While junior college transfer Majok Majok’s immediate success established him as a go-to scorer in the paint, Ball State’s junior forward seemingly felt the effects of becoming a target on opposing scouting reports.
After Majok scored in double figures in the Cardinals’ first four games, teams started double teaming the Perth, Australia native and forcing his catches farther and farther from the basket.
It wasn’t uncommon to see Majok get visibly frustrated during games as his touches dwindled — that is until Saturday.
Despite losing 61-47 to Kent State, Ball State’s big man dominated the painted area, forcing defenders to hack him continuously to prevent layups in arguably his best performance in nearly a month.
“He’s strong and physical — just a horse down there [inside],” Kent State coach Rob Senderoff said. “He’s a tough matchup for anyone in our league.”
The Golden Flashes undersized frontcourt players certainly couldn’t match up. Majok finished with 13 and points and 12 rebounds despite shooting 7-of-17 from the foul line.
Kent State was forced to foul Majok so often because Ball State got him in positions close to the basket.
Coach Billy Taylor said his team’s improved pick-and-roll execution got Majok diving to the bucket for several uncontested dunks.
It was no coincidence that the Cardinals’ offense flowed so much better when they got easy points in the paint.
“I think it was really just about different styles in terms of what teams are giving you,” Taylor said. “If they’re giving you interior touches, we always want to go there first and try to make a presence in the paint. I thought we did that pretty effectively.”
Taylor said Majok hasn’t scored as much lately because of how well Ball State’s guards have played in the last couple of games.
Even with junior Jesse Berry and senior Jauwan Scaife carrying the offensive load of late, Senderoff said even as his team threw everything at Majok defensively, he’s still a force for Ball State’s frontcourt.
“I thought we did a pretty good job and he still had a double-double,” Senderoff said.
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