalo
Photo by: Sam Findley/Ball State Athletics
Men's Basketball Heads to Buffalo to Face Bulls on Saturday
January 31, 2025 | Men's Basketball
The Ball State men's basketball team is set to head northeast to Buffalo for a game against the Bulls at 5 p.m. on Saturday.
The matchup will be streamed on ESPN+, while Mick Tidrow and David Eha handle the radio broadcast on WMUN 1340AM – 92.5FM.
Buffalo leads the head-to-head series 22-17, including an 11-7 advantage in Muncie. The Cardinals won 87-59 last season on Jan. 23 at Buffalo in the only meeting between the teams that campaign.
Ball State (9-11, 3-5 Mid-American Conference) got 19 points and a career-best 17 rebounds from Payton Sparks Tuesday night, but the Cardinals fell 74-71 to Western Michigan at Worthen Arena.
Buffalo (7-13, 2-6 MAC) beat Central Michigan 75-69 at home on Tuesday night. The Bulls' other conference win of the year came on Jan. 18 at Western Michigan (85-76).
Buffalo blocks shots without fouling to the tune of leading the league in blocks per game (3.8) and ranking second in fewest fouls per game (16.2).
Sophomore guard Ryan Sabol paces the MAC in 3-pointers made (66) while ranking second at 16.6 points per game. Senior guard Tyson Dunn is No. 26 nationally in assists per game (5.9) which is tops in the conference.
The Cardinals will next face Akron on the road at 7 p.m. on Tuesday.
DOING WORK ON THE DEFENSIVE GLASS: Ball State ranks third in the Mid-American Conference in both defensive rebounds per game (25.5) and defensive rebound percentage (72.3) in league play.
The Cardinals have won the rebounding battle in five MAC games so far this conference season.
BACK TO BUFFALO: Ball State beat the Bulls 87-59 on Jan. 23, 2024 in the only game between the teams last season.
Center Ben Hendriks had multiple family members in the stands as his hometown of Mississauga, Ontario in Canada is only about a 90-mile drive from Buffalo.
BATTLE OF HIGH-SCORING GUARDS: Ryan Sabol (16.6 points per game) and Jermahri Hill (16.2) rank second and third in the MAC in average scoring so far this season.
Sabol has made the most 3-pointers in the league (66), while Hill has made the fifth-most overall field goals (108).
HERNANDEZ HEROICS: Jeremiah Hernandez hit three free throws with 4.2 seconds left at Central Michigan after getting fouled shooting a 3-pointer from the left wing with the score tied at 79-79.
The graduate guard finished the game with 15 points and two rebounds in Ball State's triumph.
COMEBACK CARDS: Ball State rallied from a 50-37 deficit with 16 minutes to play for an 82-80 win at Central Michigan on Jan. 21.
A 31-9 scoring stretch in a little over 10 minutes in the middle of the half propelled the Cardinals to a 68-59 edge with 5:38 to play. The 13-point comeback win was Ball State's first of the year of at least 10 points.
CLUTCH ON THE ROAD: Mickey Pearson Jr. averages 13.3 points and 6.5 rebounds in eight true road games this year, which are higher than his overall averages of 11.5 and 5.6 per game.
The forward put up a team-best 16 points in Ball State's win at CMU on Jan. 21. Pearson also went for a career-high 25 points last February at McGuirk Arena to average 20.5 points per games the last two seasons at CMU.
ROAD SWING: Ball State plays in a different state in each of a five-game stretch that features four road contests.
After playing at Central Michigan and Northern Illinois last week and at home against Western Michigan in Indiana on Tuesday, the Cardinals play at Buffalo in New York on Saturday and Akron in Ohio on Feb. 4.
SPREAD OUT THE SCORING: Six Cardinals scored in double figures in Ball State's 82-80 triumph at Central Michigan on Jan. 21: Mickey Pearson Jr. (16 points), Jeremiah Hernandez (15), Jermahri Hill (14), Payton Sparks (14), Ethan Brittain-Watts (13), and Juanse Gorosito (10).
It was the second time in four games six Cardinals have scored in double figures (Jan. 11 vs Bowling Green). Ball State had five in double digits in the scoring column on Jan. 18 against Toledo and last Saturday at NIU.
PAYTON POUNDING THE GLASS: Senior center Payton Sparks secured a career-best 17 rebounds on Tuesday against Western Michigan to go along with 19 points for his fourth double-double of the season.
The Winchester, Ind., native leads the league in rebounding overall (7.8 per game) and in conference games (11.3).
GETTING FAMILIAR WITH THE FREE THROW LINE: Junior guard Jermahri Hill (143) and Sparks (134) are first and second in the league in free throw attempts, respectively.
