Ball State University
University at Buffalo
Cardinals Host the Bulls in a Midweek #MACtion Showdown Wednesday in Worthen
March 04, 2025 | Women's Basketball
| Ball State Women's Basketball vs. Buffalo | |
| Game 30 vs Buffalo | Wednesday, March 5Â at 6:30 p.m. Live Stats | ESPN+Â | Listen |
| Tickets and Gameday Info | Tickets |
| Game Notes and Media Info | Ball State | Buffalo |
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Opening Tip:
- Wednesday's game against Buffalo will mark the 40th time in program history the two schools have met, with the Cardinals leading the all-time series, 23-16. Ball State and Buffalo's first-ever meeting was on Jan. 30 at Buffalo in 1998-99.
 - The Cardinals won their first meeting against the Bulls this season on Jan. 11 resulting in a 78-56 victory for Ball State.
- Ball State won the home-and-away series last season against Buffalo.
- Buffalo comes to Ball State after defeating Eastern Michigan 71-54 Saturday in Buffalo, N.Y. Chellia Watson led the Bulls in scoring with 21 points and rebounding with six.
- With the win at Western Michigan Saturday, the Cardinals clinched at least a share of the Mid-American Conference regular season title for the first time in 22 years. The last time the Cardinals earned the title was in 2002-03. A win over Buffalo will give BSU sole possession of the trophy and the No. 1 seed in next week's MAC Tournament in Cleveland for the first time since 2009 when Ball State won the tournament.Â
- If the tournament were to start today, the top-seeded Cardinals would face the eighth seeded Western Michigan Broncos at Rocket Arena. Ball State and Western Michigan would be the first quarterfinal game of the day on Wednesday, March 12 at 11 am ET.Â
- This marks the 35th appearance in the Mid-American Conference Tournament in program history. Ball State has advanced to Cleveland 23 out of the past 25 seasons. The Cardinals are 24-33 all-time in MAC Tournament play and have advanced to the MAC Tournament finals on six occasions. Ball State defeated Bowling Green in 2009 in the MAC Tournament Championship game. This is the 10th time in current head coach Brady Sallee's tenure the Cardinals have punched their ticket straight to the MAC Tournament in Cleveland.
- The Cardinals have been road warriors the past four years during Mid-American Conference action. Ball State owns a 36-11 (.767) ledger when playing league games on the road dating back to 2021 which was their best showing as the Cardinals went 9-1 that year.
ESPN Top-10 Plays:
- Ally Becki has made the ESPN top 10 plays twice this season. The senior is on pace to become the lone Division I player ever to average at least 10 points, 4.5 rebounds and 4.5 assists in every season since her freshman year in 2021-22.
Richard's MAC Comeback:
- Alex Richard reached the 1,000 point club on Feb. 19 at Toledo with her 33-point career high performance. Richard who missed all but four non-conference games due to an injury came back at the start of MAC play on Jan. 1 against Miami. In the 16 games since her return she has averaged 16.1 points per game while pulling down 7.4 rebounds per contest. Richard has been efficient from the field as well shooting 52 percent.
Home-Sweet-Home:
John E. Worthen Arena has been very good to the Cardinals for the past decade. Ball State has a record of 199-88 (.654) at Worthen Arena from 2004-present. In 13 seasons Brady Sallee has compiled a 133-57 (.691) record in Worthen Arena. His best season at home was in 2022-23 when the Cardinals went 15-1 in Worthen.Â
Scouting Buffalo:
- The Bulls lead the league in scoring offense (74.6), scoring margin (+15.3), field goal percentage (.460), assists (16.5), and turnover margin (+7.6) while also ranking in the top three in scoring defense (59.3), field goal defense (.378), steals per game (10.4) and free throw percentage (.771).
- Fifth year guard Chellia Watson is continuing to prove why she is one of the best players in the league as she is averaging 20.3 points, 5.2 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game while shooting 45% from the floor in 28 starts this season.
- The Bulls, one of two MAC teams ranked in the Mid-Major Top 25, are 10-3 on the road this season, including 5-2 in league play.
- The Bulls have been known for their defense under head coach Becky Burke and this season is no different as they lead the MAC and rank in the top 25 nationally in turnovers forced (22.0) and turnover margin (+7.6) and are in the top 50 in field goal defense (.378) and 3FG defense (.281).
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