Ypsilanti, Mich. After some hot three-point shooting in the first half and an 11 point run that lasted five minutes in the second half, Ball State downed Eastern Michigan Saturday night, 63-45.
Ball State's win marks the team at 1-1 in the Mid-American Conference and 8-5 overall.
It was a wide assortment of three-point shoots that lead the Cardinals in the first half.
Chris Williams, Billy Lynch, Matt McCollom, and Petie Jackson all nailed tres in the first half as the team finished with eight three's in the first half.
In the second half however, Ball State attempted only eight three pointers, forcing the ball inside.
After Markus Austin committed an intentional foul on Cardinal Theron Smith, Ball State started it's final run of the game with a little over six minutes remaining in the contest.
Ball State had allowed Eastern Michigan to come within nine points after a 16 point lead at the half.
Smith was the games high-scorer, leading the Cardinals with 22 points. Smith completed his seventh double-double of the season after also pulling in 17 rebounds.
"He just keeps getting better and better," Buckley said of his junior player. "I have really enjoyed watching him this year because he has not had a bad effort day in practice."
After the game, Eastern Michigan coach Jim Boone wasn't that surprised with the outcome.
"We knew coming into the game we had our hands full," Boone said. "This is a good team."
The aspect of the game Buckley left most pleased with Saturday was his team's defensive efforts. Ball State held the Eagles to only 30.2 percent from the field.
"It's something we have emphasized to them over the past couple of weeks," Buckley said. "I hope now when we shot the guys the stats they will understand."
Coming off the bench Billy Lynch played 17 minutes for Ball State Saturday. Lynch finished with three points, but despite having only three points, Buckley was pleased with the seniors performance.
"Billy is a real steadying influence," Buckley said. "He puts the ball in the right spot. That's what Billy brings to the team is the steadiness."
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