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Behind the game-high 15 points of
senior D'Andre Peyton, five Cardinals scored in double figures
as the Ball State men's basketball team opened its 2006-07
season -- and the Ronny Thompson Era -- with a fast-paced 81-42
win over Northern Colorado. |
| "I thought we
played very hard," Thompson said. "I've been saying to
the guys in practice to just give me everything they have and I
think they did." |
| With his father John on site to
watch, Ronny Thompson led the Cardinals to their 50th
all-time home opener victory in commanding fashion. Ball State's
margin of victory (41), is the fifth largest in opening games
all time. |
| Both teams started
very slowly offensively and were plagued with turnovers, missed
shots and fouls. After a tie at 8-8, Peyton scored a lay-up and
the Cardinals never looked back. |
| "I kept telling
our guys during timeouts, ‘Don't get comfortable',"
Thompson said. "I thought we did a lot of good things in
the halfcourt and fullcourt. I was very pleased with the
effort we gave on defense." |
| Outscoring Northern
Colorado 26-10 in the final 13 minutes of the half, Ball State
utilized its quick offense and tight defense to gain a 34-18
lead by the end of the first half. |
| Highlighting the
first half for the Cardinals was Peyton who had 11 points and
four rebounds. Sophomore Anthony Newell tallied eight
rebounds in the first 20 minutes of play. |
| "Anthony has
been great," Thompson said. "We've had a lot of talks.
I've told him don't try to figure out what position you are,
just be a basketball player." |
| The Cardinals forced
14 turnovers in the first half along with five steals, compared
to Northern Colorado's one. |
| The second half was
much the same as the Cardinals' quick tempo and relentless
defense smothered Northern Colorado from the start. Ball State
scored the first 10 points of the second half to push the score
to 44-18. |
| Sophomore Jalon
Perryman's moment came at 7:49 in the second half when he hit a
three-pointer which was followed by a dunk. The run gave the
Cardinals a 30-point lead, forced a timeout and brought the home
crowd -- including the more than 1,000 students in The Nest --to
its feet. |
| Peyton put the
punctuation on the game with a lay-up to give the Cardinals a
41-point lead and season-opening win. |
| Peyton paced Ball
State with a game-high 15 points, while Stovall chipped in 13
points in 28 minutes of action. Newell added 12 points
while Perryman and newcomer Steve Horton each finished
with 11 points. |
| Stovall returned to
the court -- and the starting lineup -- for the first time in
nearly a year. |
| "I felt great
out there," Stovall said. "My teammates did a good
job. We got our defense turned up and our offense was patient
throughout the game." |
| Newell grabbed a
career-high nine rebounds to lead the BSU defense. Peyton
grabbed seven and Chris Ames added six. The Cardinals held
a 42-32 edge on the boards, including 23 offensive rebounds. |
| "My role on the
team is to play hard and bring the energy I know how to
bring," Newell said. "I told myself that I was
going to try and get as many rebounds as I could and just use my
length to do that." |
| The Cardinals shot 43
percent (29-68) on the afternoon including 52 percent
(17-33) in the second half, while the defense limited UNC
to just 37 percent (16-43). |
| "We don't have a
perfectly polished team," Thompson said. "I'm trying
to get the guys to understand what we are and what our culture
is going to be. We've got to continue to be blue collar and do
all the little things it takes to win." |
|
Ball
State returns to action with the second of three-straight home
games Nov. 19 against Prairie View A&M. Tip is
scheduled for Noon at Worthen Arena and tickets are available by
calling 1.888.BSU.TICKET or online at ballstatesports.com. |
