Coming off of a road loss to Ohio, Ball State men’s basketball looked to find the win column as Worthen Arena was the site of a double-header for both Cardinal basketball programs.
While the women’s roster took a victory, the men’s team couldn't match the result and fell to Toledo 93-75.
Here are three takeaways from the loss.
Strong start on offense
It did not take long for the Cardinals to find the bottom of the net in the opening half. By the second media timeout at the 11:43 mark, the red and white were 6-for-10 from the field while being 2-for-3 from the 3-point line.
During that stretch, the Cardinals also had four assists, using a balanced offensive gameplan to find the open man. In the first ten minutes, senior center Payton Sparks had two dunks while junior guard Jermahri Hill had a breakaway slam.
The consistent play with the basketball continued throughout the first half as the Cardinals shot 15-for-31 and had three double-digit scorers. Sparks led Ball State with 11 points and graduate student guard Ethan Brittain-Watts and redshirt senior forward Mickey Pearson Jr. both followed with 10 at halftime. This matched Brittain-Watt’s season-high.
The only thing that trailed off was the 3-point shooting as the red and white finished the period 3-for-9.
Toledo’s offense never surrendered
While Ball State found success on offense, the Rockets were in the same boat. Shooting 53.1 percent in the first half (17-for-32), this allowed them to lead at halftime 44-40. Though the Cardinals tried to contain the visitors at the rim, Toledo used spin moves and other stepback moves to get points on the board.
During the second half, their offense continued to be successful as they shot 19-for-35 and found multiple ways to cut around the Ball State defense. They also had 22 rebounds while the Cardinals only recorded six, giving the Rockets a total of 37 versus Ball State’s 26.
The Rockets were led by sophomore guard Sam Lewis with 21 points and fifth-year guard Isaiah Adams followed with 20. The blue and yellow had five scorers in double figures.
Second-half errors hurt Ball State
While the Cardinals had positive moments throughout the loss, one thing that harmed their effort was some mistakes in the second half. Poor shot selections, negative pass attempts and other issues plagued the red and white.
Yet it wasn’t just the performance, it was the way they played in the half. The energy seemed different as the Cardinals were outpaced by the Rockets inside the paint. With all of those factors added together, the red and white could not get back in the contest, falling in their second-straight game.
Ball State will next go on the road to face Central Michigan Tuesday, Jan. 21. The game will begin at 7 p.m.
Contact Zach Carter via email at zachary.carter@bsu.edu or via X @ZachCarter85.
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