MUNCIE, Ind – Powered by five players in double figures, Ball State shot its way past another high-octane offense as the Cardinals defeated Central Michigan, 98-83, Tuesday at Worthen Arena.
Trey Moses led the hosts, registering . . .
CMU got a 29-point performance by the nation’s leading scorer, Marcus Keene, but the 5-9 junior matched his season average (28.7 ppg) by hitting 9 of 25 (36%) from the field. He was 8 of 17 on treys. As a team, the Chippewas connected on 24 of 68 (35.3 %) overall. That left them 11 field goals behind the hosts. A 17-9 advantage in threes, however, helped CMU hang around the hot-shooting Cardinals.
Ball State guard Tayler Persons added 18 points, while Franko House (16) and Francis Kiapway (14) also reached double-figures. Jeremie Tyler chipped in 10 points off the bench.
Central Michigan came out of the gates hot, with Keene notching 18 points in the first 12 minutes of the game. CMU eventually expanded its lead to 36-26 with just over eight minutes to go in the first half.
Ball State rallied with a 15-0 run later in the period, giving the Cardinals a 41-36 advantage going into the final stretch of the first half. BSU would eventually head to the locker room with a 48-43 edge.
The second half saw Ball State control the paint and expand its lead with free throws and easy buckets. The Cardinals also limited Keene to just nine points over the final 20 minutes.
Central Michigan managed to get with five points with 10:26 left to go. However, the Cardinals would lead the entire half with the help of 18-of-22 from the charity stripe in the second half.
Keene notched seven assists to go with his game-high 29 points. Braylon Rayson added 20 points to the Chippewas effort, while David DiLeo poured in four triples on the way to 14 points off the bench.
Ball State (12-6, 3-2 MAC), will travel to Bowling Green Saturday at 2:30 PM. Central Michigan, which fell to 11-7 overall (1-4 MAC) meets Miami Saturday in a 1:30 PM tilt.