The two are No. 1 and No. 3 in the conference in free throws made, with 94 for Hill and 81 for Sparks, while Pearson Jr. (68) is sixth in the MAC.
MILESTONE WATCH: After Sparks (currently 1,122 points) reached the milestone on New Year's Eve, Hernandez (978) and Pearson Jr. (953) are each closing in on scoring 1,000 points in his Division I career.
Sparks (688 rebounds) is currently No. 11 in Ball State program history for a career.
GETTING TO THE LINE: The Cardinals pace the Mid-American Conference in both free throw attempts per game (26.4) and free throws made per game (18.1) through the season's first 20 games.
Ball State ranks No. 8 and No. 13 in those categories in NCAA Division I, respectively. The total tallies (527 attempts and 361 makes) outpace the next-closest MAC team (Toledo) by 109 attempts and 57 makes.
GORO-THREE-TO: Junior guard Juanse Gorosito had made multiple 3-pointers in 15 games this season, including a season-best seven on Dec. 14 at Bellarmine to lead the Cardinals to an 86-82 win and eventually being named the MAC Player of the Week for the performance.
Gorosito is third in the conference in 3-pointers made (54) and second in shooting percentage (42.5) from distance, which ranks No. 30 in NCAA Division I.
HOME STATE HEROES: Brittain-Watts (2019), Zane Doughty, Joey Hart and Mason Jones (2023) were each named Indiana High School All-Stars, while three more Cardinals also had ties to the state before arriving in Muncie.
Ball State has the second-most players from Indiana high schools among Indiana-based Division I teams behind Purdue.
WORLD FLYERS: The 2024-25 Ball State roster consists of student-athletes from three different countries in addition to the United States of America.
Gorosito (Argentina), Hendriks (Canada) and Jurica Zagorsak (Croatia) are international Cardinals this season. Interestingly, Juanse, Ben and Jurica were born on different continents, so Ball State has student-athletes from North America, South America and Europe on the team.
TRANSFERS FROM ALL OVER: Each of Ball State's seven student-athletes who have transferred into the program have come from different college basketball conferences.
The list includes Ethan Brittain-Watts (Patriot League, Boston), Gorosito (West Coast Conference, Portland), Hart (SEC, Kentucky), Hernandez (Ohio Valley Conference, USI), Pearson Jr. (Big 12, TCU), Sparks (Big Ten, Indiana) and Hill who played junior college ball at South Plains in Levelland, Texas.
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The matchup will be streamed on ESPN+, while Mick Tidrow and David Eha handle the radio broadcast on WMUN 1340AM – 92.5FM.
Buffalo leads the head-to-head series 22-17, including an 11-7 advantage in Muncie. The Cardinals won 87-59 last season on Jan. 23 at Buffalo in the only meeting between the teams that campaign.
Ball State (9-11, 3-5 Mid-American Conference) got 19 points and a career-best 17 rebounds from Payton Sparks Tuesday night, but the Cardinals fell 74-71 to Western Michigan at Worthen Arena.
Buffalo (7-13, 2-6 MAC) beat Central Michigan 75-69 at home on Tuesday night. The Bulls' other conference win of the year came on Jan. 18 at Western Michigan (85-76).
Buffalo blocks shots without fouling to the tune of leading the league in blocks per game (3.8) and ranking second in fewest fouls per game (16.2).
Sophomore guard Ryan Sabol paces the MAC in 3-pointers made (66) while ranking second at 16.6 points per game. Senior guard Tyson Dunn is No. 26 nationally in assists per game (5.9) which is tops in the conference.
The Cardinals will next face Akron on the road at 7 p.m. on Tuesday.
DOING WORK ON THE DEFENSIVE GLASS: Ball State ranks third in the Mid-American Conference in both defensive rebounds per game (25.5) and defensive rebound percentage (72.3) in league play.
The Cardinals have won the rebounding battle in five MAC games so far this conference season.
BACK TO BUFFALO: Ball State beat the Bulls 87-59 on Jan. 23, 2024 in the only game between the teams last season.
Center Ben Hendriks had multiple family members in the stands as his hometown of Mississauga, Ontario in Canada is only about a 90-mile drive from Buffalo.
BATTLE OF HIGH-SCORING GUARDS: Ryan Sabol (16.6 points per game) and Jermahri Hill (16.2) rank second and third in the MAC in average scoring so far this season.
Sabol has made the most 3-pointers in the league (66), while Hill has made the fifth-most overall field goals (108).
HERNANDEZ HEROICS: Jeremiah Hernandez hit three free throws with 4.2 seconds left at Central Michigan after getting fouled shooting a 3-pointer from the left wing with the score tied at 79-79.
