by MUNCIE, Ind. — Ball State women’s basketball found itself in unfamiliar territory Saturday afternoon.
That was the loss column as the Cardinals fell to Miami 72-52, suffering their first Mid-American Conference (MAC) defeat of the season.
Here are three notes from the game.
Back-and-forth start
The Cardinals (15-4, 7-1 MAC) jumped to a 5-0 lead following the opening tip. However, the Redhawks put together an 8-0 run to take the lead at the 7:10 mark. After that, the Battle of Redbirds remained just that: a true battle.
After one quarter, Ball State trailed Miami 18-13.
However, the visiting Redhawks found momentum in the second quarter, jumping to a 27-16 lead. But it was not just competitive on the court, as Ball State head coach Brady Sallee voiced his opinion to the official on multiple occasions.
During an over-and-back play that the Ball State crowd wanted a whistle on, the officials stayed silent. Sallee jumped on the scorer’s table as he was visibly bothered by the no-call. Following the move, Miami head coach Glenn Box appeared to share pleasantries with Sallee as the two stood on their respective side of the mid-court line.
But while the Cardinals found themselves down by as much as 11 points, they finished the half by outscoring Miami 10-5 in the final 4:51. But the scoreboard still favored the Redhawks (16-4, 8-0 MAC) 34-30 at the break.
Ball State finished the first half 14-for-32 (43.8 percent) from the field while Miami was 13-for-28 (46.4 percent).
Miami owned the third quarter
Though the Redhawks led after 40 minutes of play, their momentum did not stop with that achievement. Miami began the first half firing on all cylinders as the Cardinals were unable to stop them on both ends of the court.
The Redhawks outscored Ball State 27-9 in the third quarter, which was aided by a 17-2 run. During that time, Miami was 12-for-19 (63 percent) while the Cardinals were just 4-for-15 (27 percent). A big reason for that was sophomore forward Ilse de Vries and junior guard Nuria Jurjo, who had 11 and 10 points, respectively, in the period.
On the defensive end, the Redhawks recorded four steals. This alone helped them add seven points to their lead while the Cardinals seemed lifeless. But it was not just Ball State’s players who seemed that way. Sallee — with little energy — remained in his chair during most of the period.
Rough shooting performance from the Cardinals
Though Ball State features a roster with multiple shooters, their outing today did not particularly showcase that.
As a team, the Cardinals shot 29.4 percent (5-for-17) from deep. Overall, they were 21-for-52 (40 percent). The Redhawks finished the win going 30-for-61 (49.2 percent). Even the charity stripe was difficult for the Cardinals, who were just 5-for-10 in foul shots.
Leading the Cardinals in the points category was senior forward Bree Salenbien with 18. Behind her was junior guard Karsyn Norman with nine.
Ball State will return Wednesday, Jan. 28, as the Cardinals travel to Central Michigan for a match with the Chippewas. The game will begin at 6:30 p.m.
Contact Zach Carter via email at zachary.carter@bsu.edu, zachcarter039@gmail.com or via X @ZachCarter85.
