by There was one phrase that Michael Lewis said as soon as he hopped on the post-game Zoom call after Saturday’s Ball State men’s basketball win.
“There’s not much to be upset with in a game like this,” the Cardinals’ head coach said.
This came after Ball State went on the road and used a huge second-half performance to rout Northern Illinois (NIU) 79-43.
The Cardinals’ 36-point win — which made it back-to-back victories for them — came as they are still fighting for a chance to make the Mid-American Conference (MAC) Tournament, which is just two weeks away.
Ball State’s (10-19, 5-11 MAC) solid play did not just come in the final 20 minutes. The Cardinals started the game with intensity on offense as they led 24-9 at the 9:50 mark of the first half. Lewis said this came down to how they started the contest.
“I thought we came out with a real purpose,” he said. “I thought we got off to a great start and did really good things on both ends of the court.”
NIU — who only hit eight shots in the first half — began to find some momentum, and they cut into Ball State’s 15-point advantage with some runs.
At halftime, the Huskies (9-19, 4-12 MAC) just trailed 36-29.
“I just didn’t think we were turning our defensive effort into points at the rate we needed to,” Lewis said.
Then it happened.
The Cardinals opened the second half with a 21-0 run — which is the team’s largest of the season — and that escalated a 30-2 streak at the 9:59 mark. This came as Ball State hit numerous 3-pointers and could not seem to make a mistake on offense.
In total, Ball State shot 53.3 percent and 42.9 percent from deep in the second half. The Cardinals finished the game going 30-for-60 from the field. They were 11-for-25 (44 percent) from beyond the arc.
While the shots were falling, Lewis said it came down to Ball State’s defense.
“I thought a lot of our offense [in the second half] came from forcing them into some tough shots. And then, long rebounds led to leak-outs and forced some turnovers.”
In total, NIU lost the ball 12 times and ended the loss 11-for-43 (25.6 percent) from the field. From the 3-point range, the Huskies were just 4-for-17 (23.5 percent). They also had 27 rebounds while the Cardinals grabbed 39.
But Ball State also used the sharing-is-caring model to record 20 assists. Passing has been a topic that Lewis has talked about multiple times this year, but today, the Cardinals broke through their recent struggles.
“I think we’re cleaning it up a bit,” Lewis said. “We’re not throwing it at people’s feet or above their heads… I still believe we can improve [our passing] greatly. We just got to get these guys to see and make the play.”
Redshirt sophomore guard Davion Hill led the Cardinals with 17 points on 7-for-14 shooting. Behind him was junior guard Armoni Zeigler with 13 points and six rebounds. Senior guard Elmore James IV (12), redshirt sophomore forward Kayden Fish (12) and senior guard Devon Barnes (11) all had double-figure scoring days as well.
In total, 10 of the 13 Cardinals who saw time on the court scored.
“I was a little concerned heading into this game because I don’t think we performed our best in certain situations,” Lewis said. “To come out here and do this today, it’s really good.”
Ball State will return to action when they visit Western Michigan Tuesday, March 3. The opening tip is set for 7 p.m.
With Saturday’s victory and some other league wins from Bowling Green (17-13, 8-9 MAC) and Central Michigan (10-19, 6-10 MAC), Ball State now sits in 10th place in the MAC. Though they will need to win out and still require some assistance from other conference teams, there is a chance.
And it is a chance that Lewis and the Cardinals will take.
“When the calendar slips to March, and you have an opportunity to play meaningful games this month, it can be a lot of fun,” Lewis said.
Contact Zach Carter via email at zachary.carter@bsu.edu, zachcarter039@gmail.com or via X @ZachCarter85.