The graduate guard finished the game with 15 points and two rebounds in Ball State's triumph.
COMEBACK CARDS: Ball State rallied from a 50-37 deficit with 16 minutes to play for an 82-80 win at Central Michigan on Jan. 21.
A 31-9 scoring stretch in a little over 10 minutes in the middle of the half propelled the Cardinals to a 68-59 edge with 5:38 to play. The 13-point comeback win was Ball State's first of the year of at least 10 points.
CLUTCH ON THE ROAD: Mickey Pearson Jr. averages 13.3 points and 6.5 rebounds in eight true road games this year, which are higher than his overall averages of 11.5 and 5.6 per game.
The forward put up a team-best 16 points in Ball State's win at CMU on Jan. 21. Pearson also went for a career-high 25 points last February at McGuirk Arena to average 20.5 points per games the last two seasons at CMU.
ROAD SWING: Ball State plays in a different state in each of a five-game stretch that features four road contests.
After playing at Central Michigan and Northern Illinois last week and at home against Western Michigan in Indiana on Tuesday, the Cardinals play at Buffalo in New York on Saturday and Akron in Ohio on Feb. 4.
SPREAD OUT THE SCORING: Six Cardinals scored in double figures in Ball State's 82-80 triumph at Central Michigan on Jan. 21: Mickey Pearson Jr. (16 points), Jeremiah Hernandez (15), Jermahri Hill (14), Payton Sparks (14), Ethan Brittain-Watts (13), and Juanse Gorosito (10).
It was the second time in four games six Cardinals have scored in double figures (Jan. 11 vs Bowling Green). Ball State had five in double digits in the scoring column on Jan. 18 against Toledo and last Saturday at NIU.
PAYTON POUNDING THE GLASS: Senior center Payton Sparks secured a career-best 17 rebounds on Tuesday against Western Michigan to go along with 19 points for his fourth double-double of the season.
The Winchester, Ind., native leads the league in rebounding overall (7.8 per game) and in conference games (11.3).
GETTING FAMILIAR WITH THE FREE THROW LINE: Junior guard Jermahri Hill (143) and Sparks (134) are first and second in the league in free throw attempts, respectively.
The two are No. 1 and No. 3 in the conference in free throws made, with 94 for Hill and 81 for Sparks, while Pearson Jr. (68) is sixth in the MAC.
MILESTONE WATCH: After Sparks (currently 1,122 points) reached the milestone on New Year's Eve, Hernandez (978) and Pearson Jr. (953) are each closing in on scoring 1,000 points in his Division I career.
Sparks (688 rebounds) is currently No. 11 in Ball State program history for a career.
GETTING TO THE LINE: The Cardinals pace the Mid-American Conference in both free throw attempts per game (26.4) and free throws made per game (18.1) through the season's first 20 games.
Ball State ranks No. 8 and No. 13 in those categories in NCAA Division I, respectively. The total tallies (527 attempts and 361 makes) outpace the next-closest MAC team (Toledo) by 109 attempts and 57 makes.
GORO-THREE-TO: Junior guard Juanse Gorosito had made multiple 3-pointers in 15 games this season, including a season-best seven on Dec. 14 at Bellarmine to lead the Cardinals to an 86-82 win and eventually being named the MAC Player of the Week for the performance.
Gorosito is third in the conference in 3-pointers made (54) and second in shooting percentage (42.5) from distance, which ranks No. 30 in NCAA Division I.
HOME STATE HEROES: Brittain-Watts (2019), Zane Doughty, Joey Hart and Mason Jones (2023) were each named Indiana High School All-Stars, while three more Cardinals also had ties to the state before arriving in Muncie.
Ball State has the second-most players from Indiana high schools among Indiana-based Division I teams behind Purdue.
WORLD FLYERS: The 2024-25 Ball State roster consists of student-athletes from three different countries in addition to the United States of America.
Gorosito (Argentina), Hendriks (Canada) and Jurica Zagorsak (Croatia) are international Cardinals this season. Interestingly, Juanse, Ben and Jurica were born on different continents, so Ball State has student-athletes from North America, South America and Europe on the team.
TRANSFERS FROM ALL OVER: Each of Ball State's seven student-athletes who have transferred into the program have come from different college basketball conferences.
The list includes Ethan Brittain-Watts (Patriot League, Boston), Gorosito (West Coast Conference, Portland), Hart (SEC, Kentucky), Hernandez (Ohio Valley Conference, USI), Pearson Jr. (Big 12, TCU), Sparks (Big Ten, Indiana) and Hill who played junior college ball at South Plains in Levelland, Texas.
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