WOMEN'S BASKETBALL: New era for Ball State begins with exhibition game

Coach Brady Sallee has first game as coach in blowout win

DN PHOTO COREY OHLENKAMP Coach Brady Sallee talks with his players during a timeout in an exhibition game against Oakland City on Wednesday. Sallee took over the position in May after former coach Kelly Packard resigned.
DN PHOTO COREY OHLENKAMP Coach Brady Sallee talks with his players during a timeout in an exhibition game against Oakland City on Wednesday. Sallee took over the position in May after former coach Kelly Packard resigned.

If there is one thing to take away from the debut of the Ball State women’s basketball coach, it’s defense.

During the exhibition game on Halloween night, Ball State played an aggressive and opportunistic defense for the entire game. At times, it looked scary good.

“We’re focusing more on defense first, then offense second,” seniorShanee’ Jackson said.

Coach Brady Sallee said he will focus on attention to detail and fundamentals. In the exhibition game, it paid off as Ball State forced 29 turnovers and held Oakland City to 17 percent shooting from the field.

“We’re going to play hard, we’re going to play tough,” Sallee said. “We’re going to do the little things. ... I think the kids are buying in to playing off the defensive end. I think you saw a lot of opportunities come off our defense and from our rebounding.”

Exhibition or not, Sallee opened his Ball State coaching career with a win, dominating Oakland City 88-26.

Sallee said he may not be able to do exactly what he wants defensively with the current roster, but he’ll adjust.

“I’m a guy that likes to just match up man-to-man and play for 40 minutes and just say ‘my defense is better than your offense,’” Sallee said. “I don’t think we can do that with the numbers because we’re going to run into some foul trouble, we’re going to get tired if we’re playing this hard.”

Freshman Nathalie Fontaine started as a forward for the Cardinals, and scored 15 points in her debut.

On her 21st birthday, junior Brandy Woody led both teams with 16 points in the exhibition game. The guard, listed 5-foot-4, also led the game in rebounds with 12, giving her the double-double.

Woody said she’s excited about the shift in philosophy for this year’s Ball State team.

“The intensity at practice makes the world of a difference,” Woody said. “It’s like [a] night and day difference. If you think you’re working hard, you’re definitely not. You have to work that much harder.”

Woody was constantly pressing Oakland City point guard Lyndi Tedder throughout the game, with Sallee encouraging her to do so. He yelled, “Move up!” numerous times throughout the blowout.

Late in the first half, Woody had a wide-open fast break layup that she pushed too hard and missed, but secured her own rebound and drew the foul to go to the line. Sallee, encouraged by her play, yelled from the bench.

“Way to stick with it!”

He said the key to balancing physicality and scrappiness is discipline.

“Our job is to come out and play the way we practice every day,” Sallee said. “We did that and sometimes, it’s up to the other squad to match our intensity.”

Jackson didn’t start, but she ended up tied for second on the team in minutes with 26. Jackson, the only senior on the team, was treated to a standing ovation upon leaving the court in the game late in the fourth quarter.

“I really didn’t think about that, but I think it’s just the fact that [it is] me being a senior and my last go-around,” Jackson said. “I honestly didn’t think about that.”

Sallee, a Kentucky native, was hired in May after the resignation of Kelly Packard, who spent the previous five seasons as coach.

Sallee was the head of an Eastern Illinois program that went 136-109 in eight years, including winning 106 games in the last five years. The highlight year was the 2009-10 season, where his team went 23-11 overall and 16-2 in the Ohio Valley Conference.

The results may not come right away for Sallee and Ball State. In his first three years at Eastern Illinois, Sallee’s teams went 29-55.

That’s the million-dollar question,” Sallee said, on how long it will take to build his program at Ball State. “You’d like to do it yesterday, but the key right now is we embrace the process we’re going through.”

Despite the probable wait for long-term success, Sallee said he believes the Cardinals can win now.

“We’re intent on being good this year,” Sallee said. “There’s no reason we can’t be.”

After the game, athletic director Bill Scholl spoke with Sallee for a few minutes, ending with a congratulations from Scholl.

The regular season officially tips off at home Nov. 9 against Evansville.

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