Eastern Illinois took two missed shots, missed two free throws and had two turnovers before scoring its first basket of the game. By that time, Ball State was up eight.
The trend continued as the Cardinals' defense gave up nothing easy, forcing 21 turnovers in their 77-46 win Sunday.
Ball State blew the game open in the second half behind 15 points off turnovers. The defense swarmed Eastern Illinois and held the Panthers to 31.4 percent shooting for the game.
Shooting guard Jauwan Scaife led the Cardinals in scoring with 19 points. Three other players were in double figures, including forward Jarrod Jones, who recorded a double-double.
"My dad used to tell me when I was younger, if you play hard on D, everything else will come," Scaife said.
Defensive stops keyed the Cardinals' break and allowed shooters like freshman guard Jesse Berry to get open looks. Berry knocked down three 3-pointers.
"[Our defense] keys our transition game," coach Billy Taylor said. "If we get those steals, we get those stops, then we can run. And we've got some athletic guys who can run the floor and different guards to push the ball. It really starts with our defense."
Taylor still stresses defense as his team's identity, and Ball State showed why it was the Mid-American Conference's top team in scoring defense last season.
"We had very active hands, we were aggressive and we were good at help-side [defense]," Taylor said. "I thought our guys really understood the game plan in terms of how to defend them offensively. We tried to take away their key shooters and pressure their entries."
Junior Pierre Sneed again took the role of defensive specialist, containing Eastern Illinois guard Tyler Laser. Laser was a preseason All-Ohio Valley Conference selection, but Sneed held him to 10 points on 4-of-13 shooting.
"Even though [Sneed] was 0 for 3 from the field, he knew his assignment was to chase Tyler Laser," Taylor said. "Pierre did a great job not forcing the offense and staying consistent for us on defense."
Ball State played without freshmen guards Tyrae Robinson and Chris Bond, who were held out of the game as the eligibility was looked into. Taylor said he hoped the situation would be resolved early this week and that the pair would be able to play Wednesday against Indiana State.
The 31-point margin of victory is the largest since 2006. It was easy to see the Cardinals potential, which is why they were picked to finish first in the Mid-American Conference West Division. Taylor said he feels this team is different than last season's already.
"I think we are seeing the build from last year," Taylor said. "We hit a wall, got fatigued and struggled those last four games of the season. We have new faces and guys battling in practice. It just helps you get better, and I think we saw the result of that on the court today."
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