The Ball State Cardinals men’s basketball team participated in round two of the MAC-SBC Challenge, where they secured a hard-fought victory over Southern Mississippi.
MUNCIE, Ind.— The Ball State Cardinals men’s basketball team participated in round two of the MAC-SBC Challenge, where they secured a hard-fought victory over Southern Mississippi.
Starting last season, teams from each conference will go against each other in the MAC-SBC “Battle For The Belt.” After each round of the challenge, the number of wins for each conference is tallied and the conference with the most wins is declared the winner. This round of the tournament would go to the MAC after the teams from the MAC would win eight out of twelve matches.
The Cardinal's win was aided by the 21-point performance from senior forward Mickey Pearson Jr. Pearson would go seven for 12 in field goals and three for six from behind the three-point line. Pearson would also crack two milestones in this game, reaching 1000 career points as well as 500 career rebounds.
“I’m just happy I was able to achieve that, just showcasing how hard I’ve been working… but it's a great achievement,” Pearson said after his performance.
This win would put Cardinals head coach Michael Lewis at a two-and-two record against teams from the Sun Belt Conference. Both of Lewis’ wins against teams from the Sun Belt would also be comeback victories. Come-from-behind victories after halftime is not something that Lewis is new to however, as he often knows how to put his team in the best position to come back and secure the victory.
“I think we came out with a real purpose in the second half…We did a much better job getting back in the second half, I thought we executed things well… I think we played with some poise and did some things down the stretch to win,” Lewis said.
This win is sure to give the Cardinals some momentum as they continue MAC Conference play against Eastern Michigan as Coach Michael Lewis says,
“All wins are big, I mean it sure beats the alternative… but I think we can feel good about this and turn our attention to Eastern Michigan.”
Contact Stephen Grata with comments at stephen.grata@bsu.edu.
