Shooting 27 percent in the first half, getting out-rebounded 42-27 and squandering a 12-point lead in the second half is usually not a recipe for victory.
But a 56.5-percent effort after halftime, an active defense that created 24 turnovers and some grit in the final minutes made the recipe, especially considering the final concoction -- a 71-65 Mid-American Conference triumph over Northern Illinois, Ball State's fifth straight.
The Cardinals (5-1 MAC, 8-6 overall) have now erased a preceding five-game losing skid and stand 1/2 game back of Western Michigan in the West Division. The Broncos are at East leader Kent State tonight.
"What you're finding with this team is they're figuring out ways to get it done, and the players deserve all the credit," BSU coach Tim Buckley said. "I thought they did a fantastic job of making hustle plays, effort plays.
"Michael Bennett stole a possession for us by flying out of bounds, risking life and limb. When you have guys that are willing to do that stuff, you have a chance to be a good basketball team."
Bennett's diving save gave Ball State a second chance with about 2:30 left and the score tied at 61. Robert Owens converted by connecting on two free throws with 2:12 left.
Northern's P.J. Smith tied it again with his own pair of foul shots 15 seconds later, but Peyton Stovall split a pair to give the Cardinals the lead for a good nine seconds after that.
Dennis Trammell then came up with another hustle play, stealing the ball from Smith and calling timeout with 1:21 left. After Ball State milked the shot clock, Owens passed out to Stovall, who calmly sank a 3-pointer from the left wing with 53 seconds remaining.
"We had a five-second shot play against the zone," Stovall said. "As soon as I caught it, I knew it was my chance to make up for the first half."
The freshman point guard scored all 12 of his points in the second half and added five assists. Owens paced Ball State with 17 points -- 15 of them in the second half -- and six rebounds. Trammell tallied 16 and Matt McCollom sank 12-of-14 foul shots.
McCollom and Terrance Chapman both sank two free throws in the final minute to seal the win.
"I think we showed a lot of poise down the stretch," Trammell said. "All through the game our chemistry wasn't what is has been lately, but we showed great poise and pulled it out."
While Ball State shot poorly early on, it still led 23-22 at halftime, as Northern (7-10, 2-5) was even worse (24 percent).
Still, the Huskies managed a 13-2 run in the second half of the game, spearheaded by forward Marcus Smallwood (17 points, nine rebounds) and a spark from reserve Paul Paulsen (12 points).
In the end, though, the Cardinals' hustle plays and strong defense were the decisive factor. Smith averaged 26.5 points in the Huskies' two wins over BSU last season, but Trammell and Co. limited him to just 14 on 4-of-19 shooting.
"I was very proud of our group for coming back and tying it," NIU coach Rick Judson said. "We actually had a chance down one, with the basketball, and we turned it over. That's a lot of credit to Ball State's pressure. I think they're very sound, fundamentally on the ball.
"I think they're the hottest team in the MAC," he said of the Cards. "(Buckley's) got his players playing to their strengths, and I think Tim's done an awesome job with this group."
"It wasn't just me; it was a team effort on that," said Trammell, the primary defender on Smith. "I just wanted to make everything tough on him."
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