Ball State basketball 'shares the sugar' in victory over Evansville

MUNCIE, Ind. — Ball State had no trouble getting reacclimated to Worthen Arena. And if it learned anything Saturday afternoon, it's that its good defense will directly correlate to getting good shots at the other end.

In its first home game in 18 days, Ball State rolled to a 82-72 victory over Evansville on Saturday at Worthen Arena.

The Cardinals (3-3) frustrated the Purple Aces (2-3), who had scored 85 or more in three straight games. That led to run outs, with K.J. Walton (game-high 20 points) cashing in at the rim and Kyle Mallers (17 points) making Evansville pay from deep.

Walton had his second straight game of 20 or more points and seems to be settling in nicely. He made 8 of 9 shots while also tallying seven rebounds, three steals and two blocks.

"When our defense is good, he's going to be effective because no one thrives off transition more than him," Ball State coach James Whitford said. "Both this game and (Appalachian State), he was terrific."

Ball State (3-3) racked up a season-high 16 assists. Tayler Persons had another good day running the team, finishing with nine assists and three turnovers. Even on an off-shooting day from Persons (he shot 3 of 11), the Cardinals got good looks.

"In the second half, we got the ball popped around," Whitford said. "When Kyle gets loose, Tayler has a lot to do with it. It was a couple really good decisions in transition and it was good second-half offense. ... And that's why we push the ball, because we're not going to get those shots in the half court."

Tahjai Teague, who scored 17 points on 7 of 9 shooting, explained it like this: "Everyone just shares the sugar."

Mallers made 4 of 7 from 3-point range, and Ball State finished 8 of 20 from deep overall. After missing all four of his shot attempts in the first half, Mallers hit 6 of 8 from the floor, including 4 of 7 from 3-point range, after intermission.

"That's the life of a shooter," Mallers said. "The first half I didn't hit anything, and the second half, I got hot. You have to have the confidence to shoot an open shot, especially if you're counted on to do it. I'm going to keep taking them."

Walton had an electric first half with 19 points. He said he has done a better job of not forcing his drives to the basket and instead swinging the ball side to side to keep the defensive moving. Then, attack.

"We came out with a lot of energy," Walton said. "Coach said they were bad in transition, so we just took advantage of that."

Evansville came into the game averaging 27.8 3-point attempts per game, and Ball State limited the Purple Aces to just 17. The Purple Aces were able to hang with Xavier in large part to hitting 17 of 33 3-point attempts. But Walton chased Evansville leading scorer Shea Feehan around screens and didn't let him get comfortable. Feehan did get loose late for 19 points, but most came after Ball State had already taken a 22-point lead.

"It was one of those things where they were just better than us," Evansville coach Walter McCarty said. "We have to give them credit. They jumped on us from the jump, and we sat back and took it."

Ryan O’Gara covers Ball State and East Central Indiana high schools at the Star Press. Contact him at (765) 213-5829, rogara@muncie.gannett.com or @RyanOGara.