After dropping its first two games of the season, Ball State pushed its winning streak to five games Tuesday night, defeating SIU-Edwardsville 76-55 on the road.
The Cardinals have struggled on offense early in games so far this season, but not on Tuesday.
Ball State (5-2) jumped out to a 13-2 run to begin the game and never let up from there.
Sophomore guard Jesse Berry led all scorers in the game with a career-high 25 points, going 4-for-8 from three. Senior forward Jarrod Jones followed close behind with 22 points and 13 rebounds.
Jones' double-double marked the 24th of his career. He also made 9 of his 11 free throw attempts.
Point guard Randy Davis scored six points and dished out a game-high nine assists.
The leading scorers for SIU-Edwardsville (1-6) were forwards Jerome Jones and Michael Messer, who both scored 12 points.
The Cougars made a late 9-2 run to end the game, but by that point it was far out of reach.
The Cardinals shot 46.9 percent from the floor while holding the Cougars to 35.2 percent shooting.
Ball State shot at the free throw line effectively, shooting 22-for-29 from the charity stripe. The Cardinals also controlled the boards, out-rebounding the Cougars 35 to 27.
Tuesday night marked the fourth ever meeting between the two teams as they've met the past three years with the Cardinals winning all three meetings.
Ball State will now return home after a two-game road trip to play Butler on Saturday at 2 p.m. in Worthen Arena, one day after the Ball State women's basketball team plays the Butler women's team on the road.
Read More
Ball State women’s basketball runs out of gas against Columbia in the Battle 4 Atlantis
By Elijah Poe / 5 hours ago“As hard as we played, we literally were running on fumes,” Ball State women's basketball head coach Brady Sallee said about the 69-62 loss to Columbia in the Battle 4 Atlantis.
Ball State defeats Eastern Kentucky in opening game of Gulf Coast Showcase
By Zach Carter / 11 hours agoBall State defeated Eastern Kentucky 63-61 for the Cardinals' second win of the season.
Ball State tops Texas A&M in second game of Battle 4 Atlantis Tournament
By Logan Connor / Yesterday“It's the reason you come to play in tournaments like this, to play really good basketball teams,” head coach Brady Salle said after his team's Battle 4 Atlantis win
