During Ball State University's winning streak, which now spans 10 games, the club's offense has received the bulk of the glory.
Tuesday it was the Cardinals' defense that led them to a 71-49 victory over the University of Akron. Ball State struggled with its shooting in the first half, connecting on 11 of 31 (35 percent) of its shots from the field. However, the Cardinals' defense forced Akron into more turnovers (18) than made field goals (5) in the first 20 minutes, helping Ball State to a 20-point lead at intermission.
Cardinals' coach Tracy Roller accredited sophomore guard Porchia Green for leading the team's intense defense.
"I was really pumped about how aggressive our defense was in the first half," Roller said. "Porchia played really great defense on the point. She forced [Akron's] point guard [Sarah Tokodi] into nine turnovers. At one point I just felt sorry for her because with the way Porchia was playing defense on her there wasn't much [Tokodi] could do."
Ball State used a 10-2 run to break the game open, giving the Cardinals a 30-12 lead with 4:30 left in the opening period. Freshman guard Audrey McDonald scored seven of her 12 points, including two 3-pointers, during the run.
McDonald said hitting perimeter shots from the outside opened up things in other areas on the floor.
"Hitting 3-pointers is huge because obviously three is more than two. But it's more important than that," McDonald said. "Hitting shots from the outside opens up the paint area a little bit. Then the defense is forced to guard both our post players inside and our guards on the outside. So it really helps everybody."
After struggling in the first half, the Cardinals' offense was more efficient in the second half, connecting on 12 of 22 (54.4 percent) in the period.
Junior forward Julie DeMuth picked up two fouls in the first five minutes of the game and did not play the rest of the half. Even with the limited time and foul trouble, she scored 14 of her team-high 15 points in the second half.
Though DeMuth is the Cardinals' leading scorer on the season, she got help from her teammates. Ball State had four players score in double-figures. Akron's Niki McCoy had a game-high 22 points. The Zips' second-leading scorer, Tokodi, contributed eight points in the loss.
DeMuth, who added six steals on the defensive end, said the team's depth paid major dividends to the Cardinals.
"You're not too happy with yourself when you get into foul trouble," DeMuth said. "But it's definitely nice to know you have a team that's still going to be able to score points. Our depth was definitely a positive for us tonight."
Ball State's next game will be at home this Saturday against Ohio University.
The Cardinals have the opportunity to tie the program's all-time record for consecutive wins with 11. However, Roller said the team is more excited for the chance to play in front of its Ball State fans.
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